Glacial-interglacial Climate Change Research Articles

Assessing the potential capability of reconstructing glacial Atlantic water masses and AMOC using multiple proxies in CESM

Reconstructing the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) is essential for understanding glacial-interglacial climate change and the carbon cycle. However, despite many previous studies, uncertainties remain regarding the glacial water mass distributions in the Atlantic and the AMOC intensity. Here we use an isotope enabled ocean model with multiple geotracers (δ13C, εNd, 231Pa/230Th, δ18O and Δ14C) and idealized water tracers to study the potential constraints on LGM ocean circulation from multiple proxies. Our model suggests that the glacial Atlantic water mass distribution can be accurately constrained by the air-sea gas exchange signature of water masses (δ13CAS), but εNd might overestimate the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) percentage in the deep Atlantic probably because of the boundary source of Nd. A sensitivity experiment with an AMOC of similar geometry but much weaker strength suggests that the correct AMOC geometry is more important than the AMOC strength for simulating the observed glacial δ13C and εNd distributions. The kinematic tracer 231Pa/230Th is sensitive to AMOC intensity, but the interpretation might be complicated by the AMOC geometry and AABW transport changes during the LGM. δ18O in the benthic foraminifera (δ18Oc) from the Florida Straits provides a consistent measure of the upper ocean boundary current in the model, which potentially provides an unambiguous method to reconstruct glacial AMOC intensity. Finally, we propose that the moderate difference between AMOC intensity at LGM and PD, if any, is caused by the competition of the responses to CO2 forcing and continental ice sheet forcing.

Asian inland wildfires driven by glacial–interglacial climate change

Wildfire can influence climate directly and indirectly, but little is known about the relationships between wildfire and climate during the Quaternary, especially how wildfire patterns varied over glacial-interglacial cycles. Here, we present a high-resolution soot record from the Chinese Loess Plateau; this is a record of large-scale, high-intensity fires over the past 2.6 My. We observed a unique and distinct glacial-interglacial cyclicity of soot over the entire Quaternary Period synchronous with marine δ18O and dust records, which suggests that ice-volume-modulated aridity controlled wildfire occurrences, soot production, and dust fluxes in central Asia. The high-intensity fires were also found to be anticorrelated with global atmospheric CO2 records over the past eight glacial-interglacial cycles, implying a possible connection between the fires, dust, and climate mediated through the iron cycle. The significance of this hypothetical connection remains to be determined, but the relationships revealed in this study hint at the potential importance of wildfire for the global climate system.

Regional impacts of climate change and its relevance to human evolution.

The traditional concept of long and gradual, glacial-interglacial climate changes during the Quaternary has been challenged since the 1980s. High temporal resolution analysis of marine, terrestrial and ice geological archives has identified rapid, millennial- to centennial-scale, and large-amplitude climatic cycles throughout the last few million years. These changes were global but have had contrasting regional impacts on the terrestrial and marine ecosystems, with in some cases strong changes in the high latitudes of both hemispheres but muted changes elsewhere. Such a regionalization has produced environmental barriers and corridors that have probably triggered niche contractions/expansions of hominin populations living in Eurasia and Africa. This article reviews the long- and short-timescale ecosystem changes that have punctuated the last few million years, paying particular attention to the environments of the last 650,000 years, which have witnessed key events in the evolution of our lineage in Africa and Eurasia. This review highlights, for the first time, a contemporaneity between the split between Denisovan and Neanderthals, at ~650-400 ka, and the strong Eurasian ice-sheet expansion down to the Black Sea. This ice expansion could form an ice barrier between Europe and Asia that may have triggered the genetic drift between these two populations.

