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1.
We measured variability in the composition of diatom and chrysophyte assemblages, and the pH inferred from these assemblages, in sediment samples from Big Moose Lake, in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Replicate samples were analyzed from (1) a single sediment core interval, (2) 12 different intervals from each of 3 separate cores, and (3) 10 widely spaced surface sediment samples (0–1 cm). The variability associated with sample preparation (subsampling, processing, and counting) was relatively small compared to between-core and within-lake variability. The relative abundances of the dominant diatom taxa varied to a greater extent than those of the chrysophyte scale assemblages. Standard deviations of pH inferences for multiple counts from the same sediment interval from diatom, chrysophyte, and diatom plus chrysophyte inference equations were 0.04 (n=8), 0.06 (n=32), and 0.06 (n=8) of a pH unit, respectively. Stratigraphic analysis of diatoms and chrysophytes from three widely spaced pelagic sediment cores provided a similar record of lake acidification trends, although with slight differences in temporal rates of change. Average standard deviations of pH inferences from diatom, chrysophyte and diatom plus chrysophyte inference equations for eight sediment intervals representing similar time periods but in different cores were 0.10, 0.20, and 0.09 pH unit, respectively. Our data support the assumption that a single sediment core can provide an accurate representation of historical change in a lake. The major sources of diatom variability in the surface sediments (i.e., top 1.0 cm) were (1) differences in diatom assemblage contributions from benthic and littoral sources, and (2) the rapid change in assemblage composition with sediment depth, which is characteristic of recently acidified lakes. Because scaled chrysophytes are exclusively planktonic, their spatial distribution in lake sediments is less variable than the diatom assemblages. Standard deviations of pH inferences for 10 widely spaced surface sediment samples from diatom, chrysophyte and diatom plus chrysophyte inference equations were 0.21, 0.09, and 0.16 of a pH unit, respectively.  相似文献   

2.
The surface sediment diatom and chrysophyte assemblages from 33 Sudbury lakes were added to our published 72 lake data set to expand and refine the diatom and chrysophyte-based inference models that we had earlier developed for this region. Our calibration data set now includes 105 lakes, representing gradients for multiple environmental variables (e.g., lakewater pH, metals, and transparency). The revised models are based on the weighted averaging calibration and regression approach and include bootstrap error estimates. The pH model was the strongest (r2 boot = 0.75, RMSE boot = 0.50). The chrysophyte-inferred pH model (r2 boot = 0.79, RMSE boot = 0.48) that we developed was as robust as the diatom pH model. Diatom and chrysophyte inferred pH models were then applied to top (surface sediments representing current conditions) and bottom (generally from > 30 cm deep representing pre-industrial conditions) sediment diatom and chrysophyte assemblages of 19 Killarney area lakes near Sudbury. The top and bottom inferred pH results were compared to early-1970s measured pH data. These data suggest that, although many of the poorly buffered Killarney lakes had experienced acidification, marked pH recovery has occurred in many lakes within the last 25 years. Despite the stunning pH recovery, the present-day diatom and chrysophyte assemblages are significantly different from assemblages present during pre-industrial times. Our results suggest that biological recovery may require more time than chemical recovery. It is also likely that these lakes may never recover biologically because other anthropogenic stressors (e.g., climate warming and increased exposure to UV-B radiation) may now have greater influence on biological communities in Killarney/Sudbury area lakes than acidification.  相似文献   

3.
The major patterns of biostratigraphical and geochemical change detected in a multidisciplinary study on recent environmental change and atmospheric contamination on Svalbard are summarised and synthesised. The patterns discussed are changes in sediment accumulation rates, organic matter accumulation rates, atmospheric contaminants, and biological assemblages (diatoms, chrysophyte cysts, chironomids). Possible environmental factors that may have influenced these patterns are discussed, in particular, the role of atmospheric contamination (including the deposition of nitrogen-compounds), local human impact, and recent climatic change. The major conclusions are (1) sediment accumulation rates show consistent temporal and geographical patterns with rates increasing towards the present-day and highest in the south, (2) sediment organic-matter accumulation rates increase markedly in the last 50–100 years, (3) atmospheric contamination is a combination of local and regional sources, (4) sediment inorganic geochemistry suggests catchment and lake responses to climate change in the last 30–50 years, (5) all lakes show a marked increase in the rate of biotic compositional changes in the last 50–100 years, and (6) Svalbard lakes appear to be highly dynamic and show considerable biotic and sedimentary changes in recent decades. The most likely cause of many of the observed changes is recent climatic change, with some local human activity at one site. Detailed interpretation of the observed changes is problematic given current limited knowledge about high Arctic limnology, biology, and catchment processes.  相似文献   

