Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America
The Arctic tundra extends beyond the treeline north of 58°N in eastern North America and north of 66°N in western North America and Eurasia. A marked exception to this distribution is the azonal tundra situated as far south as 54°30′–45′N, in the Pointe-Louis-XIV area (JABA), along the fast-rising c...
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Canadian Science Publishing
2018
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:1a25ad39046e4a2ea61cf5c9075b0e22 2023-05-15T14:23:36+02:00 Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America Serge Payette Vanessa Pilon Mathieu Frégeau 2018-12-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2018-0007 https://doaj.org/article/1a25ad39046e4a2ea61cf5c9075b0e22 EN FR eng fre Canadian Science Publishing https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2018-0007 https://doaj.org/toc/2368-7460 doi:10.1139/as-2018-0007 2368-7460 https://doaj.org/article/1a25ad39046e4a2ea61cf5c9075b0e22 Arctic Science, Vol 4, Iss 4, Pp 794-812 (2018) arctic tundra boreal forest charcoal fire disturbance isostatic uplift macrofossil analysis Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 article 2018 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2018-0007 2022-12-31T12:58:52Z The Arctic tundra extends beyond the treeline north of 58°N in eastern North America and north of 66°N in western North America and Eurasia. A marked exception to this distribution is the azonal tundra situated as far south as 54°30′–45′N, in the Pointe-Louis-XIV area (JABA), along the fast-rising coasts of James Bay–Hudson Bay. The unusual position of JABA calls into question the influence of climate as the main causal factor for its existence. Macrocharcoal remains extracted from tundra and forest soils were used along a 105 km transect to date the onset of the boreal environment based on past occurrence of conifer fires. Assuming crustal uplift 1.3 m 100 year−1 and 2.4 m 100 year−1 over and before the last 1000 years, and after correcting site elevation at the time the oldest conifer fires occurred, trees established along the coast before 4000 cal. BP. Given charcoal distribution suggesting boreal vegetation in sites ≤13 m a.s.l., JABA was created after 4000 cal. BP when the flat, elongated peninsula emerged above marine waters. It is concluded that JABA origin was most likely caused by the synergistic impact of geophysical factors, isostatic uplift and topography, on a coastal environment already influenced by cold, wind-exposed conditions. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic Hudson Bay Tundra James Bay Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Hudson Bay Hudson Pointe Louis-XIV ENVELOPE(-79.750,-79.750,54.634,54.634) Arctic Science 4 4 794 812 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English French |
topic |
arctic tundra boreal forest charcoal fire disturbance isostatic uplift macrofossil analysis Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 |
spellingShingle |
arctic tundra boreal forest charcoal fire disturbance isostatic uplift macrofossil analysis Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 Serge Payette Vanessa Pilon Mathieu Frégeau Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America |
topic_facet |
arctic tundra boreal forest charcoal fire disturbance isostatic uplift macrofossil analysis Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 |
description |
The Arctic tundra extends beyond the treeline north of 58°N in eastern North America and north of 66°N in western North America and Eurasia. A marked exception to this distribution is the azonal tundra situated as far south as 54°30′–45′N, in the Pointe-Louis-XIV area (JABA), along the fast-rising coasts of James Bay–Hudson Bay. The unusual position of JABA calls into question the influence of climate as the main causal factor for its existence. Macrocharcoal remains extracted from tundra and forest soils were used along a 105 km transect to date the onset of the boreal environment based on past occurrence of conifer fires. Assuming crustal uplift 1.3 m 100 year−1 and 2.4 m 100 year−1 over and before the last 1000 years, and after correcting site elevation at the time the oldest conifer fires occurred, trees established along the coast before 4000 cal. BP. Given charcoal distribution suggesting boreal vegetation in sites ≤13 m a.s.l., JABA was created after 4000 cal. BP when the flat, elongated peninsula emerged above marine waters. It is concluded that JABA origin was most likely caused by the synergistic impact of geophysical factors, isostatic uplift and topography, on a coastal environment already influenced by cold, wind-exposed conditions. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Serge Payette Vanessa Pilon Mathieu Frégeau |
author_facet |
Serge Payette Vanessa Pilon Mathieu Frégeau |
author_sort |
Serge Payette |
title |
Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America |
title_short |
Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America |
title_full |
Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America |
title_fullStr |
Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America |
title_full_unstemmed |
Origin of the southernmost Arctic tundra of continental North America |
title_sort |
origin of the southernmost arctic tundra of continental north america |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2018-0007 https://doaj.org/article/1a25ad39046e4a2ea61cf5c9075b0e22 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-79.750,-79.750,54.634,54.634) |
geographic |
Arctic Hudson Bay Hudson Pointe Louis-XIV |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Hudson Bay Hudson Pointe Louis-XIV |
genre |
Arctic Arctic Hudson Bay Tundra James Bay |
genre_facet |
Arctic Arctic Hudson Bay Tundra James Bay |
op_source |
Arctic Science, Vol 4, Iss 4, Pp 794-812 (2018) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2018-0007 https://doaj.org/toc/2368-7460 doi:10.1139/as-2018-0007 2368-7460 https://doaj.org/article/1a25ad39046e4a2ea61cf5c9075b0e22 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2018-0007 |
container_title |
Arctic Science |
container_volume |
4 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
794 |
op_container_end_page |
812 |
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1766296113155932160 |