Climate change and biogeographic connectivity across the Brazilian cerrado

AbstractAimTo investigate cerrado responses to glacial–interglacial climate change and the potential for connective rain forest corridors between the Atlantic Coastal Forest and Amazonian rain forest.LocationThe crater lake of Serra Negra (18 °S, 46 °W) in Minas Gerais, Brazil.Taxon117 fossil pollen types, 22 non‐pollen palynomorphs were documented.MethodsWe recovered 7.82 m of sediment from the lake, and analysed fossil pollen at 62 depth intervals throughout the core. We derived a chronology based on radiocarbon dating with simple rate extrapolation to the base of the core.ResultsThe c. 90,000‐year fossil record showed a trend towards cooler climates at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), but interstadial warming coupled with reduced evaporative stress allowed the expansion of woodlands under cool, moist conditions. Cool‐adapted trees were most abundant between c. 67,000 and 48,000 years ago. A cool cerrado‐like environment marked full glacial conditions between c. 48,000 and 34,000 years ago. The peak of the LGM between c. 34,000 and 17,000 years ago is inferred to have been dry as no sediment accumulated in the system.Main conclusionsExpanded ranges of cold‐tolerant forest taxa led to establishment of a series of assemblages without modern analogue. A system characteristic of modern cerrado was rare in the history of this site. Multiple forest expansions were observed, each differing in composition. The periods of forest abundance at Serra Negra were not temporally aligned with forest expansion in the Atlantic Coastal Forest, and did not provide a continuous corridor of similar forest that connected the cerrado to the Atlantic Coastal Forest.

Species and phylogenetic endemism in angiosperm trees across the Northern Hemisphere are jointly shaped by modern climate and glacial–interglacial climate change

AbstractAimsPhylogenetic endemism describes the extent to which unique phylogenetic lineages are constrained to restricted geographic areas. Previous studies indicate that species endemism is related to both past and modern climate, but studies of phylogenetic endemism are relatively rare and mainly focused on smaller regions. Here, we provide the first assessment of the patterns of species and phylogenetic endemism in angiosperm trees across the Northern Hemisphere as well as the relative importance of modern climate and glacial–interglacial climate change as drivers of these patterns.LocationNorthern Hemisphere.Major taxaAngiosperm trees.MethodsUsing tree assemblages at the scale of 100 km × 100 km grid cells and simultaneous autoregressive (SAR) models, we assessed the relationships between species endemism, phylogenetic endemism and modern climate variables, Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) to present temperature velocity.ResultsSpecies and phylogenetic endemism were associated with both modern climate and glacial–interglacial climate change, with higher values in areas with stable historical climate and warmer and wetter modern conditions. Notably, the multivariate SAR analyses showed that the combinations of variables with highest Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) weight always included both LGM–present climate instability and modern climate, that is, modern precipitation and temperature.Main conclusionsOur results show that high phylogenetic endemism is partially dependent on long‐term climate stability, highlighting the threat posed by future climate changes to the preservation of rare, phylogenetically distinct lineages of trees.

Contrasting phylogeographic histories between the continent and islands of East Asia: Massive mitochondrial introgression and long-term isolation of hares (Lagomorpha: Lepus)

Hares of the genus Lepus are distributed worldwide, and introgressive hybridization is thought to be pervasive among species, leading to reticulate evolution and taxonomic confusion. Here, we performed phylogeographic analyses of the following species of hare across East Asia: L. timidus, L. mandshuricus, L. coreanus, and L. brachyurus collected from far-eastern Russia, South Korea, and Japan. Nucleotide sequences of one mitochondrial DNA and eight nuclear gene loci were examined, adding sequences of hares in China from databases. All nuclear DNA analyses supported the clear separation of three phylogroups: L. timidus, L. brachyurus, and the L. mandshuricus complex containing L. coreanus. On the other hand, massive mitochondrial introgression from two L. timidus lineages to the L. mandshuricus complex was suggested in continental East Asia. The northern population of the L. mandshuricus complex was mainly associated with introgression from the continental lineage of L. timidus, possibly since the last glacial period, whereas the southern population of the L. mandshuricus complex experienced introgression from another L. timidus lineage related to the Hokkaido population, possibly before the last glacial period. In contrast to continental hares, no evidence of introgression was found in L. brachyurus in the Japanese Archipelago, which showed the oldest divergence amongst East Asian hare lineages. Our findings suggest that glacial–interglacial climate changes in the circum-Japan Sea region promoted distribution shifts and introgressive hybridization among continental hare species, while the geographic structure of the region contributed to long-term isolation of hares on the islands, preventing inter-species gene flow.

