Article
Ecology
Adam Tomasovych, Michaela Berensmeier, Ivo Gallmetzer, Alexandra Haselmair, Martin Zuschin
Summary: This study focuses on the impact of pyrite linings on carbonate preservation and biogeochemical cycles, finding that pyrite linings inside shells can indicate a slow and shallow irrigation process. Additionally, the abundance of pyrite-lined shells in the stratigraphic record can be diagnostic of limited exposure of organic tissues to O-2. This suggests that the preservation of pyrite linings within shells can provide insights into the surrounding environment's level of oxidative exposure to organic tissues.
Article
Geology
Adam Tomasovych, Ivo Gallmetzer, Alexandra Haselmair, Martin Zuschin
Summary: The study suggests that the prediction of sequence stratigraphic framework does not apply to environments where carbonate production keeps up with sea-level rise. Instead, hiatus durations can be estimated by measuring the residence time of skeletal particles in the mixed layer, as demonstrated in a Holocene sequence in the Adriatic Sea. This research highlights the importance of considering taphonomic processes in understanding sedimentation rates and hiatuses in ancient environments.
Article
Geology
Daniel Tentori, Marco Mancini, Salvatore Milli, Francesco Stigliano, Simone Tancredi, Massimiliano Moscatelli
Summary: This study examines the relationships among compositional, textural, and geotechnical data in floodplain deposits using high-resolution micromorphological characterization. The study integrates soil micromorphology with sequence stratigraphy and shows that soil micromorphological features document pedogenetic modifications across stratigraphic markers. The observations serve as a model to reconstruct the sequence-stratigraphic evolution of ancient relict soils.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Thi Kim Oanh Ta, Van Lap Nguyen, Yoshiki Saito, Marcello Gugliotta, Toru Tamura, Thi Mong Lan Nguyen, Minh Hoang Truong, Thi Luan Bui
Summary: The study provides a comprehensive analysis of the sedimentary response of the Mekong River delta to sea-level changes over the last 6000 years. It reveals that the delta deposits have undergone continuous aggradation and progradation since around 13 thousand years ago.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Eleonora Martorelli, Alessandro Bosman, Daniele Casalbore, Francesco Chiocci, Aida Maria Conte, Letizia Di Bella, Gemma Ercilla, Federico Falcini, Pierpaolo Falco, Virgilio Frezza, Giovanni Gaglianone, Biagio Giaccio, Marco Mancini
Summary: The upper continental slope offshore Capo Vaticano in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea features a contourite depositional system with well-developed elongated sediment drifts, influenced by a northward paleo-bottom current similar to the present-day modified-Levantine Intermediate Water flow. The studied succession formed since the mid Holocene under the influence of the modified-LIW, with the stratigraphic architecture indicating an upslope migration of the moat and a relatively stable position of the crest sector. The occurrence of complete bi-gradational sand-rich contourite sequences suggests that upper slope environments impacted by intermediate water masses and close to sandy sources may be favorable settings for accumulation of sandy sediment.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Paul D. Zander, Maurycy Zarczynski, Hendrik Vogel, Wojciech Tylmann, Agnieszka Wacnik, Andrea Sanchini, Martin Grosjean
Summary: This study utilized sediment records from Lake Zabinskie, Poland to investigate the variations of primary productivity and anoxia over the past 10,800 years. The findings suggest that natural and anthropogenic forces play a significant role in driving changes in lake ecosystems, impacting eutrophication and anoxia trends.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Alessia D'Agostino, Gabriele Di Marco, Silvia Marvelli, Marco Marchesini, Juan Manuel Martinez-Labarga, Mario Federico Rolfo, Antonella Canini, Angelo Gismondi
Summary: Grotta Mora Cavorso, located in Central Italy, is a complex karstic system with valuable Prehistoric palaeontological and anthropological heritage. Analysis of pollen spectra and charcoals from cave stratigraphic levels revealed the overall vegetation trend of the site, indicating cooler and more humid conditions compared to the present.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
David E. Friesem, Ruth Shahack-Gross, Mina Weinstein-Evron, Nadya Teutsch, Lior Weissbrod, Ron Shimelmitz
