Abrupt vegetation changes during the last glacial to Holocene transition in mid‐latitude South America - Patricio I. Moreno; Ana L. León (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
A pollen record from the Huelmo site (ca. 41°30′S) shows that vegetation and climate changed at millennial time‐scales during the last glacial to Holocene transition in the mid‐latitude region of western South America. The record shows that a Nothofagus parkland dominated the landscape between 16 400 and 14 600 14 C yr BP, along with Magellanic Moorland and cupressaceous conifers. Evergreen North Patagonian rainforest taxa expanded in pulses at 14 200 and 13 000 14 C yr BP, following a prominent rise in Nothofagus at 14 600 14 C yr BP. Highly diverse, closed canopy rainforests dominated the lowlands between 13 000 and 12 500 14 C yr BP, followed by the expansion of cold‐resistant podocarps and Nothofagus at ca. 12 500 and 11 500 14 C yr BP. Local disturbance by fire favoured the expansion of shade‐intolerant opportunistic taxa between 10 900 and 10 200 14 C yr BP. Subsequent warming pulses at 10 200 and 9100 14 C yr BP led to the expansion of thermophilous, summer‐drought resistant Valdivian rainforest trees until 6900 14 C yr BP. Our results suggest that cold and hyperhumid conditions characterised the final phase of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), between 16 400 and 14 600 14 C yr BP. The last ice age Termination commenced with a prominent warming event that led to a rapid expansion of North Patagonian trees and the abrupt withdrawal of Andean ice lobes from their LGM positon at ca. 147 000 14 C yr BP. Hyperhumid conditions prevailed between 16 400 and 13 000 14 C yr BP, what we term the ‘extreme glacial mode’ of westerly activity. This condition was brought about by a northward shift and/or intensification of the southern westerlies. The warmest/driest conditions of the last glacial–interglacial transition occurred between 9100 and 6900 14 C yr BP. During this period, the westerlies shifted to an ‘extreme interglacial mode’ of activity, via a poleward migration of stormtracks. Our results indicate that a highly variable climatic interval lasting 5500 14 C years separate the opposite extremes of vegetation and climate during the last glacial‐interglacial cycle, i.e. the end of the LGM and the onset of the early Holocene warm and dry period. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Geomorphological palaeoenvironments of the Sneeuberg Range, Great Karoo, South Africa - P. J. Holmes; J. Boardman; A. J. Parsons; M. E. Marker (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Sedimentary sequences within headwater valleys on the landward side of the Great Escarpment of South Africa are elucidated and their significance as indicators of environmental change is assessed. This study focuses on the Sneeuberg Range, the most prominent mountain range in the semi‐arid central Great Karoo. Valley fills of a hitherto unrecognised complexity and of a greater age than any previously recorded in the central Great Karoo are reported. Three phases of deposition spanning the Late Pleistocene up to the present are documented from sites where gully erosion has incised the valley fills. The earliest depositional phase is represented by deeply weathered, calcretised gravel deposits, which probably were emplaced by debris flow and fluvial processes in the form of a fan. These deposits subsequently were buried by finer grained, largely unconsolidated sediment, with much of this emplacement occurring during the Holocene. There is evidence for phases of landscape stability and instability within this facies. Finally, sheetwash has removed fine‐grained sediments from valley flanks and has deposited it either on valley bottoms, or in presently active gullies. This process appears to be ongoing, and is the subject of current investigation. The sedimentary deposits are interpreted as representing a wide range of palaeoenvironmental conditions that have prevailed within the central Great Karoo since the penultimate glaciation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Rhine–Meuse system in a new light: optically stimulated luminescence dating and its application to fluvial deposits. J. Wallinga Publisher, The Royal Dutch Geographical Society/Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Utrecht University, 2001 (180 pp) Dfl 45.00 ISSN 0169 4839 - Phillip S. Toms (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Geological and archaeological evidence of active faulting on the Martana Fault (Umbria–Marche Apennines, Italy) and its geodynamic implications - Marco Bonini; Chiara Tanini; Giovanna Moratti; Luigi Piccardi; Federico Sani (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
This paper examines the morphotectonic and structural–geological characteristics of the Quaternary Martana Fault in the Umbria–Marche Apennines fold‐and‐thrust belt. This structure is more than 30 km long and comprises two segments: a N–NNW‐trending longer segment and a 100°N‐trending segment. After developing as a normal fault in Early Pleistocene times, the N–NNW Martana Fault segment experienced a phase of dextral faulting extending from the Early to Middle Pleistocene boundary until around 0.39 Ma, the absolute age of volcanics erupted in correspondence to releasing bends. The establishment of a stress field with a NE–ENE‐trending σ 3 axis and NW–NNW σ 1 axis in Late Pleistocene to Holocene times resulted in a strong component of sinistral faulting along N–NNW‐trending fault segments and almost pure normal faulting on newly formed NW–SE faults. Fresh fault scarps, the interaction of faulting with drainage systems and displacement of alluvial fan apexes provide evidence of the ongoing activity of this fault. The active left‐lateral kinematic along N–NNW‐trending fault segments is also revealed by the 1.8 m horizontal offset of the E–W‐trending Decumanus road, at the Roman town of Carsulae . We interpret the present‐day kinematics of the Martana Fault as consistent with a model connecting surface structures to the inferred north‐northwest trending lithospheric shear zone marking the western boundary of the Adria Plate. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Coastal deformation between the Versilia and the Garigliano plains (Italy) since the last interglacial stage - Marco F. Nisi; Fabrizio Antonioli; Giuseppe Dai Pra; Gabriele Leoni; Sergio Silenzi (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The opening of the north‐central Tyrrhenian Sea is the result of the Cretaceous–Paleogene alpine collision, which triggered a series of regional uplift, subsidence and transcurrent tectonic mechanisms along the coastal Tyrrhenian sectors of peninsular Italy. These tectonic processes, in conjunction with the effects of glacio‐ and hydro‐isostasy during the Quaternary, produced substantial crustal responses that, in some cases, reached metres in extent. In the study of coastal neotectonics, geomorphological markers of the last interglacial maximum, corresponding to marine isotope stage 5.5, are generally used to quantify the magnitude of the vertical crustal displacements that have occurred since 125 kyr. Through altimetrical, palaeoenvironmental and chronological reinterpretation of the most significant works published since 1913, combined with an additional set of data reported here, a detailed reconstruction of the shoreline displacements evident along 500 km of coast between northern Tuscany and southern Latium is presented. The reconstruction was carried out by quantifying the vertical movement since the last interglacial period and by identifying the tectonic behaviour of different coastal sectors. This has been done by carefully choosing the eustatic marker, among those available at each study site, in order to minimize the margin of error associated with the measurements. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The effect of geomorphological setting on Holocene lake sediment variability, northern Swedish Lapland - L. Rubensdotter; G. Rosqvist (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Comparison of catchment geomorphology and lithostratigraphical analysis of sediments in two small neighbouring alpine lakes show that the minerogenic influx into the lakes has varied significantly during the Holocene, despite similarities in environmental setting. One lake contains a homogeneous organic‐rich sediment sequence whereas the sediment of the other lake is laminated and has a higher minerogenic content. X‐ray radiographs are used to visualise lithostratigraphical structures and provide high‐resolution density data. We find that moderate differences in geomorphology and process activity in the lakeshore region around alpine lakes can significantly affect the lake sediment composition. Minerogenic sediment accumulation rates vary strongly over time, owing to different depositional processes, which complicate temporal reconstructions. We also find that non‐glacial processes deposit minerogenic sediment layers with similar characteristics (high density, low organic content) as layers interpreted as having a glaciofluvial origin. This has implications for palaeoclimate studies based on proglacial lacustrine sediment. Our results indicate that erosion of surface sediments in the catchments characterised the early Holocene. A low and constant minerogenic inflow indicates that stable environmental conditions (with little fluvial erosion) were established in the catchments during the middle Holocene. The variability in sediment composition increased again in the late Holocene, possibly as a result of short‐term climate fluctuations superimposed on a general climate deterioration trend. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Southwest Scandinavia, 40–15 kyr BP: palaeogeography and environmental change - Michael Houmark‐Nielsen; Kurt Henrik Kjær (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Twelve palaeogeographical reconstructions illustrate environmental changes at the southwest rim of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet 40–15 kyr BP. Synchronised land, sea and glacier configurations are based on the lithostratigraphy of tills and intertill sediments. Dating is provided by optically stimulated luminescence and calibrated accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon. An interstadial sequence ca. 40–30 kyr BP with boreo‐arctic proglacial fjords and subarctic flora and occasional glaciation in the Baltic was succeeded by a Last Glacial Maximum sequence ca. 30–20 kyr BP, with the closure of fjords and subsequent ice streams in glacial lake basins in Kattegat and the Baltic. Steadily flowing ice from Sweden bordered the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream. A deglaciation sequence ca. 20–15 kyr BP indicates the transgression of arctic waters, retreat of the Swedish ice and advance of Baltic ice streams succeeded by a return to interstadial conditions. When ameliorated ice‐free conditions prevailed in maritime regions, glaciers advanced through the Baltic and when interstadial regimes dominated the Baltic, glaciers expanded off the Norwegian coast. The largest glacier extent was reached in the North Sea around 29 kyr BP, about 22 kyr BP in Denmark and ca. 18 kyr BP in the Baltic. Our model provides new data for future numerical and qualitative landform‐based models. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Romney Marsh. Coastal and landscape change through the ages. A. Long, S. Hipkin and H. Clarke (eds) Publisher Oxford University School of Archaeology, Oxford, 2002, Monograph No 56, (215 pp) £30.00/US$49.95 ISBN 0 947816 57 7 - Helen M. Roe (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Oscillations of the siliceous imprint in the central Benguela Upwelling System from MIS 3 through to the early Holocene: the influence of the Southern Ocean - O. Romero; G. Mollenhauer; R. R. Schneider; G. Wefer (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Based on a high‐resolution analysis of the diatom signal and biogenic bulk components at site GeoB3606‐1 (25°S, off Namibia), we describe rapid palaeoceanographic changes in the Benguela Upwelling System (BUS) from early MIS 3 through to the early Holocene (55 000 to 7 000 14 C yr BP). Coastal upwelling strongly varied at 25°S from MIS 3 through to MIS 2. The abrupt decrease in the accumulation rate of biogenic silica and diatoms from MIS 3 into MIS 2 records rapid oceanographic changes in the BUS off Namibia. During MIS 3, leakage of excess H 4 SiO 4 acid from the Southern Ocean into low‐latitude surface waters, as indicated by the occurrence of Antarctic diatoms, enhanced the production of spores of Chaetoceros at the expense of calcareous phytoplankton. Furthermore, shallower Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) would have enriched the thermocline off Namibia with silicate transported from the Southern Ocean. The strong decrease of the siliceous signal throughout MIS 2 represents a decrease in the nutrient input to the BUS, even though the diatom assemblage is still dominated by spores of the upwelling‐associated diatom genus Chaetoceros . Depletion of silicate in the thermocline from the onset of MIS 2 through to the early Holocene reflects the shutdown of AAIW injection from the Southern Ocean into the BUS, causing upwelled waters to become reduced in silicate, hence less favourable for diatom production. The deglaciation and early Holocene are characterised by the replacement of the upwelling‐associated flora by a non‐upwelling‐related diatom community, reflecting weakened upwelling, retraction of the seaward extension of the chlorophyll filament off Lüderitz, and dominance of warmer waters. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Holocene seasonal sea‐surface temperature variations in the southern Adriatic Sea inferred from a multiproxy approach - Francesca Sangiorgi; Lucilla Capotondi; Nathalie Combourieu Nebout; Luigi Vigliotti; Henk Brinkhuis; Simona Giunta; Andrè F. Lotter; Caterina Morigi; Alessandra Negri; Gert‐Jan Reichart (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Holocene cooling events have been reconstructed for the southern Adriatic Sea (central Mediterranean) by means of analyses of organic walled dinoflagellate cysts, planktonic foraminifera, oxygen isotopes, calcareous nanoplankton, alkenones and pollen from a sediment core. Two cooling events have been detected, during which sea‐surface temperatures (SSTs) were ca. 2°C lower. Unravelling the SST signal into dominant seasonal components suggests maximum winter cooling of 2°C at around 6.0 ka, whereas the cooling at ca. 3.0 ka might be the result of a spring temperature cooling of 2–3°C. The events, lasting several hundred years, are apparently synchronous with those in the Aegean Sea, where they have been related to known cooling events from the Greenland ice‐core record. A distinct interruption in Adriatic Sea sapropel S1 is not clearly accompanied by a local drop in winter temperatures, but seems to be forced by ventilation, which probably occurred earlier in the Aegean Sea and was subsequently transmitted to the Adriatic Sea. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Quaternary palaeoceanographic changes in the northern South China Sea (ODP Site 1146): radiolarian evidence - Rujian Wang; Steven Clemens; Baoqi Huang; Muhong Chen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The abundance and accumulation rates of siliceous microfossils in the northern South China Sea, including radiolarians, diatoms and sponge spicules, increased during most glacial intervals within the past 1100 kyr. Similar trends are observed in the index of thermocline surface radiolarians (TSR), diatom accumulation rates (DAR), charcoal accumulation rates (CAR) and the abundance of radiolarian species Cycladophora davisiana davisiana . Decreasing sea‐surface temperature accompanied by increased seasonality since 900 ka is indicated by a decline in the tropical radiolarian assemblage, including Tetrapyle octacantha and Octopyle stenozona , and by an increase in the subtropical assemblage, including Pterocorys zancleus , Peromelissa phalacra and Ommatartuts tetrathalamus tetrathalamus . Rapid increases at about 800 to 700 ka of siliceous microfossils, charcoal, subsurface and intermediate radiolarians, as well as the TSR index and the DAR, imply a fundamental shift in climate and a shoaling thermocline. Although these fundamental changes in the silicious fauna and flora of the South China Sea take place within the context of a developing 100‐kyr cycle, they do not change in step with changing sea‐level as indicated by marine δ 18 O. This is most clearly illustrated by the step‐like increase in silica accumulation (radiolaria, diatoms and sponge spicules) at 680 ka. Rather, these fundamental changes probably reflect intensified surface productivity associated with enhanced East Asian winter‐monsoon circulation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Late‐glacial reoccupation of the British Isles and the Creswellian - R. N. E. Barton; R. M. Jacobi; D. Stapert; M. J. Street (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
This paper presents a review of AMS radiocarbon dating evidence for human occupation of Britain during the Late‐glacial Interstadial. The dates are all on humanly modified materials, including artefacts, and on human bone. The CalPal program is used to test whether the earliest evidence of human presence shows any correlation with more widespread climatic events, and if the British chronology differs significantly from that of neighbouring regions of northwest Europe. In the second part of the paper a number of well‐dated sites with British Late Upper Palaeolithic ‘Creswellian’ technology are examined and compared with lithic assemblages from The Netherlands and Belgium. The main conclusions of this work are that expansion of human populations into the northern edge of the upland zone just before or at the beginning of GI‐1 was followed by repopulation of the British Isles possibly with very little time‐lag. The British Creswellian sites offer evidence of this earliest resettlement, which is mainly focused on the upland margins of western and central Britain. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The use of caddisfly fauna (Insecta: Trichoptera) to characterise the Late‐glacial River Trent, England - M. T. Greenwood; M. D. Agnew; P. J. Wood (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Trichoptera have been utilised infrequently in palaeoecological studies despite their value as environmental indicators of freshwater habitat structure and quality, via their aquatic larvae, and catchment macroclimate conditions, via the aerial adults. Two sites, dated ca. 11 600 14 C yr BP, in the middle reaches of the River Trent (England) supported caddisfly (Trichoptera) assemblages indicative of a dynamic braided river with extensive floodplain development. At the first, Barrow‐upon‐Trent, the caddisfly assemblage was dominated by taxa indicative of a medium to large gravel‐bed river ( Lepidostoma hirtum , Micrasema setiferum and taxa from the family Hydropsychidae). At the second site, Hemington, the caddisfly fauna was dominated by taxa from the families Limnephilidae and Phryganeidae. These usually occur in slow flowing and standing waters and are indicative of cut‐off channels on the floodplain. Micrasema setiferum does not occur in the contemporary UK fauna and has a modern distribution across central Europe and Fennoscandia. A gridded climatology extracted for those geographical areas where M. setiferum occurs today indicated a greater degree of continentality than currently prevailing in the Trent catchment. The value of Trichoptera in palaeoecological studies is explored and a model of channel evolution for the River Trent is presented based on caddisfly data. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Lake stratigraphy implies an 80 000 yr delayed melting of buried dead ice in northern Russia - Mona Henriksen; Jan Mangerud; Alexei Matiouchkov; Aage Paus; John Inge Svendsen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Sediment cores from lakes Kormovoye and Oshkoty in the glaciated region of the Pechora Lowland, northern Russia, reveal sediment gravity flow deposits overlain by lacustrine mud and gyttja. The sediments were deposited mainly during melting of buried glacier ice beneath the lakes. In Lake Kormovoye, differential melting of dead ice caused the lake bottom to subside at different places at different times, resulting in sedimentation and erosion occurring only some few metres apart and at shifting locations, as further melting caused inversion of the lake bottom. Basal radiocarbon dates from the two lakes, ranging between 13 and 9 ka, match with basal dates from other lakes in the Pechora Lowland as well as melting of ice‐wedges. This indicates that buried glacier ice has survived for ca. 80 000 years from the last glaciation of this area at 90 ka until about 13 ka when a warmer climate caused melting of permafrost and buried glacier ice, forming numerous lakes and a fresh‐looking glacial landscape. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dating the introduction of cereal cultivation to the British Isles: early palaeoecological evidence from the Isle of Man - James B. Innes; Jeffrey J. Blackford; Peter J. Davey (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The adoption of cereal cultivation is a key benchmark in the transition from Mesolithic hunter–gatherer foraging to Neolithic farming economies, but the nature, timing and ecological–cultural context of the earliest cereal use in the British Isles and northwest Europe is still uncertain. We present AMS radiocarbon dating and fine‐resolution pollen evidence from the Isle of Man for cereal growing in the latter stages of a distinct episode of forest disturbance at almost 6000 yr BP (uncalibrated). The coherent ecological structure of this phase at the fine resolution level suggests that it records cereal cultivation well before the Ulmus decline, rather than wild grass pollen grains. This example is one of a cluster of early dates for cereal‐type pollen near the start of the sixth millenium BP, including several around the Irish Sea, which indicate that the introduction of cereal agriculture probably occurred as early in the central British Isles as in the northern European plain. This early cereal phase is followed later by a probable phase of pre‐ Ulmus decline pastoral activity. We also report Mesolithic age woodland disturbance around 7000 yr BP (uncalibrated) and the first radiocarbon dates for mid‐Holocene forest history of the Isle of Man. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Rapid vegetation change during the early Holocene in the Faroe Islands detected in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems - Gina E. Hannon; Richard H. W. Bradshaw; Stefan Wastegård (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