The role of glacial-interglacial climate change in shaping the genetic structure of eastern subterranean termites in the southern Appalachian Mountains, USA.

The eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes, currently inhabits previously glaciated regions of the northeastern U.S., as well as the unglaciated southern Appalachian Mountains and surrounding areas. We hypothesized that Pleistocene climatic fluctuations have influenced the distribution of R. flavipes, and thus the evolutionary history of the species. We estimated contemporary and historical geographic distributions of R. flavipes by constructing Species Distribution Models (SDM). We also inferred the evolutionary and demographic history of the species using mitochondrial (cytochrome oxidase I and II) and nuclear (endo‐beta‐1,4‐glucanase) DNA sequence data. To do this, genetic populations were delineated using Bayesian spatial‐genetic clustering, competing hypotheses about population divergence were assessed using approximate Bayesian computation (ABC), and changes in population size were estimated using Bayesian skyline plots. SDMs identified areas in the north with suitable habitat during the transition from the Last Interglacial to the Last Glacial Maximum, as well as an expanding distribution from the mid‐Holocene to the present. Genetic analyses identified three geographically cohesive populations, corresponding with northern, central, and southern portions of the study region. Based on ABC analyses, divergence between the Northern and Southern populations was the oldest, estimated to have occurred 64.80 thousand years ago (kya), which corresponds with the timing of available habitat in the north. The Central and Northern populations diverged in the mid‐Holocene, 8.63 kya, after which the Central population continued to expand. Accordingly, phylogeographic patterns of R. flavipes in the southern Appalachians appear to have been strongly influenced by glacial‐interglacial climate change.OPEN RESEARCH BADGES This article has been awarded Open Materials, Open Data Badges. All materials and data are publicly accessible via the Open Science Framework at https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.5hr7f31.

Stasis in the smaller owls from Rancho La Brea during the last glacial-interglacial climate change

Stasis in the smaller owls from Rancho La Brea during the last glacial-interglacial climate change

Species richness, phylogenetic and functional structure of bird communities in Chinese university campuses are associated with divergent variables

University campus is an important component of urban landscapes for biodiversity conservation. However, to our knowledge no study has quantitatively assessed the diversity and structure of bird communities in Chinese university campuses, especially from phylogenetic and functional perspectives. Here, for the first time we linked species richness, phylogenetic structure and body mass structure of campus bird communities with contemporary climate, glacial-interglacial climate change, altitudinal range, population density around campus, area and age of campus to test their associations. We found 393 bird species in 38 university campuses (29% of all Chinese bird species, two species are endangered, four species are vulnerable, and 33 species are near threatened). The variables significantly correlated with campus bird species richness, phylogenetic structure and body mass structure were altitudinal range and mean annual precipitation, glacial-interglacial anomaly in temperature, and altitudinal range, respectively. In particular, there were more species in steeper and wetter campuses, more young species clustered in campuses with stable glacial-interglacial climate, and more species with smaller body size in steeper campuses. Our study highlights the importance of considering both phylogenetic and functional information for biodiversity conservation in urban ecosystems.