Summary: The study of the Middle Palaeolithic Layer C in Tabun Cave, Israel, revealed that the sedimentary sequence is primarily composed of bat and bird guano, along with allochthonous terra rossa and human activity remains, forming four depositional sub-units within MSU II. This finding contributes to a better understanding of the Levantine Middle Palaeolithic in cave sites and demonstrates the potential for identifying different guano producers to reconstruct changing environments and human-environment relations.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Zijing She, Yuecong Li, Yawen Ge, Baoshuo Fan, Chenjing Gao, Jiaxing Yang, Hongli Xie, Yun Zhang, Ruchun Zhang
Summary: Lagoons are sensitive to climate and sea level changes, and a study of Qilihai Lagoon in Bohai Bay reveals three stages of environmental change in 3,100-1,000 cal yr BP. The area experienced warm and wet conditions, expansion of coniferous trees and grassland, and a decrease in coastal wetlands. This study provides valuable insight for environmental response research in East Asian coastal areas and beyond.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Alfonsa Milia, Gemma Aiello, Pietro Iannace, Maurizio M. Torrente
Summary: Studying the correlation between onshore and offshore volcanic features is crucial for understanding geological evolution and evaluating geologic hazards in complex volcanic areas. High-resolution seismic reflection profiles were used to identify volcanic and sedimentary features in the northern offshore of Ischia Island. The reconstruction of 3D geological models and mapping of key volcanic units provide insights into the Holocene volcanic activity in the area.
JOURNAL OF VOLCANOLOGY AND GEOTHERMAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Zhen Li, Vera Pospelova, Lejun Liu, Roger Francois, Yongsheng Wu, Kenneth Neil Mertens, Yoshiki Saito, Rui Zhou, Bing Song, Xin Xie
Summary: A high-resolution dinoflagellate cyst analysis was performed on a sediment core from the northern South China Sea to reconstruct paleoceanographic conditions over the last 12,500 years. The study found that sea-surface temperature, sea-surface salinity, and primary productivity were mainly controlled by changes in coastal and oceanic currents. The research also revealed the significant impact of the Kuroshio Current on the core site and the correlation between short-term high-productivity events and societal collapses in China.
Article
Geography, Physical
Karina Apolinarska, Rafal Kielczewski, Krzysztof Pleskot, Magdalena Marzec, Liene Aunina, Mariusz Galka
Summary: This study presents a detailed record of environmental changes in the Turtul spring-fed fen in northeastern Poland during the early to mid-Holocene. The analysis of sediment and biotic proxies reveals the sensitivity of the fen to local and regional climatic changes.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Jan Kresten Nielsen, Samuli Helama
Summary: Research found that populations of Unio crassus and U. tumidus in the river Vantaanjoki in southern Finland have significantly declined, with shells affected by taphonomical processes. The time-averaged death assemblages, based on C-14 dating, may illustrate anthropogenic changes in the river environment over the centuries, suggesting caution when comparing with modern populations for conservation evaluations.
BULLETIN OF GEOSCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Geology
Matias Do Nascimento Ritter, Fernando Erthal, Matthew A. Kosnik, Michal Kowalewski, Joao Carlos Coimbra, Felipe Caron, Darrell S. Kaufman
Summary: Surficial shell accumulations from shallow marine settings are typically dominated by recent specimens and exhibit strongly right-skewed age-frequency distributions. This study examines age-frequency distributions from offshore settings in southern Brazil and finds that deeper water environments have slightly longer time averaging and symmetrical to left-skewed distributions dominated by specimens from the Last Glacial Maximum. The observed changes in age-frequency distributions along the onshore-offshore gradient likely reflect sea-level changes and corresponding variations in biological productivity.
Article
Archaeology
Felix Henselowsky, Nicole Klasen, Rhys Timms, Dustin White, Paul Lincoln, Simon Blockley, Karin Kindermann, Olaf Bubenzer
Summary: This study examines the environmental changes at Sodmein Playa in Egypt during the Middle Stone Age/Last Interglacial period. By combining Optically Stimulated Luminescence chronology and cryptotephra analysis, the researchers link the environmental data from Sodmein Playa with the archaeological site of Sodmein Cave. The results show that the region experienced a wetter climate around 9 ka, with a maximum around 7 ka, consistent with the Holocene Humid Period in Northeast Africa. The study also reveals diverse sources of cryptotephra and establishes a tentative correlation with the Holocene cryptotephra record from Sodmein Cave.
