Pollen based quantitative climate reconstructions from the Middle Pleistocene sequences in Lukow and Zdany (E Poland): Species and modern analogues based approach

• Published in: Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology
• Main Authors: Pidek, Irena Agnieszka, Poska, Anneli
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2013
• Subjects: Physical Geography; climate reconstruction; Middle Pleistocene; Cromerian Complex; Ferdynandovian interglacial; modern pollen analogues; Eastern Poland; Tundra
• Online Access: https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/3979925; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2013.01.001

The aim of the study was to estimate the range of climate variability during the Ferdynandovian climatostratigraphic unit (MIS 13-15). The studied pollen sequences encompass two interglacials (Ferdynandovian I and II - FI and F II), the glaciation separating them (FI/II), the late glacial of the Sanian I (= Elsterian 1) and the early glacial of the Sanian II (=Elsterian 2) and are correlated with the Cromerian Complex in Western Europe. The modem analogue technique and plant indicator taxa method are applied to two high resolution pollen records (Zdany and Lukow-3a) from E Poland to infer total annual precipitation, mean annual temperature and temperatures of the warmest and the coldest months. The results of the two methods create a coherent picture of climate changes. The succession starts with steppe-tundra and boreal forests, reflecting a cool, late glacial continental climate and develops into widespread Ulmus and Quercus dominated communities, followed by Corylus expansion in warm (at least 18 degrees C in July), oceanic conditions (similar to 800-900 mm annual precipitation) during the first interglacial optimum (F I). The cold, continental climate of the glaciation (FI/II) with annual precipitation of similar to 420 mm and mean January temperature less than -12 degrees C separated the two interglacials. The second interglacial (F II) characterized by Carpinus dominated forests was found to be warm (mean July temperature up to 19 degrees C) but slightly less oceanic, which is consistent with the scarcity of indicators of a warm and humid climate. Principal components analysis (PCA) confirmed the distinctive climatic features of the two interglacials and showed that the cooling F I/II has palynological characteristics Similar to the stadial/interstadial changes within the Sanian I and Sanian II glaciations. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.