The preservation of last-glacial (>50 to 40 ka) colluvium on low-relief surfaces in Alishan, an actively uplifting mountain in southwestern Taiwan

Geomorphic studies on the Taiwan orogen have long focused on the rapid erosion and efficient sediment transport in response to active tectonic uplift and frequent earthquakes/heavy rains. Little attention has been paid to the common low-relief surfaces in high mountains that appear to have been geomorphically stable for a long period of time. We undertook a study on a group of such gentle surfaces in Alishan, which consist of poorly drained hummocky slopes averaging 15° and as wide as 2 km. These gentle slopes are underlain by mass-wasting gravels 60–100 m thick, from which 22 radiocarbon dates >50 to 40 ka BP in age were obtained. Below these thick colluvial deposits are ~20° bedrock bedding planes apparently exposed by dip-slope failures. Combining these data reveals alternating hillslope erosion and deposition, along with episodic river downcutting, at a time scale of several 104 yr. We relate this temporal change in geomorphic processes to glacial-interglacial climate change. During the wet inter-/post-glacial periods characterized by frequent heavy rains, landslides/debris flows prevailed and rivers were capable of conveying most sediment eroded from hillslopes. Frequent debris flows combined with sufficient bedload sediments serving as tools for fluvial erosion caused rapid river downcutting. In contrast, the low river erosion/transport capacity during the dry last-glacial period allowed progressive deposition of thick colluvium on the preexisting, gentle bedding surfaces probably eroded during the last interglacial period. This study shows how glacial-interglacial climate change influenced the river/hillslope processes and landscape evolution of the Taiwan orogen.

Bird species richness is associated with phylogenetic relatedness, plant species richness, and altitudinal range in Inner Mongolia.

Bird species richness is mediated by local, regional, and historical factors, for example, competition, environmental heterogeneity, contemporary, and historical climate. Here, we related bird species richness with phylogenetic relatedness of bird assemblages, plant species richness, topography, contemporary climate, and glacial‐interglacial climate change to investigate the relative importance of these factors. This study was conducted in Inner Mongolia, an arid and semiarid region with diverse vegetation types and strong species richness gradients. The following associated variables were included as follows: phylogenetic relatedness of bird assemblages (Net Relatedness Index, NRI), plant species richness, altitudinal range, contemporary climate (mean annual temperature and precipitation, MAT and MAP), and contemporary‐Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) change in climate (change in MAT and change in MAP). Ordinary least squares linear, simultaneous autoregressive linear, and Random Forest models were used to assess the associations between these variables and bird species richness across this region. We found that bird species richness was correlated negatively with NRI and positively with plant species richness and altitudinal range, with no significant correlations with contemporary climate and glacial–interglacial climate change. The six best combinations of variables ranked by Random Forest models consistently included NRI, plant species richness, and contemporary‐LGM change in MAT. Our results suggest important roles of local ecological factors in shaping the distribution of bird species richness across this semiarid region. Our findings highlight the potential importance of these local ecological factors, for example, environmental heterogeneity, habitat filtering, and biotic interactions, in biodiversity maintenance.

Linear and non-linear responses of vegetation and soils to glacial-interglacial climate change in a Mediterranean refuge

The impact of past global climate change on local terrestrial ecosystems and their vegetation and soil organic matter (OM) pools is often non-linear and poorly constrained. To address this, we investigated the response of a temperate habitat influenced by global climate change in a key glacial refuge, Lake Ohrid (Albania, Macedonia). We applied independent geochemical and palynological proxies to a sedimentary archive from the lake over the penultimate glacial-interglacial transition (MIS 6–5) and the following interglacial (MIS 5e-c), targeting lake surface temperature as an indicator of regional climatic development and the supply of pollen and biomarkers from the vegetation and soil OM pools to determine local habitat response. Climate fluctuations strongly influenced the ecosystem, however, lake level controls the extent of terrace surfaces between the shoreline and mountain slopes and hence local vegetation, soil development and OM export to the lake sediments. There were two phases of transgressional soil erosion from terrace surfaces during lake-level rise in the MIS 6–5 transition that led to habitat loss for the locally dominant pine vegetation as the terraces drowned. Our observations confirm that catchment morphology plays a key role in providing refuges with low groundwater depth and stable soils during variable climate.