GEOARCHAEOLOGY-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Konstantina Agiadi, Michele Azzarone, Quan Hua, Darrell S. Kaufman, Danae Thivaiou, Paolo G. Albano
Summary: The study tested the taphonomic clock hypothesis on marine demersal and pelagic fish otoliths from the Israeli shelf, revealing significant variations in otolith ages along the depth gradient. While severely altered otoliths tended to be older, pelagic fish otoliths at 30 m depth showed a positive correlation between taphonomic degradation and postmortem age.
Article
Geography, Physical
Ellie Broadman, Darrell S. Kaufman, R. Scott Anderson, Sonya Bogle, Matthew Ford, David Fortin, Andrew C. G. Henderson, Jack H. Lacey, Melanie J. Leng, Nicholas P. McKay, Samuel E. Munoz
Summary: This study investigates the postglacial history of the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, focusing on the deglaciation, vegetation development, and past hydroclimate of the region. By analyzing proxy datasets from Hidden and Kelly lakes, the researchers were able to understand the retreat of glacier ice, the importance of groundwater in lake hydrology, and the influence of climate change on lake water isotopes. The findings highlight the usefulness of mass balance modeling and the potential confounding effects of groundwater on interpreting paleolimnologic oxygen isotope data.
QUATERNARY RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Edward E. Berg, Darrell S. Kaufman, R. Scott Anderson, Gregory C. Wiles, Thomas V. Lowell, Edward A. D. Mitchell, Feng Sheng Hu, Alan Werner
Summary: Recent decades of warming climate in southern Alaska have led to drying wetlands and falling lake levels. This study examines the historical fluctuations in lake levels, including high and low stands, and the impact of these changes on vegetation succession. The research also highlights how data from peat records in satellite fens can be used to reconstruct paleo-lake levels.
Article
Forestry
Raphael Neukom, Nathan Steiger, Darrell Kaufman, Martin Grosjean
Summary: Buntgen et al. present a new reconstruction of extra-tropical summer temperatures based on updated versions of a large number of tree-ring width chronologies. The comparison between their reconstruction and the PAGES 2k reconstructions is flawed due to the different reconstruction targets. The study highlights the importance of careful interpretation and reliable assessment of scientific results.
Article
Fisheries
Derek W. Chamberlin, Virginia R. Shervette, Darrell S. Kaufman, Jordon E. Bright, William F. Patterson III
Summary: We investigated the relationship between aspartic acid D:l ratios and otolith-derived age estimates in Gulf of Mexico red snapper and Caribbean yellowtail snapper. The results suggest that amino acid racemization may be an effective tool for direct age estimation and age validation in fishes.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FISHERIES AND AQUATIC SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Lorna Louise Thurston, Erik Schiefer, Nicholas P. McKay, Darrell S. Kaufman
Summary: Lake-based studies provide valuable records of sediment yield over different time scales, which can enhance our understanding of sediment transfer in catchments and complement fluvial-based studies. This particular study used fallout radionuclides and sediment density patterns to estimate sediment accumulation rates in Lake Peters, Alaska, and compared the results with fluvial-based sediment delivery.
EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Emmy A. A. Wrobleski, Ellie Broadman, A. L. Werner, Donald T. T. Rodbell, Darrell S. S. Kaufman
Summary: Major shifts in hydroclimate have been observed in south-central Alaska during the last deglacial period and the Holocene. Rare freshwater calcium carbonate deposits in lakes on the Kenai Peninsula can be used to reconstruct past hydroclimate changes, including the influence of groundwater inflow. The sediment sequence from groundwater-fed Kelly Lake was analyzed, revealing changes in isotopes and proxies that indicate shifts in hydroclimate and the influence of meteoric water and groundwater on the lake's sedimentation.
JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Darrell S. Kaufman, Ellie Broadman
Summary: This review examines evidence from indicators and drivers of global change to evaluate whether anthropogenic global warming was preceded by a long-term warming trend or by global cooling. It finds that multimillennial-scale cooling before industrialization requires extra climate forcing and major climate feedbacks, while global warming challenges proxy-based reconstructions of past climate. The resolution of this conundrum has implications for understanding climate sensitivity and advancing our understanding of slow-moving climate variability.
Article
Geology
Matias Do Nascimento Ritter, Fernando Erthal, Matthew A. Kosnik, Michal Kowalewski, Joao Carlos Coimbra, Felipe Caron, Darrell S. Kaufman
Summary: Surficial shell accumulations from shallow marine settings are typically dominated by recent specimens and exhibit strongly right-skewed age-frequency distributions. This study examines age-frequency distributions from offshore settings in southern Brazil and finds that deeper water environments have slightly longer time averaging and symmetrical to left-skewed distributions dominated by specimens from the Last Glacial Maximum. The observed changes in age-frequency distributions along the onshore-offshore gradient likely reflect sea-level changes and corresponding variations in biological productivity.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Christopher L. Hancock, Nicholas P. McKay, Michael P. Erb, Darrell S. Kaufman, Cody R. Routson, Ruza F. Ivanovic, Lauren J. Gregoire, Paul Valdes
Summary: Substantial changes in terrestrial hydroclimate during the Holocene are recorded in geological archives and simulated by computer models. Proxy records and model simulations indicate wetter-than-modern conditions during the early and mid-Holocene in Northern Hemisphere monsoon regions, while Southern Hemisphere monsoon regions were drier. The pattern of change is less certain in the midlatitudes, with proxy composites showing a wetting trend and simulations indicating relatively low magnitude of change.
PALEOCEANOGRAPHY AND PALEOCLIMATOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Rachael V. Gallagher, Stuart P. Allen, Rafael Govaerts, Malin C. Rivers, Andrew P. Allen, David A. Keith, Cory Merow, Brian Maitner, Nathalie Butt, Tony D. Auld, Brian J. Enquist, Wolf L. Eiserhardt, Ian J. Wright, Jonathon C. O. Mifsud, Sylvia Espinosa-Ruiz, Hugh Possingham, Vanessa M. Adams
Summary: Systematic approaches to conservation assessment are needed to protect plant diversity. However, the completion of threat assessments for endemic plants is weakly related to a country's wealth or the level of threat that species face. The lack of assessment limits national regulation of actions that endanger plant species.
PLANTS PEOPLE PLANET
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Leah P. Marshall, Darrell S. Kaufman, R. Scott Anderson, Nicholas P. McKay, Edward A. G. Schuur
Summary: This study investigates the accumulation and degradation of organic matter in permafrost over the Holocene. The results show that the preservation of organic matter in upland areas is influenced by hillslope geomorphic processes, cryoturbation, and climatic variations. The findings provide insights into the carbon dynamics in permafrost environments and their potential feedback on climate change.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-BIOGEOSCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Entomology
Cecilia Kardum Hjort, Henrik G. Smith, Andrew P. Allen, Rachael Y. Dudaniec
Summary: Introduced social insects can have negative impacts on native pollinators and ecosystems. In this study, we investigated the morphological variation of the bumblebee Bombus terrestris in Tasmania, Australia and its relationship with environmental conditions. We found weak morphological divergence, with body size associated with urban land cover and proboscis length negatively related to pasture. The adaptability of B. terrestris enables its successful invasion across Tasmania.
JOURNAL OF INSECT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Communication
Sally Hurst, Matthew Kosnik, Linda Evans, Glenn A. Brock
Summary: The Found a Fossil project conducted a survey to understand the barriers to reporting heritage material in Australia. Results showed confusion over appropriate authorities to contact, lack of transparency by government, and poorly communicated legislation created obstacles to heritage reporting. This project represents the first attempt to quantify reporting behaviors of Indigenous artifacts and fossils in Australia and recommends improvements for reporting, protection, and communication of Australian heritage items and their historical narratives.
JCOM-JOURNAL OF SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
(2023)