4.
Chrysophyte scales have been used in several paleolimnological studies to track long-term environmental change, however little data exist for the many lakes in the Maritime provinces of eastern Canada. As part of a multi-disciplinary investigation of acidification and other environmental stressors in the Maritimes, chrysophytes scales were identified and enumerated from the sediments of 52 lakes from Nova Scotia and two lakes from New Brunswick. A total of 25 chrysophyte taxa were identified from the surface sediments, reflecting the modern-day chrysophyte assemblages. The dominant species included Mallamonas duerrschmidtiae and Mallomonas acaroides. Taxa of the genus Synura were present in some lakes, but mainly in the more southern sites. In general, the floras were less diverse than those recorded from similar studies in other temperate regions. This may be related to the fact that the calibration lake set contained only a relatively short limnological gradient, and the assemblages reflect the acidic to circumneutral conditions of these lakes. Synura petersenii, a taxon that has been linked to imparting taste and odor problems to lakes, and had been shown to increase in the recent sediments of many other Canadian lakes, was only rarely present. In contrast to other studies, scaled chrysophytes were very rare in the pre-industrial sediments, with substantial nineteenth century populations only present in four relatively deep (>19 m) lakes. Detailed stratigraphic analyses of eight sediment cores revealed that scaled-chrysophyte assemblages increased dramatically during the latter part of the twentieth century. Limnological changes associated with climate (e.g. increased thermal stratification due to a 1.5°C temperature increase since ~1850) may have influenced chrysophyte distributions in these lakes.  相似文献   

5.
Chrysophyte cysts preserved in recent and pre-industrial lake sediment samples from 54 Muskoka-Haliburton (Ontario) lakes were used in a paleolimnological study to determine the impact of acidic precipitation and cottage development on water quality. A total of 246 cyst morphotypes were identified. Ecological preferences of cyst morphotypes were determined using multivariate statistical analysis, cluster analysis, and species-environment correlations. Recent cyst assemblages were related to water chemistry and lake morphometric variables using Redundancy Analysis (RDA). The distribution of morphotypes was related to a gradient of acid neutralising capacity (ANC), expressed through the association of variables related to buffering (i.e. longitude, watershed area, and ionic concentration) with the first axis (1 = 0.29). Cyst assemblages were also defined, to a lesser extent (2 = 0.06), by a trophic status gradient, created through the combination of total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), volume-weighted cottage density, and lake depth variables. The identification of lakewater pH and trophic status as important determinants of cyst assemblage structure allowed for the reconstruction of acidification and eutrophication related water chemistry changes using fossil cyst assemblages. The reconstruction of pre-industrial (pre-1850) water quality conditions with fossil cyst assemblages indicated that pH significantly decreased in 24.1% of the study lakes and increased in 16.7% of the lakes. Increases in pH in more alkaline drainage basins are attributed to alkalinity generation processes induced by acidic precipitation as has been shown in other studies. Total phosphorus (TP) concentrations significantly declined in 12.9% of the lakes and increased in 16.6% of lakes. Increases in [TP] were linked to cottage development. Decreases in trophic status may be due to landuse changes, the result of the acidification occurring in the area, or warmer and drier climates. A comparison of chrysophyte cyst and diatom water quality inferences show similar trends in pH changes. There is a good agreement between diatom and chrysophyte bioindicators with respect to [TP] changes in oligotrophic lakes (< 10 g/L); however, diatom inferences suggest that lakes with current [TP] values greater than 10 g/L have decreased in trophic status over time, while chrysophyte reconstructions suggest that these same lakes have become more productive systems.  相似文献   

6.
Lake sediments from four small lakes on western Spitsbergen (Svalbard Archipelago, Norwegian High Arctic) preserve biostratigraphic and isotopic evidence for a complex suite of twentieth century environmental changes. At Lake Skardtjørna and Lake Tjørnskardet on Nordenskiöldkysten, there is a marked diatom floristic change coupled to increased diatom concentrations beginning around 1920. At Lake Istjørna and Lake Istjørnelva, 25 km southwest of Longyearbyen, both diatom total valve and chrysophyte stomatocyst concentrations have increased dramatically since the beginning of the 1900s. The early twentieth century changes are probably related to climate warming after the Little Ice Age. However, the most pronounced changes in diatom assemblages seem to have occurred in the last few decades. At the same time, nitrogen stable isotopes in sediment organic matter in two of the lakes became progressively depleted by ~2‰, which is consistent with diffuse atmospheric inputs from anthropogenic sources and attendant fertilization. These data suggest that climate change and nitrogen deposition may be acting together in driving these lakes towards new ecological states that are unique in the context of the Holocene.  相似文献   