Glacial-interglacial climate changes recorded by debris flow fan deposits, Owens Valley, California

It is hotly debated whether and how climate changes are recorded by terrestrial stratigraphy. Basin sediments produced by catchment-alluvial fan systems may record past climate over a variety of timescales, and could offer unique information about how climate controls sedimentation. Unfortunately, there are fundamental uncertainties about how climatic variables such as rainfall and temperature translate into sedimentological signals. Here, we examine 35 debris flow fan surfaces in Owens Valley, California, that record deposition throughout the past 125,000 years, during which climate has varied significantly. We show that the last full glacial-interglacial cycle is recorded with high fidelity by the grain size distributions of the debris flow deposits. These flows transported finer sediment during the cooler glacial climate, and became systematically coarser-grained as the climate warmed and dried. We explore the physical mechanisms that might explain this signal, and rule out changes in sediment supply through time. Instead, we propose that grain size records past changes in storm intensity, which is responsible for debris flow initiation in this area and is decoupled from average rainfall rates. This is supported by an exponential Clausius-Clapeyron-style scaling between grain size and temperature, and also reconciles with climate dynamics and the initiation of debris flows. The fact that these alluvial fans exhibit a strong, sustained sensitivity to orbital climate changes sheds new light on how eroding landscapes and their sedimentary products respond to climatic forcing. Finally, our findings highlight the importance of threshold-controlled events, such as storms and debris flows, in driving erosion and sedimentation at the Earth's surface in response to climate change.

Glacial-interglacial climate change on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau over the last 600 kyr

Exploring the interplay between the mid-latitude Westerlies and East Asian monsoon systems is crucial for revealing the mechanisms and processes behind the aridification of the central Asian interior. In this study, a high-resolution acid-dissolved Mn record of lacustrine sediments from a drilling core (SG-1) in the arid western Qaidam Basin on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau (TP) largely reveals the evolution of lake levels and climate change over the last 600kyr. The climate in the western Qaidam Basin shows distinct glacial and interglacial changes in accordance with changes in the global climate, and in North Atlantic sea surface temperatures (SSTs), indicating the teleconnection between the basin's climate and the North Atlantic in the form of the Westerlies. However, the basin's climate also correlates closely with East Asian Winter Monsoon (EAWM) activity as recorded by the grain size variations in loess-paleosol sequences on the Chinese Loess Plateau (CLP) over a glacial-interglacial timescale. Even during glacial periods, some relatively warm/humid stages accompanied by high paleolake levels in the western Qaidam Basin are generally conformable with relatively weak EAWM, whereas these warm/humid stages show a weak relation with the East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) and North Atlantic SSTs. These results collectively provide evidence that climate change in the western Qaidam Basin is, and was, not only controlled by the Westerlies, but also strongly influenced by the Siberian High, at least during glacial periods. The exact driving mechanism, however, needs to be explored further in future studies.

Consistent role of Quaternary climate change in shaping current plant functional diversity patterns across European plant orders

Current and historical environmental conditions are known to determine jointly contemporary species distributions and richness patterns. However, whether historical dynamics in species distributions and richness translate to functional diversity patterns remains, for the most part, unknown. The geographic patterns of plant functional space size (richness) and packing (dispersion) for six widely distributed orders of European angiosperms were estimated using atlas distribution data and trait information. Then the relative importance of late-Quaternary glacial-interglacial climate change and contemporary environmental factors (climate, productivity, and topography) as determinants of functional diversity of evaluated orders was assesed. Functional diversity patterns of all evaluated orders exhibited prominent glacial-interglacial climate change imprints, complementing the influence of contemporary environmental conditions. The importance of Quaternary glacial-interglacial climate change factors was comparable to that of contemporary environmental factors across evaluated orders. Therefore, high long-term paleoclimate variability has imposed consistent supplementary constraints on functional diversity of multiple plant groups, a legacy that may permeate to ecosystem functioning and resilience. These findings suggest that strong near-future anthropogenic climate change may elicit long-term functional disequilibria in plant functional diversity.