High‐resolution pollen, plant macrofossil and sedimentary analyses from early Holocene lacustrine sediments on the Faroe Islands have detected a significant vegetation perturbation suggesting a rapid change in climate between ca. 10 380 cal. yr BP and the Saksunarvatn ash (10 240±60 cal. yr BP). This episode may be synchronous with the decline in δ 18 O values in the Greenland ice‐cores. It also correlates with a short, cold event detected in marine cores from the North Atlantic that has been ascribed to a weakening of thermohaline circulation associated with the sudden drainage of Lake Agassiz into the northwest Atlantic, or, alternatively, a period with distinctly decreased solar forcing. The vegetation sequence begins at ca. 10 500 cal. yr BP with a succession from tundra to shrub‐tundra and increasing lake productivity. Rapid population increases of aquatic plants suggest high summer temperatures between 10 450 and 10 380 cal. yr BP. High pollen percentages, concentrations and influx of Betula, Juniperus and Salix together with macrofossil leaves indicate shrub growth around the site during the initial phases of vegetation colonisation. Unstable conditions followed ca. 10 380 cal. yr BP that changed both the upland vegetation and the aquatic plant communities. A decrease in percentage values of shrub pollen is recorded, with replacement of both aquatics and herbaceous plants by pioneer plant communities. An increase in total pollen accumulation rates not seen in the concentration data suggests increased sediment delivery. The catchment changes are consistent with less seasonal, moister conditions. Subsequent climatic amelioration reinitiated a warmth‐driven succession and catchment stabilisation, but retained high precipitation levels influencing the composition of the post‐event communities. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Variability in temperature and geometry of the Norwegian Current over the past 600 yr; stable isotope and grain size evidence from the Norwegian margin - Ida Malene Berstad; Hans Petter Sejrup; Dorthe Klitgaard‐Kristensen; Haflidi Haflidason (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Core P1‐003MC was retrieved from 851 m water depth on the southern Norwegian continental margin, close to the boundary between the Norwegian Current (NC) and the underlying cold Norwegian Sea Deep Water. The core chronology was established by using 210 Pb measurements and 14 C dates, suggesting a sampling resolution of between 2 and 9 yr. Sea‐surface temperature (SST) variations in the NC are reconstructed from stable oxygen isotope measurements in two planktonic Foraminifera species, Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (d.) and Globigerina bulloides . The high temporal resolution of the SST proxy records allows direct comparison with instrumental ocean temperature measurements from Ocean Weather Ship (OWS) Mike in the Norwegian Sea and an air temperature record from the coastal island Ona, western Norway. The comparison of the instrumental and the proxy SST data suggests that N. pachyderma (d.) calcify during summer, whereas G. bulloides calcify during spring. The δ 18 O records of both species suggest that the past 70 yr have been the warmest throughout the past 600 yr. The spring and summer proxy temperature data suggest differences in the duration of the cold period of the Little Ice Age. The spring temperature was 1–3°C colder throughout most of the period between ca. AD 1400 and 1700, and the summer temperature was 1–2°C colder throughout most of the period between ca. AD 1400 and 1920. Fluctuations in the depth of the lower boundary of the NC have been investigated by examining grain size data and benthic foraminiferal assemblages. The data show that the transition depth of the lower boundary of the NC was deeper between ca. AD 1400 and 1650 than after ca. AD 1750 until present. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Stable carbon isotope composition of terrestrial leaves: inter‐ and intraspecies variability, cellulose and whole‐leaf tissue difference, and potential for climate reconstruction - Mats Rundgren; Neil J. Loader; Dan Hammarlund (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Stable carbon isotope analysis of terrestrial plant leaves preserved in Quaternary lake sediments has the potential to provide high‐resolution reconstructions of past climatic conditions. Preferably, δ 13 C measurements should be made on a single leaf component, e.g. cellulose, but this approach is often precluded by limited leaf availability. Previous work suggests that reliable palaeoclimatic information also may be derived from δ 13 C measurements on whole‐leaf tissue, given a similar degree of leaf decomposition between samples. Leaf δ 13 C data for 12 Scandinavian species of dwarf‐shrubs, shrubs and trees, and a comparison of δ 13 C data on recent and late Holocene Salix herbacea leaves, revealed that the δ 13 C signal registered by holocellulose is largely reflected by measurements on whole‐leaf tissue. Holocellulose was found to be consistently enriched in 13 C, although this δ 13 C offset was smaller for subfossil leaves. This supports the use of δ 13 C measurements on whole‐leaf tissue for climate reconstruction, at least for leaves preserved in soft, late Holocene sediments with minimal diagenetic effects. Leaf carbon and nitrogen data on fresh leaves of the same 12 Scandinavian species, and corresponding data on late Holocene Salix herbacea leaves, suggest that the leaf C:N ratio is a suitable indicator of the degree of leaf decomposition. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Post‐glacial vegetation reconstruction and a possible 8200 cal. yr BP event from the low arctic of continental Nunavut, Canada - Heikki Seppä; Les C. Cwynar; Glen M. MacDonald (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Climate models suggest that the global warming during the early to mid‐Holocene may have partly resulted from the northward advance of the northern treeline and subsequent reduction of the planetary albedo. We investigated the Holocene vegetation history of low arctic continental Nunavut, Canada, from a radiocarbon‐dated sediment core from TK‐2 Lake, a small‐lake ca. 200 km north of the limit of the forest‐tundra. The pollen and loss‐on‐ignition data indicate the presence of dwarf shrub tundra in the region since the beginning of organic sedimentation at ca. 9000 cal. yr BP with dominance of Betula , especially since 8700 cal. yr BP. At 8100–7900 cal. yr BP the dominance of the shrub tundra was punctuated by a transient decline of Betula and coincident increases of Ericaceae undiff., Vaccinium ‐type, and Gramineae. This suggests an abrupt disturbance of the Betula glandulosa population, approximately simultaneously with the sudden 8200 cal. yr BP event in the North Atlantic. However, in the absence of other sites studied in the area, linkage to the 8200 cal. yr BP event remains tentative. The lack of any evidence of forest‐tundra in the region constrains the northern limit of the mid‐Holocene advance of the forest‐tundra boundary in central northern Canada. Consequently, our results show that the climate models imposing a mid‐Holocene advance of the limit of the forest‐tundra to the arctic coast of Canada may have overestimated the positive climatic feedback effects that can result from the replacement of tundra by the boreal forest. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Radiocarbon constraints on the Holocene flood deposits of the Ning‐Zhen Mountains, lower Yangtze River area of China - Shi‐Yong Yu; Cheng Zhu; Fubao Wang (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Lying athwart both the temperate and subtropical zones, the Ning‐Zhen Mountains are particularly prone to extreme floods in the summer months when cold fronts collide with the subtropics‐derived warm airmasses. The Holocene flood deposits in the region may provide a long‐term perspective on hydrographical change and its palaeoclimatic implications. Radiocarbon dates on carbonised wood preserved in flooding sediments reveal that the region has experienced a number of catastrophic floods throughout the middle Holocene. These extreme flooding events cluster into three periods: (i) 9200–8200 cal. yr BP, (ii) 7600–5800 cal. yr BP and (iii) 5200–4000 cal. yr BP, corresponding to the times when the East Asian monsoon has been intensified under warm conditions. The significant falls in flooding frequency around 8200 cal. yr BP, 5800 cal. yr BP and 4000 cal. yr BP may have resulted from substantial reduction in regional precipitation, probably associated with meridional displacement of the planetary frontal system. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Tsunami. The underrated hazard, E. Bryant (ed.). Publisher Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001 (320 pp) ISBN 0‐521‐77599‐X (PB) 0‐521‐77244‐3 (HB) - Alastair G. Dawson (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Tephrochronology and tephrostratigraphy of two Pleistocene continental fossiliferous successions from central Italy - F. Marcolini; G. Bigazzi; F. P. Bonadonna; E. Centamore; R. Cioni; G. Zanchetta (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The stratigraphical context of two Middle Pleistocene fossiliferous palaeosols from Central Italy (Abruzzo and Tuscany) have been studied. Small mammals and molluscs occur in both palaeosols, which are covered by tephra layers that were analysed using an interdisciplinary approach. Application of fission‐track dating to apatites separated from the Case Picconetto tephra (Pescara, Abruzzo), yielded an age of 0.48 ± 0.04 Ma, indistinguishable from those previously determined for the Campani Quarry (Lower Valdarno, Tuscany) (0.46 ± 0.05 Ma and 0.48 ± 0.05 Ma). Geochemical and petrographic investigations indicate that these tephra originated from different volcanoes, the Alban Hills Volcanic Complex and the Vico Volcano (Latium) respectively. Small mammal and mollusc assemblages indicate different palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental conditions for the Case Picconetto and Campani Quarry palaeosols. Warm and humid conditions can be inferred for the Campani Quarry site, whereas open and cold conditions can be inferred for Case Picconetto. On the basis of faunal data, fission‐track dates and attribution of tephra to specific volcanic eruptions, we suggest a correlation of these faunas with marine oxygen isotope stage 14 (Case Picconetto) and with marine oxygen isotope stage 11 (Campani Quarry), respectively. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

New JQS editor for the Americas - James Scourse (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

A late Holocene record of arid events from the Cuzco region, Peru - Alex Chepstow‐Lusty; Michael R. Frogley; Brian S. Bauer; Mark. B. Bush; Alfredo Tupayachi Herrera (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The small recently infilled lake basin of Marcacocha (13°13′S, 72°12′W, 3355 m) in the Cuzco region of Peru has a morphology and location that renders it extremely sensitive to environmental change. A record of vegetation, human impact and climatic change during the past 4200 yr has been obtained from a highly organic core taken from the centre of the basin. Sustained arid episodes that affected the Peruvian Andes may be detectable using the proxy indicator of sedge (Cyperaceae) pollen abundances. As the lake‐level was lowered during sustained drier conditions, the local catchment was colonised by Cyperaceae, whereas during lake floods, they retreated or were submerged and pollen production was correspondingly reduced. Drier episodes during prehistoric times occurred around 900 bc , 500 bc , ad 100 and ad 550, with a longer dry episode occurring from ad 900 to 1800. Evidence from the independently derived Quelccaya ice‐core record and the archaeological chronology for the Cuzco region appears to support the climatic inferences derived from the sedge data. Many of these aridity episodes appear to correspond with important cultural changes in the Cuzco region and elsewhere in the Central Andes. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Tropical glaciers, G. Kaser and H. Osmaston (eds). Publisher Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001 (206 pp) ISBN 0‐521‐63333‐8 - Jaap J. M. Van Der Meer (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Deformation styles as a key for interpreting glacial depositional environments - Danny McCarroll; Kenneth F. Rijsdijk (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Lithostratigraphical and lithofacies approaches used to interpret glacial sediments often ignore deformation structures that can provide the key to environment of formation. We propose a classification of deformation styles based on the geometry of structures rather than inferred environment of formation. Five styles are recognised: pure shear (P), simple shear (S), compressional (C), vertical (V) and undeformed (U). These dictate the first letter of the codes; the remaining letters conveying the evidence. This information can be used to reconstruct palaeostress fields and to infer physical properties of sediments when they deformed. Individual structures are not diagnostic of particular environments but the suite of structures, their relative scale, stratigraphical relationships, and orientation relative to palaeoslopes and to palaeoice‐flow directions can be used to infer the environment in which they formed. This scheme is applied at five sites in west Wales. The typical succession is interpreted as subglacial sediments overlain by meltout tills, flow tills and sediment flows. Paraglacial redistribution of glacial sediments is widespread. Large‐scale compressional deformation is restricted to sites where glaciers readvanced. Large‐scale vertical deformation occurs where water was locally ponded near the ice margin. There is no evidence for glaciomarine conditions. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Early and Middle Pleistocene vegetation history of the Médoc region, southwest France - C. E. O'Brien; R. L. Jones (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Pleistocene deposits, together with their pollen, plant macrofossil, foraminiferal, dinoflagellate and coleopteran remains, from five sites along the Atlantic coast of the Médoc Peninsula are described and discussed. Sediments making up the Négade Formation are shown to have been laid down under either estuarine or lagoonal conditions when closed Quercus – Pinus ‐ Tsuga canadensis regional woodland existed. Comparison with plant records from The Netherlands indicates that these deposits are most likely attributable to either the Early Pleistocene Bavel Interglacial (marine oxygen isotope stage (MIS) 31), or an interglacial of the Waalian (MIS 37–49) or Tiglian (MIS 63–79). In addition, clays assigned to the Argiles du Gurp sensu stricto , were similarly deposited in either an estuary or lagoon, which subsequently was cut off from the sea. A freshwater lake with vegetation dominated by Azolla filiculoides then developed. This was succeeded by reedswamp and an organic mud (termed Lignite in the corresponding French stratigraphical records) formed. Regional Quercus – Abies woodland was replaced by one with Pinus dominant and Pterocarya a minor component. Comparison with plant records from France and other parts of Europe suggest that the clays and organic mud might be correlated with the Holsteinian (Praclaux) Interglacial (MIS 11c). Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Palaeoecological evidence of changes in vegetation and climate during the Holocene in the pre‐Polar Urals, northeast European Russia - Seija Kultti; Minna Väliranta; Kaarina Sarmaja‐Korjonen; Nadia Solovieva; Tarmo Virtanen; Tommi Kauppila; Matti Eronen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
This study investigated Holocene tree‐line history and climatic change in the pre‐Polar Urals, northeast European Russia. A sediment core from Mezhgornoe Lake situated at the present‐day alpine tree‐line was studied for pollen, plant macrofossils, Cladocera and diatoms. A peat section from Vangyr Mire in the nearby mixed mountain taiga zone was analysed for pollen. The results suggest that the study area experienced a climatic optimum in the early Holocene and that summer temperatures were at least 2°C warmer than today. Tree birch immigrated to the Mezhgornoe Lake area at the onset of the Holocene. Mixed spruce forests followed at ca. 9500–9000 14 C yr BP. Climate was moist and the water level of Mezhgornoe Lake rose rapidly. The hypsithermal phase lasted until ca. 5500–4500 14 C yr BP, after which the mixed forest withdrew from the Mezhgornoe catchment as a result of the climate cooling. The gradual altitudinal downward shift of vegetation zones resulted in the present situation, with larch forming the tree‐line. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Glaciotectonised Quaternary sediments at Cape Shpindler, Yugorski Peninsula, Arctic Russia: implications for glacial history, ice movements and Kara Sea Ice Sheet configuration - Hanna Lokrantz; Ólafur Ingólfsson; Steven L. Forman (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The coastal cliffs of Cape Shpindler, Yugorski Peninsula, Arctic Russia, occupy a key position for recording overriding ice sheets during past glaciations in the Kara Sea area, either from the Kara Sea shelf or the uplands of Yugorski Peninsula/Polar Urals. This study on Late Quaternary glacial stratigraphy and glaciotectonic structures of the Cape Shpindler coastal cliffs records two glacier advances and two ice‐free periods older than the Holocene. During interglacial conditions, a sequence of marine to fluvial sediments was deposited. This was followed by a glacial event when ice moved southwards from an ice‐divide over Novaya Zemlya and overrode and disturbed the interglacial sediments. After a second period of fluvial deposition, under interstadial or interglacial conditions, the area was again subject to glacial overriding, with the ice moving northwards from an inland ice divide. The age‐control suggests that the older glacial event could possibly belong to marine oxygen isotope stage (MOIS) 8, Drenthe (300–250 ka), and that the underlying interglacial sediments might be Holsteinian (>300 ka). One implication of this is that relict glacier ice, buried in sediments and incorporated into the permafrost, may survive several interglacial and interstadial events. The younger glacial event recognised in the Cape Shpindler sequence is interpreted to be of Early‐to‐Middle Weichselian age. It is suggested to correlate to a regional glaciation around 90 or 60 ka. The Cape Shpindler record suggests more complex glacial dynamics during that glaciation than can be explained by a concentric ice sheet located in the Kara Sea, as suggested by recent geological and model studies. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Palaeotemperature reconstructions of the European permafrost zone during marine oxygen isotope Stage 3 compared with climate model results - Ko van Huissteden; Jef Vandenberghe; David Pollard (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
A palaeotemperature reconstruction based on periglacial phenomena in Europe north of approximately 51 °N, is compared with high‐resolution regional climate model simulations of the marine oxygen isotope Stage 3 (Stage 3) palaeoclimate. The experiments represent Stage 3 warm (interstadial), Stage 3 cold (stadial) and Last Glacial Maximum climatic conditions. The palaeotemperature reconstruction deviates considerably for the Stage 3 cold climate experiments, with mismatches up to 11 °C for the mean annual air temperature and up to 15 °C for the winter temperature. However, in this reconstruction various factors linking climate and permafrost have not been taken into account. In particular a relatively thin snow cover and high climatic variability of the glacial climate could have influenced temperature limits for ice‐wedge growth. Based on modelling the 0 °C mean annual ground temperature proves to be an appropriate upper temperature limit. Using this limit, mismatches with the Stage 3 cold climate experiments have been reduced but still remain. We therefore assume that the Stage 3 ice wedges were generated during short (decadal time‐scale) intervals of extreme cold climate, below the mean temperatures indicated by the Stage 3 cold climate model simulations. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

High‐energy sedimentation, Creag Aoil, Spean Bridge, Scotland: implications for meltwater movement and storage during Loch Lomond Stadial (Younger Dryas) ice retreat - Andrew J. Russell; Fiona S. Tweed; Tim Harris (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
This paper examines the origin and significance of Loch Lomond Stadial (Younger Dryas) gravel deposits at Creag Aoil, Spean Bridge, Scotland. Sedimentation into ice‐dammed lakes in Glen Roy and Glen Spean associated with shorelines at 260 m, 325 m and 350 m is well‐documented, yet little is known about later, lower level lakes near Spean Bridge. Excavations on the northern flanks of the Lundy Channel revealed exposures into a 35–40 m thickness of sand and gravel. These sediments reflect deposition in a subaqueous environment experiencing repeated short‐lived periods of high‐energy subaerial deposition. Deformation structures within subaqueous deposits are associated with at least two ice‐push events. This study presents new evidence for the existence of ice‐dammed lakes at elevations between 260 m and 113 m and for periodic jökulhlaups draining southwest via the Lundy Channel. Active glacier ice associated with the deposits flowed northwest to southeast, driving meltwater across the Great Glen to the Lundy Channel. Glacier retreat was punctuated by periodic minor readvances. Progressive ice retreat was accompanied by ice thinning, and changes in ice‐flow direction and subglacial meltwater routing. These findings add to knowledge of Loch Lomond Stadial deglaciation around Spean Bridge and have implications for our understanding of lacustrine glacier margins during deglaciation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Chemical alteration of tephra in the depositional environment: theoretical stability modelling - A. M. Pollard; S. P. E. Blockley; K. R. Ward (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The study of the chemical stability of vitreous material in aqueous media is well‐established. There has to date been little consideration of the implications of variations in the chemical durability of tephra in Quaternary tephrochronology. Chemical alteration can take the form of cationic leaching from the matrix, or complete destruction of the silica network, either of which could constrain the ability to chemically identify distal tephra. Here we apply established models of vitreous durability to the published chemical analyses of a large number of Icelandic tephras in order to predict their relative durabilities under equivalent conditions. This suggests that some important tephras have relatively poor chemical stability, and that rhyolitic tephras are, in general, more stable than basaltic. We conclude that tephras should be expected to show predictable differential chemical stability in the post‐depositional environment. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Time perspectives on glacial landscape formation—glacial flow chronology at Lac aux Goélands, northeastern Québec, Canada - Anders Clarhäll; Krister N. Jansson (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