7.
A 40-cm sediment core from Big Moose Lake (Adirondack Mountains, New York, U.S.A.) was analyzed for recent changes in chrysophyte composition of chrysophyte species to assess if legislated reductions of sulphur emissions have resulted in changes in biological composition and inferred lakewater pH in this lake. This core, taken in September 1994, had a record of stratigraphic changes in chrysophyte assemblages remarkably similar to those in 210Pb-dated sediment cores taken in 1983 and 1988. Abrupt changes in chrysophyte stratigraphy were used to date the newest sediment core by stratigraphic correlation. We observed relatively constant composition of chrysophyte species and inferred-pH values in post-1970 sediments, which suggests that there has been little change in lakewater pH values despite the reductions in sulfate deposition since 1970 in the Adirondacks. These results are consistent with recent monitoring measurements in the Adirondacks. Further research is necessary to ascertain the applicability of these findings to other lakes in the Adirondacks and to determine the reasons for the lack of recovery.  相似文献   

8.
Twenty-four lakes on Svalbard were sampled for palaeolimnological studies and are described in terms of their geographical location, catchment characteristics, water chemistry, and flora. No sediment could be retrieved from one of the lakes. There is a close correlation, as detected by redundancy analysis, between lake-water chemistry and catchment variables, particularly bedrock geology and geographical location for 23 lakes. The flora of the lake catchments is statistically related, as shown by canonical correspondence analysis, to bedrock geology, climate (geographical location), and nutrient status (bird impact). Modern pollen assemblages from eleven lakes contain 2–25% far-distance extra-regional pollen. The modern local and regional pollen depositions are dominated by Oxyria digyna, Poaceae, Saxifraga, Salix, and Brassicaceae pollen.  相似文献   

9.
Macrophytes are a critical component of lake ecosystems affecting nutrient and contaminant cycling, food web structure, and lake biodiversity. The long-term (decades to centuries) dynamics of macrophyte cover are, however, poorly understood and no quantitative estimates exist for pre-industrial (pre-1850) macrophyte cover in northeastern North America. Using a 215 lake dataset, we tested if surface sediment diatom assemblages significantly differed among lakes that have sparse (<10% cover; group 1), moderate (10–40% cover; group 2) or extensive (>40% cover; group 3) macrophyte cover. Analysis of similarity indicated that the diatom assemblages of these a priori groups of macrophyte cover were significantly different from one another (i.e., difference between: groups 1 and 3, R statistic = 0.31, P < 0.001; groups 1 and 2, R statistic = 0.049, P < 0.01; groups 3 and 2, R statistic = 0.112, P < 0.001). We then developed an inference model for macrophyte cover from lakes classified as sparse or extensive cover (145 lakes) based on the surface sediment diatom assemblages, and applied this model using the top-bottom paleolimnological approach (i.e., comparison of recent sediments to pre-disturbance sediments). We used the second axis of our correspondence analysis, which significantly divided sparse and extensive macrophyte cover sites, as the independent variable in a logistic regression to predict macrophyte cover as either sparse or extensive. Cross validation, using 48 randomly chosen sites that were excluded from model development, indicated that our model accurately predicts macrophyte cover 79% of the time (r 2 = 0.32, P < 0.001). When applied to the top and bottom sediment samples, our model predicted that 12.5% of natural lakes and 22.4% of reservoirs in the dataset have undergone a ≥30% change in macrophyte cover. For the sites with an inferred change in macrophyte cover, the majority of natural lakes (64.3%) increased in cover, while the majority of reservoirs (87.5%) decreased in macrophyte cover. This study demonstrates that surface sediment diatom assemblages from profundal zones differ in lakes based on their macrophyte cover and that diatoms are useful indicators for quantitatively reconstructing changes in macrophyte cover.  相似文献   