Neogene and Pleistocene history of Agave lechuguilla in the Chihuahuan Desert

AbstractAimThe history of Agave lechuguilla, a characteristic and dominant plant of the Chihuahuan Desert, was reconstructed in order to determine the importance of the Neogene orogenic uplift and the Quaternary glacial–interglacial climatic changes on the genetic patterns of a native Chihuahuan Desert species.LocationChihuahuan Desert, Mexico and United States.MethodsChloroplast DNA data from A. lechuguilla were analysed to describe levels of genetic diversity and structure and to infer the species’ demographic history, using traditional methods and approximate Bayesian computation (ABC). The time of divergence of the different haplogroups was estimated with a Bayesian approach. In addition, ecological niche modelling was used to identify possible refugia.ResultsMolecular dating analyses showed that A. lechuguilla originated 4.46 Ma and later differentiated into four haplogroups. The average chloroplast genetic diversity was low (Hd, 0.24), with high levels of genetic differentiation (GST, 0.780). Demographic analysis, niche modelling and ABC indicated a recent expansion from at least five glacial refugia located south of the species’ current distribution.Main conclusionAgave lechuguilla originated in the Neogene, and the glacial–interglacial events of the Pleistocene resulted in the expansion and contraction of its range, playing an important role in its intraspecific diversification. These contraction–expansion events are consistent with biogeographical regions previously identified in the Chihuahuan Desert.

Phylogenetic assemblage structure of North American trees is more strongly shaped by glacial-interglacial climate variability in gymnosperms than in angiosperms.

How fast does biodiversity respond to climate change? The relationship of past and current climate with phylogenetic assemblage structure helps us to understand this question. Studies of angiosperm tree diversity in North America have already suggested effects of current water–energy balance and tropical niche conservatism. However, the role of glacial–interglacial climate variability remains to be determined, and little is known about any of these relationships for gymnosperms. Moreover, phylogenetic endemism, the concentration of unique lineages in restricted ranges, may also be related to glacial–interglacial climate variability and needs more attention. We used a refined phylogeny of both angiosperms and gymnosperms to map phylogenetic diversity, clustering and endemism of North American trees in 100‐km grid cells, and climate change velocity since Last Glacial Maximum together with postglacial accessibility to recolonization to quantify glacial–interglacial climate variability. We found: (1) Current climate is the dominant factor explaining the overall patterns, with more clustered angiosperm assemblages toward lower temperature, consistent with tropical niche conservatism. (2) Long‐term climate stability is associated with higher angiosperm endemism, while higher postglacial accessibility is linked to to more phylogenetic clustering and endemism in gymnosperms. (3) Factors linked to glacial–interglacial climate change have stronger effects on gymnosperms than on angiosperms. These results suggest that paleoclimate legacies supplement current climate in shaping phylogenetic patterns in North American trees, and especially so for gymnosperms.

Functional diversity of North American broad‐leaved trees is codetermined by past and current environmental factors

AbstractModern and historical climate are known to codetermine broad‐scale species richness and composition patterns in temperate regions. Nonetheless, is poorly understood the extent to which these effects individually or in combination determine functional diversity, many studies have simply assumed equilibrium between current climate and functional diversity. We estimated functional richness (FRich) and dispersion (FDisp) of North American broad‐leaved trees by combining distribution and trait information. Then, we determined if contemporary water‐energy availability, current topographic variability, historical climatic stability, and lagged immigration from glacial refugia co‐determined the functional diversity of North American broad‐leaved trees. We did this by assessing the directionality, magnitude, and relative importance of various contemporary and historical environmental factors know to affect species diversity. Contrasts were performed across all North America (Mexico, United States, and Canada), and areas within this region that were glaciated or ice‐free during the Last Glacial Maximum (~21 000 yr ago). FRich and FDisp showed distinct geographic patterns that are strongly associated with both contemporary environmental conditions and glacial–interglacial climate change. Model averaged regression coefficients and AIC‐based variable relative importance estimates show that contemporary productivity (FRich‐wAIC: 1.0; FDisp‐wAIC: 1.0), annual precipitation (FRich‐wAIC: 0.81; FDisp‐wAIC: 1.0), and accessibility to glacial refugia (FRich‐wAIC: 0.92; FDisp‐wAIC: 1.0) have the strongest associations to FRich and FDisp. Furthermore, the association of functional diversity with topographic heterogeneity showed steeper slopes in ice‐free regions. These findings suggest that, contrary to the expectation climate‐diversity equilibrium, functional diversity of North America broad‐leaved trees is codetermined by current climate and lagged immigration from glacial refugia.