We used mapping from aerial photographs and field investigations around Lac Aux Goélands (Whitegull Lake), northeastern Québec, to establish a glacial flow chronology that involves three different glacial landform systems. We interpret the youngest of these systems as related to the late Wisconsinan deglaciation. This system has an up‐glacier discontinuity that marks a temporal shift from warm‐based subglacial conditions to non‐erosive cold‐based subglacial conditions, whereby older glacial landscapes are preserved in the interior of Québec–Labrador. Furthermore, our results support theories suggesting a northward migrating ice divide to a final position south of Ungava Bay during the final deglaciation. The recognition that a glacial landscape is fragmented and consists of smaller, temporally unrelated units is of considerable significance in understanding ice‐sheet dynamics and patterns of subglacial preservation and destruction. This is because a fragmented landscape implies a fragmented formation history, where formation of subglacial landforms occurred in restricted subglacial zones during restricted time periods. Periods of formation must have been separated by periods of preservation and inhibited subglacial reshaping. Based on estimates of the ice margin retreat velocity and the velocity of the warm‐based inward migrating zone, we suggest that periods of preservation were orders of magnitude longer than periods of subglacial landform formation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Natural hazards and environmental change, W. McGuire, I. Mason and C. Kilburn. Publisher Arnold, London 2002 (187 pp) ISBN 0 340 74220 8 (PB) 0 340 74219 4 (HB) - Wishart Mitchell (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Peatlands and environmental change, D. Charman. Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Chichester 2002 (301 pp) ISBN 0 471 96990 7 (HB) 0 471 84410 8 (PB) - Frank Chambers (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Palaeoecology of Africa and the surrounding islands, volume 27, K. Heine and J. Runge (eds). Publisher Balkema, Lisse 2001 (327 pp) ISBN 0‐5809‐350‐6 - Sarah Davies (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Relict rock glaciers as indicators of Mediterranean palaeoclimate during the Last Glacial Maximum (Late Würmian) in northwest Greece - P. D. Hughes; P. L. Gibbard; J. C. Woodward (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Relict rock glaciers have been identified and mapped in the high cirques of Mount Tymphi, in the Pindus mountains of northwest Greece. They are periglacial forms and represent the most recent cold‐stage landforms in an area that displays widespread evidence of Pleistocene glaciation. It is likely that these features formed during the Last Glacial Maximum (Late Würmian) as talus rock glaciers, and beneath small cirque glaciers as debris rock glaciers. Comparisons with modern rock glacier–climate relationships suggests mean annual temperatures of ca. 8–9°C lower than present at their time of formation. This temperature reconstruction is in good agreement with recent palaeoclimatic reconstructions for the northern Mediterranean based on a general circulation model. Moreover, as rock glaciers are typical of cold and relatively dry mountain regions, their presence is consistent with palaeobotanical and lake‐level data suggesting a cold and relatively dry climate for the Last Glacial Maximum in Greece. However, the presence of small cirque glaciers above some rock glaciers suggests that although precipitation must have been low enough to preclude glacier extension down to lower altitudes, it was not so low as to inhibit glacier formation entirely. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Observing artificially induced strain: implications for subglacial deformation - John F. Hiemstra; Kenneth F. Rijsdijk (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
By analysing a series of four successive thin‐sections from a ceramic clay that was subjected to uniaxial compression, we were able to monitor the development of microstructures in a fine‐grained sediment. The artificially induced microstructures, such as unidirectional clay reorientations and linear and circular grain arrangements, are identical to features that have been observed in thin‐sections of subglacially deformed tills, and therefore may be used as representative analogues. We argue that the structures, reflecting slip, planar shear displacements as well as rotational movements, can be explained by assuming a Coulomb‐plastic response to imposed shear. We conclude that sediments subjected to subglacial deformation behave as Coulomb materials, at least during the final stages of the deformation. The present study bridges the gap between field studies, experimental studies and theoretical modelling. The microscopic observations assist in visualising inferred subglacial processes and facilitate up‐ and downscaling between diverse methodological approaches. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Glacier variations in Breheimen, southern Norway: dating Little Ice Age moraine sequences at seven low‐altitude glaciers - Stefan Winkler; John A. Matthews; Richard A. Shakesby; P. Quentin Dresser (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Moraine sequences in front of seven relatively low‐altitude glaciers in the Breheimen region of central southern Norway are described and dated using a ‘multi‐proxy’ approach to moraine stratigraphy. Lichenometric dating, based on the Rhizocarpon subgenus, is used to construct a composite moraine chronology, which indicates eight phases of synchronous moraine formation: AD 1793–1799, 1807–1813, 1845–1852, 1859–1862, 1879–1885, 1897–1898, 1906–1908 and 1931–1933. Although the existence of a few cases of older moraines, possibly dating from earlier in the eighteenth or late in the seventeenth centuries cannot be ruled out by lichenometry, Schmidt hammer R‐values from boulders on outermost moraine ridges suggest an absence of Holocene moraines older than the Little Ice Age. Twenty‐three radiocarbon dates from buried soils and peat associated with outermost moraines at three glaciers—Tverreggibreen, Storegrovbreen and Greinbreen—also indicate that the ‘Little Ice Age’ glacier maximum was the Neoglacial maximum at most if not all glaciers. Several maximum age estimates for the Little Ice Age glacier maximum range between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries, with the youngest from a buried soil being AD 1693. A pre‐Little Ice Age maximum cannot be ruled out at Greinbreen, however, where the age of buried peat suggests the outermost moraine dates from AD 981–1399 (at variance with the lichenometric evidence). Glaciofluvial stratigraphy at Tverreggibreen provides evidence for minor glacier advances about AD 655–963 and AD 1277–1396, respectively. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Origin and evolution of tropical rain forests, R. J. Morley. Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Chichester 2000 (362 pp) ISBN 0‐471‐98326‐8 - Fabienne Marret (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

El Niño and the Southern Oscillation. Multiscale variability and global and regional impacts, H. F. Diaz and V. Markgraf (eds). Publisher Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2000 (496 pp) ISBN 0‐521‐62138‐0 - Chris Turney (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Interhemispheric climate linkages, V. Markgraf (ed.). Publisher Academic Press, San Diego 2000 (454 pp) ISBN 0‐12‐472670‐4 - Michael Hannah (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

The Pleistocene rivers of the English Channel region - Pierre Antoine; Jean‐Pierre Coutard; Philip Gibbard; Bernard Hallegouet; Jean‐Pierre Lautridou; Jean‐Claude Ozouf (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The Pleistocene history of river systems that enter the English Channel from northern France and southern England is reviewed. During periods of low sea‐level (cold stages) these streams were tributaries of the Channel River. In southern England the largest, the River Solent, is an axial stream that has drained the Hampshire Basin from the Early Pleistocene or late Pliocene. Other streams of southern England may be of similar antiquity but their records are generally short and their sedimentary history have been destroyed, as in northern Brittany, by coastal erosion and valley deepening as a consequence of tectonic uplift. In northern France, the Seine and Somme rivers have very well developed terrace systems recording incision that began at around 1 Ma. The uplift rate, deduced from the study of these terrace systems, is of 55 to 60 m myr −1 since the end of the Early Pleistocene. Generally the facies and sedimentary structures indicate that the bulk of the deposits in these rivers accumulated in braided river environments under periglacial climates in all the area around the Channel. Evolution of the rivers reflects their responses to climatic change, local geological structure and long‐term tectonic activity. In this context the Middle Somme valley is characterised by a regular pattern in which incision occurs at the beginning of each glacial period within a general background of uplift. Nevertheless the response of the different rivers to climatic variations, uplift and sea‐level changes is complex and variable according to the different parts of the river courses. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Quaternary Channel River: seismic stratigraphy of its palaeo‐valleys and deeps - Gilles Lericolais; Jean‐Paul Auffret; Jean‐François Bourillet (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Based on the interpretation of geophysical data (very high resolution seismic data combined with EM1000 swath bathymetry), this paper reviews the history of the Channel River throughout the late Cenozoic. New evidence does illustrate how the interplay of tectonics, eustacy and climate have influenced this northwest European drainage system. The concepts of sequence stratigraphy allow the subdivision of the sedimentary record into depositional sequences bounded by unconformities, resulting from globally synchronous sea‐level changes. However, the recognition of eustatic sea‐level changes in a cold climate environment is very difficult, because of the interplay of additional phenomena such as glacio‐isostatic sea‐level changes with glacio‐eustatic changes. For our interpretation, it was necessary to adjust these concepts with the relative importance of geomorphological processes determining the behaviour of rivers and steering their evolution. The foundations of the modern drainage system were laid after the Oligocene Channel inversion. In general these early rivers occupied shallow valleys. The Pleistocene cold climates resulted in fluvial incision. Through time, the Channel River has adopted a drainage system that can be divided into three parts: (i) the drainage basin comprising the Southern Bight, the eastern Channel and the London and Paris basins, (ii) the river zone itself, which begins at the Cotentin peninsula and passes through the Hurd Deep, before reaching the continental shelf‐break in the Celtic Sea, (iii) the depositional basin represented by the Celtic Banks complex and by the deep sea fans, located at the foot of Shamrock and Black Mud canyons. During important lowstands (marine oxygen isotope stages 22, 16, 10, 6 and 2), the Channel River seems to have reached the shelf‐break, as indicated by the internal structure of the banks. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Holocene and modern sediments in the Seine estuary (France): a synthesis - P. Lesueur; S. Lesourd; D. Lefebvre; S. Garnaud; J. C. Brun‐Cottan (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