10.
Surface sediments from 23 lakes on Svalbard were analysed for diatoms. About 182 taxa were found but samples generally have a low richness, with the majority of sites dominated by benthic genera such as Fragilaria, Navicula, and Achnanthes. Centric Cyclotella species occur at only three sites. Modern relationships between diatom abundance and water chemistry and other environmental variables were explored numerically and a preliminary transfer function for pH was developed. Lakes fell into three groups on the basis of their diatom assemblages: (1) high pH, high cation, high conductivity sites characterised by Amphora libyca, (2) shallow sites with relatively high nutrient values characterised by Fragilaria species, and (3) more acid and dilute sites with high amounts of snow cover in the catchments characterised by small Achnanthes species and Navicula digitulus. Five sediment cores representing the recent past were also analysed for diatoms. Three shallow sites were dominated by Fragilaria species throughout the period represented by the cores and no shifts in inferred pH were found. At two deeper sites (Arresjøen, Birgervatnet) major assemblage shifts are found which are unrelated to independent evidence for atmospheric contamination. Early (ca. 1200 AD) changes found at both sites are possibly related to the onset of the ‘Little Ice Age’. Later changes are neither synchronous nor similar in nature and might be best explained as individual responses to the recovery from the ‘Little Ice Age’ and subsequent climatic warming.  相似文献   

11.
Subarctic and arctic lakes are the focus of many paleolimnological studies, as they are still among the least impacted lakes by humans. Hence they provide an excellent setting for studies on long-term climatic variability without the overriding effects of direct anthropogenic perturbation. On the other hand, these ecosystems are highly vulnerable to even moderate anthropogenic influence like long-distance airborne transport of nutrients and pollutants. The paleolimnological studies conducted in these areas usually include a multitude of different proxies, but so far only few have used the green algal group of Pediastrum Meyen. These algae, however, preserve well in sediments and can be identified to species level, which lends them potential as a paleo-proxy. In this study we analysed the present Pediastrum assemblages from surface-sediments of 16 subarctic lakes in Finnish Lapland as well as bottom samples from the same sediment cores, which are “spot” samples from the recent past. We found a total of 14 Pediastrum taxa, five of which occurred at moderate to high relative abundances. The majority of the taxa showed distinct relationships to environmental variables measured. Of these, pH and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) explained most of the variance in the distribution of Pediastrum and generally summarised the main environmental gradients in our data set well. Five of the studied lakes lacked Pediastrum taxa altogether, and Pediastrum occurred at low abundances in four additional lakes. All of these nine lakes have extremely low nutrient concentrations and generally lowest pH and DOC in the data set and were defined by barren catchment areas and scarce lake macrophyte growth. According to a top–bottom analysis of sediment cores, the Pediastrum assemblages of the study lakes have changed moderately, suggesting changed environmental conditions in the lakes. Although these changes appear to be climate-related, more studies are needed to confirm this hypothesis.  相似文献   

12.
Aqueous calcium (Ca) concentrations are currently decreasing in many softwater lakes on the Boreal Shield. As the onset of these declines often pre-date direct monitoring programs, indirect techniques are required to examine the impacts of reduced Ca availability on aquatic communities with relatively high Ca demands such as the Cladocera (Class: Branchiopoda). Among the Cladocera, the family Daphniidae has been identified as a taxonomic group potentially useful for inferring past Ca concentrations due to their high Ca demands and preservation in lake sediments. Here, we use a ??top/bottom?? paleolimnological analysis to compare present-day cladoceran communities preserved in the surface sediments of 36 softwater lakes in south-central Ontario, Canada, which are potentially vulnerable to Ca decline (i.e. small headwater systems with present-day lakewater [Ca]?<?3?mg?L?1), with the communities present in lake sediments deposited prior to the onset of regional acid deposition. To distinguish the potential impacts of lake acidification from those of Ca availability (as Ca and pH trends are strongly correlated in this region), the study lakes were chosen to be evenly distributed about a present-day lakewater pH of 6 and Ca concentration of 1.5?mg?L?1 (threshold values). Despite the importance of pH as an explanatory variable for the present-day assemblages, a comparison of the sedimentary remains from the two time periods indicate there have been large declines since pre-industrial times in the relative abundances of Ca-rich Daphnia spp. (particularly of the Daphnia longispina species complex), regardless of present-day pH, accompanied by increases in the Ca-poor species Holopedium glacialis. These observations suggest that recent declines in Ca concentration may have already fallen below baseline conditions, with marked implications for ecosystem function due to the differential responses among cladoceran taxa.  相似文献   

