Palynological evidence for a warmer boreal climate in the Late Pliocene of the Yukon Territory, Canada

The Late Pliocene (3.6–2.6 Ma) was a period of significant global warmth, considered a potential analogue for future anthropogenic climate change. Newly discovered fine-grained sediments from between the gold-bearing lower and upper White Channel Gravels show the presence of a wetland or lake within...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Palynology
Main Authors: Pound, Matthew, Lowther, Robert, Peakall, Jeff, Chapman, Robert, Salzmann, Ulrich
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis 2015
Subjects:
Online Access:https://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/17993/
https://doi.org/10.1080/01916122.2014.940471
https://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/17993/1/Pound_et_al_2015_AF.pdf
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Summary:The Late Pliocene (3.6–2.6 Ma) was a period of significant global warmth, considered a potential analogue for future anthropogenic climate change. Newly discovered fine-grained sediments from between the gold-bearing lower and upper White Channel Gravels show the presence of a wetland or lake within Bonanza Creek, Dawson Mining District, Yukon. This environment was surrounded by a diverse Pinaceae-dominated boreal forest with significant stands of angiosperms in favourable sites. Quantitative climate reconstructions derived from pollen and spores reveal a mean annual temperature at least 6 °C warmer than today with warm summers and relatively mild winters. Finally, the new pollen assemblage is used to discuss the age of the White Channel Gravels.