The Influence of Paleoclimate on Present-Day Patterns in Biodiversity and Ecosystems

Earth's climate has experienced strong changes on timescales ranging from decades to millions of years. As biodiversity has evolved under these circumstances, dependence on these climate dynamics is expected. In this review, we assess the current state of knowledge on paleoclimatic legacies in biodiversity and ecosystem patterns. Paleoclimate has had strong impacts on past biodiversity dynamics, driving range shifts and extinctions as well as diversification. We outline theory for how these dynamics may have left legacies in contemporary patterns and review the empirical evidence. We report ample evidence that Quaternary glacial–interglacial climate change affects current patterns of species distributions and diversity across a broad range of organisms and regions. We also report emerging evidence for paleoclimate effects on current patterns in phylogenetic and functional diversity and ecosystem functioning and for legacies of deeper-time paleoclimate conditions. Finally, we discuss implications for Anthropocene ecology and outline an agenda to improve our understanding of paleoclimate's role in shaping contemporary biodiversity and ecosystems.

A high-resolution record of Southern Ocean intermediate water radiocarbon over the past 30,000 years

The circulation of intermediate waters plays an important role in global heat and carbon transport in the ocean and changes in their distribution are closely tied to glacial–interglacial climate change. Coupled radiocarbon and U/Th measurements on deep-sea Desmophyllum dianthus corals allow for the reconstruction of past intermediate water ventilation. We present a high-resolution time series of Antarctic Intermediate Water radiocarbon from 44 corals spanning 30 ka through the start of the Holocene, encompassing the transition into the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and the last deglaciation. Corals were collected south of Tasmania from water depths between 1430 and 1950 m with 80% of them between 1500 and 1700 m, giving us a continuous record from a narrow depth range. The record shows three distinct periods of circulation: the MIS 3–2 transition, the LGM/Heinrich Stadial 1 (extending from ∼22 to 16 kyr BP), and the Antarctic Cold Reversal (ACR). The MIS 3–2 transition and the ACR are characterized by abrupt changes in intermediate water radiocarbon while the LGM time period generally follows the atmosphere at a constant offset, in support of the idea that the LGM ocean was at steady state for its 14C distribution. Closer inspection of the LGM time period reveals a 40‰ jump at ∼19 ka from an atmospheric offset of roughly 230‰ to 190‰, coincident with an observed 10–15 m rise in sea level and a southward shift of the Subantarctic and Polar Fronts, an abrupt change not seen in deeper records. During the ACR time period intermediate water radiocarbon is on average less offset from the atmosphere (∼110‰) and much more variable. This variability has been captured within the lifetimes of three individual corals with changes of up to 35‰ over ∼40 yr, likely caused by the movement of Southern Ocean fronts. This surprising result of relatively young and variable intermediate water radiocarbon during the ACR seems to go against the canonical idea of reduced circulation and ventilation in the south during this time period. However comparisons with other records from the Southern Ocean highlight zonal asymmetries, which can explain the deviation of our Tasmanian record from those in Drake Passage and the eastern Pacific. These signals seen in Tasmanian intermediate water Δ14C can also be found in Greenland ice core δ18O and East Asian monsoon strength. Throughout the LGM and the deglaciation, our Tasmanian intermediate water record is sensitive to times when the upper and lower cells of the meridional overturning circulation are more or less interconnected, which has important implications for the global climate system on glacial–interglacial time scales.