13.
Biomonitoring past salinity changes in an athalassic subarctic lake   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  
A short sediment core was taken from a small saline lake located on an intermontane plateau in the central Yukon Territory, Canada. In July 1990, chemical analyses indicated that, although the lake was shallow (Zmax=1.1 m), it was also chemically stratified, with hyposaline (9.9 to 10.0 g L−1) surface waters and slightly mesosaline (22.0 g L−1) deeper waters. The surface water was dominated by Na+ and HCO 3 − . To our knowledge, this is the northernmost athalassic saline lake yet recorded. Quantification of algal (diatom, chrysophyte, and pigment) and invertebrate (chironomid, ceratopogonid, andChaoborus) fossils at four stratigraphic levels indicated that the lake sediments preserved numerous biological indicators that could be used to infer recent lake development. Many of the taxa are found in other athalassic salt lakes. The most striking stratigraphic change was a remarkable drop in the species richness of diatoms and invertebrates in the recent sediments, which parallels the elimination of species characteristic of less saline conditions. Halophilous taxa dominate the most recent sediments, indicating the development of more saline conditions. At the same time, a significant shift in chrysophyte cyst composition was observed. Fossil carotenoids and chlorophylls indicated a decrease in total algal abundance in recent sediments, as green and blue-green algae replaced diatoms and chrysophytes. Together, these paleolimnological data suggest a recent shift to drier conditions or increased evaporation in the central Yukon Territory.  相似文献   

14.
Quantitative analysis of variations in morphological types of charcoal were undertaken in sediment cores from three lakes on the Interior Plateau (BC, Canada) over the period AD 1919–2000. Seven distinct morphological types of charcoal were identified based on particle shape and structural features and were compared with seasonal precipitation and recorded area burned within 20 km-radius of study lakes. Fragile-type charcoal fragments, termed type M, displayed significant relationships to recorded area burned in sediment cores from Prosser (r 2 = 0.5; p = 0.0001) and Opatcho (r 2 = 0.2; p = 0.02) lakes. However, nonsignificant correlations (p > 0.05) were found between total charcoal and area burned. Robust and highly elongated morphotypes C and F were correlated to recorded spring precipitation (r 2 = 0.5; p = 0.002) in Opatcho Lake. Charcoal from a sediment core from Big Lake, the lake with the largest watershed, was significantly but inversely related to past fires (r 2 = 0.44; p = 0.0003), suggesting important contributions from secondary transportation and deposition. Models were developed to infer relative area burned and precipitation for the study lakes. Our results suggest that charcoal morphotypes are related to the biogeoclimatic and lake watershed characteristics. This study also suggest that charcoal morphotypes can provide insights on past fire and climate, which was not possible based on traditional analysis of total charcoal.  相似文献   

15.
Arctic aquatic systems are considered to be especially sensitive to anthropogenic disturbance, which can have cascading effects on biological communities as aquatic food-web structure is altered. Bio-indicators that respond to major limnological changes can be used to detect and infer major environmental change, such as climate warming, with the use of paleolimnological techniques. A multi-proxy approach was used to quantify recent environmental changes at Baker Lake, Nunavut, Arctic Canada. Analyses of fossilized remains of chironomids and diatoms were conducted on a sediment core of 20 cm in length sampled at 0.5-cm intervals. A new surface sediment training set of subfossil chironomid assemblages from 65 lakes across the eastern Canadian Arctic generated a robust (r jack2 = 0.79) surface water paleotemperature transfer function. The transfer function was applied to stratigraphic intervals from the Baker Lake sediment core to generate a paleotemperature reconstruction of sub-decadal resolution. The surface water temperature reconstruction inferred a 2°C increase in mid-summer surface water temperature for Baker Lake over the last 60 years, which was corroborated by the local instrumental record spanning the period of 1950–2007 AD. The chironomid record shows a recent decline of several cold-water taxa and appearance of warm-water indicators. This shift in community structure began circa 1906 AD, and intensified after 1940 AD. The corresponding fossil diatom record showed an increase in small planktonic Cyclotella taxa over the past 60 years, intensifying in the last 5 years, which also suggests a warmer climate and longer ice-free periods. The shifts in the diatom assemblages began later than the shifts in the chironomid assemblages, and were of lower magnitude, reflecting differences in the mechanisms in which these two indicators respond to environmental change.  相似文献   

