Studies on vegetation-, fire-, climate- and human history in the mid- to late Holocene - a contribution to protection and management of the forest-steppe-biome in the Mongolian Altai

• Main Author: Unkelbach, Julia
• Other Authors: Behling, Hermann Prof. Dr., Bergmeier, Erwin Prof. Dr., Dippold, Michaela Prof. Dr., Gansert, Dirk PD Dr., Meier, Ina Christin PD Dr., Schmidt, Alexander Prof. Dr.
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2020
• Subjects: 570; Mongolia; vegetation history; climate history; human activity; nature conservation; forest-steppe-ecosystem; multi-proxy-approach; Biologie (PPN619462639); permafrost
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/21.11130/00-1735-0000-0005-147E-8; https://doi.org/10.53846/goediss-8195; https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:gbv:7-21.11130/00-1735-0000-0005-147E-8-4

In this thesis, several sedimentological archives from Altai Tavan Bogd National Park are studied to reconstruct the vegetation-, fire-, climate- and human history of the forest-steppe biome in the Mongolian Altai. The research is carried out to improve the understanding of the dynamics and variability of this sensitive ecosystem and its unique biodiversity. Previous palynological or palaeoecological work from the Mongolian Altai is sparse, yet important for an implementation of sustainable land use as well as protection and management of the species-rich vegetation in the Altai region. The main goals of this research are to reconstruct past vegetation and to investigate the role and extent of climate, fire and anthropogenic impact on environmental change. A multi-site approach of five environmental archives (lacustrine and peat) from different locations and elevations within the forest-steppe biome (below, within and above the forest belt) is applied to obtain as much information as possible. Multi-proxy analyses including palynological and sedimentological proxies (pollen, NPPs, charcoal, diatoms and XRF-scanning) were used on the radiocarbon dated sediment archives. During the mid- and the beginning of the late Holocene (4,300 to 1,000 (2,000) cal yr BP) the vegetation in the area was characterized by open coniferous forest and high-mountain steppe indicating rather warm and humid conditions. In the further course of the late Holocene, steppe communities expanded noticeably favoring a colder and more arid climate. During the last approx. 70 years an increase in tree and shrub vegetation indicates a warming climate and a higher availability of water due to permafrost and glacier degradation in the high mountains. Regarding the human history in the Mongolian Altai, the period from 2,000 to 1,000 cal yr BP represents a transition phase from hunters and gatherers to a nomadic herding lifestyle. Coprophilous fungi reconstructions show that grazing intensified around 1,000 cal yr BP, possibly also favoring the ...