16.
Remains of Cladocera were examined in short sediment cores from three Adirondack lakes with mean pHs below 5 and a fourth with a mean pH of 6.5. These cores were collected as part of the Paleoecological Investigation of Recent Lake Acidification (PIRLA I) project. Historical and paleolimnological evidence suggests that pH has decreased in each of the acid lakes in recent decades. In all of the study cores, the greatest changes in net accumulation rates, assemblage composition, and species richness occurred in recently deposited sediments. The similar timing of events in all lakes suggests that a regional disturbance was responsible. In the three acid lakes, there was a strong association of changes in cladoceran assemblages and diatom, chrysophyte, and geochemical evidence of acidification. The occurrence of recent changes in non-acid Windfall Pond indicates that other factors may also have affected Cladocera in the study lakes.This is the fifteenth of a series of papers to be published by this journal which is a contribution of the Paleoecological Investigation of Recent Lake Acidification (PIRLA) project. Drs. D. F. Charles and D. R. Whitehead are guest editors for this series.  相似文献   

17.
Diatoms were examined in three lacustrine sediment records from Alert, northern Ellesmere Island, and from Isachsen, Ellef Ringnes Island. Diatom assemblages changed markedly since the mid-19th century following relatively stable community composition that spanned centuries to millennia. Three different assemblages, primarily composed of Fragilaria pinnata, Diadesmis spp., or Pinnularia spp., dominated the pre-1850 period at the three sites, but were replaced with different, more diverse assemblages in recent sediments. These species shifts occurred in the mid- to late-19th century in the Isachsen sites, and in the mid- to late-20th century in our Alert site. This difference in timing appears to be a result of the different sensitivities of lakes and ponds to environmental change, rather than of site-specific chemical properties. Reconstructions of pH using diatom inference models indicated increases from 0.5 to 0.8 pH units at these sites over this period of assemblage change. The diatom-inferred pH record from Alert showed agreement with measured climate data from Alert over the last 30 years. These marked community changes suggest that these sensitive high arctic sites have recently crossed important ecological thresholds due to environmental change, most likely related to recent warming.  相似文献   

18.
Surface sediments from 68 small lakes in the Alps and 9 well-dated sediment core samples that cover a gradient of total phosphorus (TP) concentrations of 6 to 520 g TP l-1 were studied for diatom, chrysophyte cyst, cladocera, and chironomid assemblages. Inference models for mean circulation log10 TP were developed for diatoms, chironomids, and benthic cladocera using weighted-averaging partial least squares. After screening for outliers, the final transfer functions have coefficients of determination (r2, as assessed by cross-validation, of 0.79 (diatoms), 0.68 (chironomids), and 0.49 (benthic cladocera). Planktonic cladocera and chrysophytes show very weak relationships to TP and no TP inference models were developed for these biota. Diatoms showed the best relationship with TP, whereas the other biota all have large secondary gradients, suggesting that variables other than TP have a strong influence on their composition and abundance. Comparison with other diatom – TP inference models shows that our model has high predictive power and a low root mean squared error of prediction, as assessed by cross-validation.  相似文献   

19.
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20.
Relatively little is known about past cold-season temperature variability in high-Alpine regions because of a lack of natural cold-season temperature proxies as well as under-representation of high-altitude sites in meteorological, early-instrumental and documentary data sources. Recent studies have shown that chrysophyte stomatocysts, or simply cysts (sub-fossil algal remains of Chrysophyceae and Synurophyceae), are among the very few natural proxies that can be used to reconstruct cold-season temperatures. This study presents a quantitative, high-resolution (5-year), cold-season (Oct–May) temperature reconstruction based on sub-fossil chrysophyte stomatocysts in the annually laminated (varved) sediments of high-Alpine Lake Silvaplana, SE Switzerland (1,789 m a.s.l.), since AD 1500. We first explore the method used to translate an ecologically meaningful variable based on a biological proxy into a simple climate variable. A transfer function was applied to reconstruct the ‘date of spring mixing’ from cyst assemblages. Next, statistical regression models were tested to convert the reconstructed ‘dates of spring mixing’ into cold-season surface air temperatures with associated errors. The strengths and weaknesses of this approach are thoroughly tested. One much-debated, basic assumption for reconstructions (‘stationarity’), which states that only the environmental variable of interest has influenced cyst assemblages and the influence of confounding variables is negligible over time, is addressed in detail. Our inferences show that past cold-season air-temperature fluctuations were substantial and larger than those of other temperature reconstructions for Europe and the Alpine region. Interestingly, in this study, recent cold-season temperatures only just exceed those of previous, multi-decadal warm phases since AD 1500. These findings highlight the importance of local studies to assess natural climate variability at high altitudes.  相似文献   

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