This synthesis of numerous studies on the Holocene and modern sediments in the macrotidal setting of the Seine estuary demonstrates their overall evolution. In common with a number of estuaries, the lower Seine was an incised valley during the Weichselian glacio‐eustatic sea‐level fall, and infilling occurred during the subsequent lowstand, the Holocene sea‐level rise and the late Holocene stillstand. In the upper estuary, above the basal gravel bed, fluvial freshwater deposits filled the valley. Next, fine sand and silts invaded the estuary upstream to Rouen; the sequence ends in loam, resulting from an increase in the supply of sediment to the fluvial system. In the upper estuary, anthropogenic deepening of the modern channel results in erosion of the Holocene sediments; the only bedforms are thin and narrow sand sheets and some rare megaripples. In the lower estuary, above the Weichselian basal gravel, the Holocene wedge records the change from a transgressed fluvial setting (i.e. gravel beds) to an open estuarine environment (i.e. tidal delta). The modern Seine estuary has been progressively infilled by marine sands and silts. Now silts and clays supplied during high river flows accumulate at the outlet, and offshore sands and gravel of the eastern Bay of the Seine are temporarily covered with veneers of mud. These freshly deposited muds (i.e. mud patches) are periodically partly reworked by waves and strong tidal currents, but silting of the inner shelf is noticeable. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Neogene and Quaternary Clay‐with‐flints north and south of the English Channel: comparisons of distribution, age, genetic processes and geodynamics - Florence Quesnel; John Catt; Benoît Laignel; Chantal Bourdillon; Robert Meyer (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Weathered residual accumulations termed Clay‐with‐flints (Argiles à silex) overlying Cretaceous deposits are widespread in southern England and northwestern France. Geological and pedological studies and some field surveys indicate their distribution, nature, age and origin. In France, the microfaunas preserved in the hollow flints of the Clay‐with‐flints demonstrate the preservation of the parent Chalk stratigraphy in the sections studied, i.e. the Clay‐with‐flints corresponds to in situ weathering profiles. However, in England and in France, an important part of the clay component is derived from a thin veneer of basal Tertiary sediment overlying sub‐Tertiary marine erosion surfaces of various Palaeogene transgressions. In England as in France, the youngest generation of Clay‐with‐flints can be dated from Late Pliocene to Quaternary. It formed after removal of different Cenozoic deposits on many plateaus and during the downcutting of Pleistocene rivers. The most visible effect of subsequent weathering profile development is irregular dissolution of the underlying Chalk to produce deep karstic pipes into which the Clay‐with‐flints has slumped; other pedological processes include rubification, clay illuviation and cryoturbation. Clay‐with‐flints also provides evidence of Quaternary palaeoenvironments, Cenozoic continental palaeosurfaces, and their vertical deformation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Recent advances in the understanding of Quaternary periglacial features of the English Channel coastlands - Julian B. Murton; Jean‐Pierre Lautridou (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Recent advances in the understanding of Quaternary periglaciation of the English Channel coastlands concern laboratory modelling of periglacial processes, dating of periglacial sediments and the distribution of permafrost during marine oxygen isotope stage (MOIS) 2. Modelling studies have successfully simulated (i) ice segregation in chalk in artificial permafrost, (ii) periglacial solifluction of natural slope sediments, and (iii) soft‐sediment deformation during thaw of ice‐rich soil. The resultant structures and deposits in these experiments have similarities with naturally brecciated chalk, solifluction deposits and involutions, respectively, along the English Channel coastlands, providing insights into their genesis and palaeoenvironmental significance. Dating of periglacial sediments is based on radiocarbon assays of organic material in head deposits, luminescence measurements of loess and coversand, and mammalian biostratigraphy in raised‐beach and associated slope deposits. Most age estimates fall within MOIS 2, although some are within MOIS 6 and possibly other cold stages. Maps reconstructing the distribution of permafrost during MOIS 2 vary in detail. The precise distribution of permafrost remains to be established owing to problems of (i) imprecise dating in the context of climatic instability, (ii) uncertain palaeoclimatic significance of particular periglacial structures and (iii) sparse data on the age and distribution of relict periglacial features. The wider significance of periglacial processes to the evolution of the Channel coastlands is speculated to involve rapid valley development by flowing water in areas of moist, frost‐susceptible bedrock that has been brecciated by ice segregation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The offshore Quaternary sediment bodies of the English Channel and its Western Approaches - Jean‐Yves Reynaud; Bernadette Tessier; Jean‐Paul Auffret; Serge Berné; Marc De Batist; Tania Marsset; Patrice Walker (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

The Quaternary history of the English Channel: an introduction - P. L. Gibbard; J. P. Lautridou (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Holocene coastal evolution and sea‐level change on the southern coast of England: a review - Martyn P. Waller; Antony J. Long (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Data collected recently from select areas within the eastern, central and western English Channel are used to reconstruct the Holocene evolution and sea‐level history of the southern coast of England. Rapid sea‐level rise in the early Holocene produced a ubiquitous vertical and lateral expansion in the marine influence. From ca. 6800 cal. (calendar) yr BP the rate of sea‐level rise declined and a shift from minerogenic to organogenic sedimentation is also widely recorded. A further decline in the rate of sea‐level rise occurred in the late Holocene, during which time the eastern and central English Channel experienced coastal inundation and a return to minerogenic sedimentation. Explanations for this apparent contradiction include the effects of this decline on the accumulation of minerotrophic peat and changes in sediment supply. Sea‐level index points from the eastern Channel generally plot below those from the central and western Channel, indicating differential crustal movement, although sediment compaction and tidal range also may be responsible for apparent altitudinal variation between these areas. Despite an increase in the quantity and quality of the data available from this region over the past 20 yr these, and a number of other important issues, require further clarification. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Slope clay‐with‐flints ( biefs à silex ) as indicators of Quaternary periglacial dynamics in the western part of the Paris Basin, France - B. Laignel; F. Quesnel; C. Spencer; R. Meyer; J. P. Lautridou (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The lithology and distribution of the clay‐with‐flints occurring on slopes, called biefs à silex in French, suggests a twofold classification of these deposits according to slope angle. Biefs à silex formed as a solifluction deposit under Quaternary periglacial conditions during valley development. Two biefs à silex facies suggest two phases of development between 800 000 and 20 000 yr BP. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The ‘Fleuve Manche’: the submarine sedimentary features from the outer shelf to the deep‐sea fans - Jean‐François Bourillet; Jean‐Yves Reynaud; Agnès Baltzer; Sébastien Zaragosi (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Bathymetric, seismic and coring surveys have been carried out since the beginning of the 1990s on the outer shelf, the slope and the continental rise of the Western Approaches margin. Most of the sedimentary features studied belong to a sedimentary system built up since the Oligocene and fed by a palaeoriver, the ‘Fleuve Manche’ that flowed in the English Channel during eustatic lowstands. A geomorphological map details the spatial distributions of the palaeovalleys on the outer shelf, the drainage‐basin‐like organised canyons on the slope and the channel–levee and lobe complexes on the rise. The obvious channel–canyon connections and the assessed palaeovalley–canyon links demonstrate that the ‘Fleuve Manche’ was the single source for terrigeneous fluxes of the Armorican Deep Sea Fan when it was one of two sources of the Celtic Deep Sea Fan. Amongst parameters controlling the sedimentation, two factors play a major role. (i) Subsidence controlled the possibly Messinian riverine incision, the turbidite activities during lowstands, as well as marine infilling of the seawards part of the ‘Fleuve Manche’. (ii) Quaternary sedimentary supplies were influenced by the melting ice‐sheets and the connections with the onshore catchment basins. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The structural evolution of the English Channel area - J. L. Lagarde; D. Amorese; M. Font; E. Laville; O. Dugué (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The structural evolution of the English Channel area is controlled by structure and particularly by the pre‐existing Cadomian and Variscan crustal discontinuities, which have been reactivated repeatedly in post‐Variscan times. They controlled the crustal subsidence that produced basin development in the Mesozoic, prior to the sea‐floor spreading in the North Atlantic region. They were then reactivated during the Cenozoic compression and basin inversion. The English Channel development is ascribed to mid‐Tertiary differential uplift (Oligocene to Miocene). During late Tertiary to Quaternary times the Channel displays characteristics of a tectonically controlled fluvial basin periodically invaded by the sea. At the lithospheric scale, the Channel can be considered as an active intraplate area influenced by the NW–SE ‘Alpine push’, the NW–SE ‘Atlantic ridge push’ and glacial rebound stresses. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Pliocene to Early Pleistocene marine to fluviatile succession of the Seuil du Cotentin basins (Armorican Massif, Normandy, France) - Olivier Dugué (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Marine and fluvial Plio‐Pleistocene deposits of the Seuil du Cotentin, western Normandy range in age from Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene. They are preserved in small Cenozoic grabens and are divided into six new formations based on lithology, granulometry, sedimentary structures and associated fossils. The depositional environments of these formations change from marine to fluviatile and represent two transgression–regression cycles. This paper outlines the detailed stratigraphical relationships of the western Normandy Plio‐Pleistocene succession and discusses its correlation with the adjacent eastern area in the Seine River valley (France), in Cornwall and in the southern North Sea basin (East Anglia, Belgium, The Netherlands). Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Pleistocene marine and periglacial deposits of the English Channel - Martin R. Bates; David H. Keen; Jean‐Pierre Lautridou (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The Pleistocene marine and associated periglacial deposits of the coasts of southern England from Cornwall to Sussex, the British Channel Islands, and northern France from Brittany and Normandy to the Pas de Calais are described. The deposition of almost all marine deposits is ascribed to temperate conditions, although large igneous erratic boulders may have been emplaced by shore‐ice rafting at the end or beginning of cold stages. The balance of the evidence from a variety of dating methods including U‐series dating, amino‐acid geochronology and biostratigraphy of associated terrestrial formations indicates that deposits of the last three pre‐Holocene temperate marine oxygen isotope stages (stages 9, 7 and substage 5e) can readily be identified along much of both coastlines of the Channel. Deposits attributable to stages 11 and 13 are uncommon and best seen in the staircase of marine terraces backing the Hampshire–Sussex coastal plain and perhaps in western Brittany and the Boulonnais. The height above modern sea‐level of the marine deposits is thought to be the result of slow uplift of the coastal zone caused by the isostatic response to sediment unloading during accelerated phases of erosion in cold stages, although deep‐seated tectonics also may have been partly responsible for uplift. However, the height above modern sea‐level of a deposit alone is not on its own an indicator of age. Periglacial head deposits are mainly exposed along the coasts, with the sections showing frost shattered debris moved downslope by cryoreptation (frost‐creep). The age of these deposits is uncertain, although they appear to be principally of marine oxygen isotope stages 4 and 2 in age. Some remnants of marine oxygen isotope stage 6 or 8 head deposits are present both in England and northern France. In a few places with good dating control, head deposits dating to the marine oxygen isotope stage 12 can be recognised. The age of the head deposits in most sections is based on their stratigraphical relationship with loess, palaeosols and on the dating of the underlying raised beaches. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The loess and coversands of northern France and southern England - Pierre Antoine; John Catt; Jean‐Pierre Lautridou; Jean Sommé (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Loess and coversands are widespread on either side of the English Channel. In southern England, loess is generally thin and discontinuous, but locally reaches thickness of about 4 m in east Kent. Coversands occur mainly in areas well north of the Channel, such as parts of East Anglia and the southern side of the Bristol Channel. Most of the loess and coversand deposits in southern England date from the Late Devensian cold stage (marine oxygen isotope stage (MOIS) 2), but there are also a few localised patches of older (mainly MOIS 6 and 12) loess, which are the dissected remnants of originally more extensive covers. In France loess is widespread and locally very thick (up to 12 m), especially in northern and northeastern France. In Normandy and in the Somme basin some long records indicate that accumulation began at the end of the Lower Pleistocene, at about 900 ka. Nevertheless the main accumulations of typical calcareous loess are related to the Upper Weichselian and Upper Saalian stages (MOIS 2 and end of MOIS 3 and MOIS 6). Indeed, before about 160–170 ka, loess deposition was generally restricted to special sediment traps such as fluvial and marine terraces exposed to the east or northeast. These older deposits are characterised by more sandy facies derived from local fluvial sources (mainly by northwest to north‐northwest winds). Coversands occur locally along the coast of the Mont Saint‐Michel bay, and over the northern part of the Seine estuary near Le Havre. The main differences in thickness and extent of the loess deposits between southern England and northern France are linked to their location in relation to the source areas (Channel and North Sea), to ice sheets, and to the main wind directions (northwest to north‐northwest in France and western England but northeast in eastern England). Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Relict mountain slope deposits of northern Portugal: facies, sedimentogenesis and environmental implications - Jean‐Pierre Texier; José Meireles (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
This paper deals with the formation processes and the palaeoenvironmental significance of relict slope deposits located on the uppermost part of the north Portugal mountains. For this purpose, seven key sites representative of the different lithofacies have been selected and analysed in detail. The data show that three main dynamic processes are responsible for the emplacement of regional fossil slope deposits: runoff, debris flows and dry grain flows. The ubiquity of these processes and the lack of frost‐related features or landforms do not support the existence of severe Pleistocene climates in this part of the lberian Peninsula as postulated by previous work. Pedological data gathered at one of the study sites show that a subalpine environment was probably present at 700–800 m altitude between 29 and 14 kyr. Using data from the Pyrenees Mountains, a 6.5 to 12°C depression in mean annual temperature has been tentatively postulated for this Pleniglacial period. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Preservation potential for Late Quaternary river alluvium - John Lewin; Mark G. Macklin (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Valley sequences of Late Quaternary alluvial units reflect alluvial preservation as well as alluvial production factors. Effects of lateral channel migration, incision, aggradation and channel stability on preservation potential are explored and then considered in the light of 14 available data sets: cartographically dated and model data based on lateral channel migration; well‐mapped and dated Late Quaternary valley unit surveys; and composite age–frequency plots for dated alluvial units and flood sediments. Despite much expectable variation between sites, and the complex effects of river‐activity combinations, a common characteristic of the data sets examined is the significance of preservation factors. Lateral migration tends to eliminate older units as it creates new alluvial deposits, whereas incision may lead to the preferential preservation of older units beyond the incision slot. Aggradational environments are likely to preserve more complete records, although simultaneous lateral migration may eliminate, possibly repeatedly, the upper parts of alluvial units. The common pattern of inset and incised streams within Pleistocene and early Holocene fills or bedrock gives finite extent to later units within narrowing valleys so that development of new valley‐floor units is necessarily at the expense of reprocessing earlier ones. Floods associated with both slack water deposits and berms are also responsible for the removal of accessible earlier materials, thus limiting the preserved record of earlier events. In light of these censoring effects of river activities, the sequence of preserved Late Quaternary units within UK sequences is reconsidered. It is concluded that preservation potential factors have led to spatial and temporal bias in the alluvial record, and that both here and elsewhere preservation potential needs to be considered systematically alongside variable sedimentation resulting from allogenic environmental factors when interpreting the alluvial archive. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Multiproxy Devensian Late‐glacial and Holocene environmental records at an Atlantic coastal site in Shetland - Graeme Whittington; Paul Buckland; Kevin. J. Edwards; Malcolm Greenwood; Adrian M. Hall; Marie Robinson (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Marine erosion at Clettnadal, West Burra island off the west coast of Shetland, caused the drainage of a small water body at Clettnadal, exposing deposits of Late Devensian and Holocene age. Pollen, diatom and invertebrate analyses have provided variable records of environmental change during stratigraphical event GI‐1. Event GS‐1 is revealed by the non‐pollen evidence, especially by Coleoptera, by sediment stratigraphy, and by radiocarbon dating. In contrast, the pollen evidence indicates that an arctic tundra flora, in which dwarf shrubs were prominent, persisted throughout the Late‐glacial. The Holocene brought colonisation by tree birch, but by ca. 9000 14 C yr BP the taxon had almost disappeared. This contrasts strongly with other Holocene pollen records for Shetland where both Betula and Corylus avellana ‐type survived longer—at some sites, for example, until ca. 2900 yr BP. The extreme westerly and exposed coastal situation of Clettnadal appears to be responsible both for a muted Late‐glacial response in the pollen record of terrestrial vegetation and for the early replacement of woodland by a maritime grassland. The results provoke questions concerning biological stability at times of marked climatic change. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

River sediments, great floods and centennial‐scale Holocene climate change - Mark G. Macklin; John Lewin (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
A new analysis of all 346 published 14 C dated Holocene alluvial units in Britain offers a unique insight into the regional impacts of global change and shows how surprisingly sensitive British rivers have been to relatively modest but repeated changes in climate. Fourteen major but probably brief periods of flooding are identified bracketed within the periods 400–1070, 1940–3940, 7520–8100 and at ca. 10 420 cal. yr BP. There is a strong correspondence between climatic deteriorations inferred from mire wet shifts and major periods of flooding, especially at ca. 8000 cal. yr BP and since ca. 4000 cal. yr BP. The unusually long and complete British record also demonstrates that alterations in land cover have resulted in a step change in river basin sensitivity to variations in climate. This has very important implications for assessing and mitigating the impact of increasing severe flooding. In small and medium‐sized river basins land use is likely to play a key role in either moderating or amplifying the climatic signal. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Modelling the southern extent of the last Icelandic ice‐sheet - Robert G. Bingham; Nicholas R. J. Hulton; Andrew J. Dugmore (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
A three‐dimensional, time‐dependent numerical ice‐sheet model is used to investigate the southern extent of the last Icelandic ice‐sheet since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, ca. 20 000 14 C yr BP). Ice development over southern Iceland is forced using a linear relationship between mass balance and altitude based on observations over Sólheimajökull, a southern outlet glacier of the Mýrdalsjökull ice‐cap. A continentality factor is introduced that raises inland equilibrium‐line altitudes (ELAs) and also slackens the mass‐balance/altitude gradient driving the model. With this calibration the present‐day ice distribution can be reconstructed. Growth from ice‐free to total ice cover is assessed and the sensitivity of ice extent to ELA change is shown to be non‐linear. The model indicates that an ELA lowering of 500 m, consistent with a ca. 5°C temperature depression for southern Iceland at the LGM, would enable glacier ice to cover the whole land surface within the modelled area and inundate any putative ecological refugia. Modelling with a 300 m ELA depression, consistent with previous reconstructions of Younger Dryas (YD, 10 000–11 000 14 C yr BP) ice extent, indicates that the principal outcrops of the Sólheimar ignimbrite were glaciated at this time, suggesting that an origin during this stadial (and a correlation with North Atlantic Ash Zone I / Vedde Ash) is problematic. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Evidence for a mid‐Pleistocene shift of ice‐drift pattern in the Nordic seas - Jan P. Helmke; Henning A. Bauch; Alain Mazaud (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Sediment proxy records from a continuous, 1.5 million year long deep‐sea sediment core from a site in the western Norwegian Sea were used to obtain new insights into the nature of palaeoceanographic change in the northern North Atlantic (Nordic seas) during the climatic shift of the Mid‐Pleistocene Revolution (MPR). Red‐green sediment colour and magnetic susceptibility records both reveal significant differences in their mean values when comparing the intervals older than 700 000 yr (700 ka) with those from the past 500 kyr. The timing and duration of these changes indicates that the MPR in the Nordic seas is characterised by a gradual transition lasting about 200 kyr. Together with further sedimentological evidence this suggests that the mid‐Pleistocene climate shift was accompanied by a general change in ice‐drift pattern. It is further proposed that prior to the onset of the major late Pleistocene glaciations in the Northern Hemisphere a significant proportion of the ice in the eastern Nordic seas originated from a southern provenance, whereas later it dominantly came from the surrounding landmasses. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Flood and megaflood processes and deposits: recent and ancient examples, I. P. Martini, V. R. Baker and G. Garzón (eds), Special Publication 32, of the International Association of Sedimentologists, Blackwell Science, Oxford 2002 (312 pp) ISBN 0 632 06404 8 - Fiona S. Tweed (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Holocene molluscan faunal history and environmental change at Kloster Mühle, Rheinland‐Pfalz, western Germany - R. A. Meyrick (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The Holocene molluscan succession presented here, from a tufa at Kloster Mühle, near Trier, is the most detailed yet published from the German Bundesland of Rheinland‐Pfalz. The base of the sequence, dated at 9720 ± 75 14 C yr BP, indicates that the early Holocene was characterised by a moist, open‐ground fauna dominated by Succinea / Oxyloma . The aquatic phase that follows is short lived, bracketed by statistically indistinguishable dates of 9530 ± 60 14 C yr BP (below) and 9695 ± 75 14 C yr BP (above). The establishment of woodland is indicated by the appearance of Aegopinella nitidula , Vertigo pusilla and especially Carychium tridentatum , which subsequently expands to account for over 40% of the total fauna. Deciduous forest optimum conditions, characterised by the occurrence of Platyla polita and Helicigona lapicida , become established at about 7405 ± 50 14 C yr BP. The radiocarbon age of 4384 ± 105 14 C yr BP obtained for the uppermost tufa horizon is much younger than expected, both on the basis of the molluscan fauna observed and the implied decline in the rate of sedimentation in the upper part of the deposit, and tufa formation probably ceased much earlier than this date suggests. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Reply: Formation and reorientation of structure in the surge‐type glacier Kongsvegen, Svalbard - J. Woodward; T. Murray; A. McCAIG (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Late Quaternary vegetation changes around Lake Rutundu, Mount Kenya, East Africa: evidence from grass cuticles, pollen and stable carbon isotopes - M. J. Wooller; D. L. Swain; K. J. Ficken; A. D. Q. Agnew; F. A. Street‐Perrott; G. Eglinton (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Woody, subalpine shrubs and grasses currently surround Lake Rutundu, Mount Kenya. Multiple proxies, including carbon isotopes, pollen and grass cuticles, from a 755‐cm‐long core were used to reconstruct the vegetation over the past 38 300 calendar years. Stable carbon‐isotope ratios of total organic carbon and terrestrial biomarkers from the lake sediments imply that the proportion of terrestrial plants using the C 4 photosynthetic pathway was greater during the Late Pleistocene than in the Holocene. Pollen data show that grasses were a major constituent of the vegetation throughout the Late Pleistocene and Holocene. The proportion of grass pollen relative to the pollen from other plants was greatest at the last glacial maximum (LGM). Grass cuticles confirm evidence that C 4 grass taxa were present at the LGM and that the majority followed the cold‐tolerant NADP‐MEC 4 subpathway. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Pollen‐ and diatom based environmental history since the Last Glacial Maximum from the Andean core Fúquene‐7, Colombia - Maria Isabel Vélez; Henry Hooghiemstra; Sarah Metcalfe; Ignacio Martínez; Herman Mommersteeg (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The late Pleistocene–Holocene ecological and limnological history of Lake Fúquene (2580 m a.s.l.), in the Colombian Andes, is reconstructed on the basis of diatom, pollen and sediment analyses of the upper 7 m of the core Fúquene‐7. Time control is provided by 11 accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14 C dates ranging from 19 670 ± 240 to 6040 ± 60 yr BP. In this paper we present the evolution of the lake and its surroundings. Glacial times were cold and dry, lake‐levels were low and the area was surrounded by paramo and subparamo vegetation. Late‐glacial conditions were warm and humid. The El Abra Stadial, a Younger Dryas equivalent, is reflected by a gap in the sedimentary record, a consequence of the cessation of deposition owing to a drop in lake‐level. The early Holocene was warm and humid; at this time the lake reached its maximum extension and was surrounded by Andean forest. The onset of the drier climate prevailing today took place in the middle Holocene, a process that is reflected earlier in the diatom and sediment records than in the pollen records. In the late Holocene human activity reduced the forest and transformed the landscape. Climate patterns from the Late‐glacial and throughout the Holocene, as represented in our record, are similar to other records from Colombia and northern South America (the Caribbean, Venezuela and Panama) and suggest that the changes in lake‐level were the result of precipitation variations driven by latitudinal shifts of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Mezen Bay—a key area for understanding Weichselian glaciations in northern Russia - Kurt H. Kjær; Igor N. Demidov; Eiliv Larsen; Andrew Murray; Jan K. Nielsen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Sediment successions in coastal cliffs around Mezen Bay, southeastern White Sea, record an unusually detailed history of former glaciations, interstadial marine and fluvial events from the Weichselian. A regional glaciation model for the Weichselian is based on new data from the Mezen Bay area and previously published data from adjacent areas. Following the Mikulinian (Eemian) interglacial a shelf‐centred glaciation in the Kara Sea is reflected in proglacial conditions at 100–90 ka. A local ice‐cap over the Timan ridge existed between 75 and 65 ka. Renewed glaciation in the Kara Sea spread southwestwards around 60 ka only, interrupted by a marine inundation, before it advanced to its maximum position at about 55–50 ka. After a prolonged ice‐free period, the Scandinavian ice‐sheet invaded the area from the west and terminated east of Mezen Bay about 17 ka. The previously published evidence of a large ice‐dammed lake in the central Arkhangelsk region, Lake Komi, finds no support in this study. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Editorial - James Scourse (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Comment: Formation and reorientation of structure in the surge‐type glacier Kongsvegen, Svalbard J. Woodward, T. Murray and A. Mc Caig (2002) Journal of Quaternary Science 17 : 201–209 - N. F. Glasser; M. J. Hambrey; M. R. Bennett; D. Huddart (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)

Infilling of the Younger Kathmandu–Banepa intermontane lake basin during the Late Quaternary (Lesser Himalaya, Nepal): a sedimentological study - H. G. Dill; D. R. Khadka; R. Khanal; R. Dohrmann; F. Melcher; K. Busch (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The Kathmandu and Banepa Basins, Central Nepal, are located in a large syncline of the Lesser Himalayas. The Older Kathmandu Lake evolved during the Pliocene and early Pleistocene; the Younger Kathmandu Lake, which is the focus of this study, is infilled with late Quaternary sediments. Three formations, arranged in stratigraphical order, the Kalimati, Gokarna and Thoka Formations formed during the infilling stage of this lacustrine basin. Structural and textural sedimentological analyses, a chemical survey across the basin and mineralogical investigations of fine‐grained sediments form the basis of this palaeogeographical study. The basin under investigation was covered by a perennial freshwater lake before 30 000 yr BP. The lake was infilled with alluvial and fluvial sediments delivered mainly from the mountains north of the basin. A fairly low gradient was favourable for the formation of diatomaceous earths, carbonaceous mudstones and siltstones, which were laid down in the centre of the lake and in small ponds. Towards the basin edge, lacustrine sediments gave way to deltaic deposits spread across the delta plain. Crevasse splays and anastomosing rivers mainly delivered suspended load for the widespread siltstones and mudstones. The proximal parts of the alluvial–fluvial sedimentary wedge contain debris flows that interfinger with fine‐grained floodplain deposits. Three highstands of the water‐level (>30 000 yr BP, 28 000–19 000 yr BP, 11 000–4000 yr BP (?)) have been recognised in the sedimentary record of the younger Kathmandu Lake in the Late Quaternary. Second‐order water‐level fluctuations are assumed to be triggered by local processes (damming by tectonically induced landslides). First‐order water‐level fluctuations are the result of climatic changes. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Asynchroneity of maximum glacier advances in the central Spanish Pyrenees - José M. García‐Ruiz; Blas L. Valero‐Garcés; Carlos Martí‐Bono; Penélope González‐Sampériz (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
The deglaciation history of the Escarra and Lana Mayor glaciers (Upper Gállego valley, central Spanish Pyrenees) had been reconstructed on the basis of detailed geomorphological studies of glacier deposits, sedimentological and palynological analyses of glacial lake sediments and an accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14 C chronology based on minimum ages from glacial lake deposits. The maximum extent of the Pyrenean glaciers during the last glaciation was before 30 000 yr BP and pre‐dated the maximum advances of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet and some Alpine glaciers. A later advance occurred during the coldest period (around 20 000 yr BP), synchronous with the maximum global ice extent, but in the Pyrenees it was less extensive than the previous one. Later, there were minor advances followed by a stage of debris‐covered glaciers and a phase of moraine formation near cirque backwalls. The deglaciation chronology of the Upper Gállego valley provides more examples of the general asynchroneity between mountain and continental glaciers. The asynchroneity of maximum advances may be explained by different regional responses to climatic forcing and by the southern latitude of the Pyrenees. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late‐glacial and early Holocene changes in vegetation and lake‐level at Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres, Lake Neuchâtel (Switzerland) - Michel Magny; Nigel Thew; Philippe Hadorn (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2003)
Palynological and sedimentological analyses of a sedimentary sequence sampled at Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres, Lake Neuchâtel (Switzerland) provide documentation of changes in vegetation and lake‐level during the Bølling, Younger Dryas and Preboreal pollen zones, and have allowed a comparison with sequences covering the same period from other sites located in the western part of the Swiss Plateau. The Juniperus–Hippophaë zone (regional pollen assemblage zone (RPAZ) CHb‐2, first part of the Bølling, ca. 14 650–14 450 cal. yr BP) was characterised by a generally low lake‐level. A weak rise occurred during this zone. The Juniperus–Hippophaë to Betula zone transition coincided with a lake‐level lowering, interrupted by a short‐lived but marked phase of higher lake‐level recorded at the neighbouring site of Hauterive‐Champréveyres, but not present at Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres owing to an erosion surface. Shortly after the beginning of the Betula zone (RPAZ CHb‐3, second part of the Bølling, ca 14 450–14 000 cal. yr BP), a marked rise in lake‐level occurred. It was composed of two successive periods of higher level, coinciding with high values of Betula , separated by a short episode of relatively lower lake‐level associated with raised values in Artemisia and other non‐arboreal pollen. The last part of RPAZ CHb‐3 saw a fall in lake‐level. The lower lake‐levels during RPAZ CHb‐2 to early RPAZ CHb‐3 can be correlated with the abrupt warming at the beginning of the Greenland Interstadial (GI) 1e thermal maximum. The successive episodes of higher lake‐level punctuating the GI 1e might be linked to the so‐called Intra‐Bølling Cold Oscillations identified from several palaeoclimatic records in the North Atlantic area, and also documented in oxygen‐isotope data sets from Swiss Plateau lakes. The Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres lake‐level record provides evidence for marked climatic drying through the second part of the Younger Dryas event (GS1), during the GS1–Preboreal (RPAZ CHb‐4b–4c) transition (except for a rise at ca. 11 450–11 400 cal. yr BP), and at the RPAZ CHb‐4c–5 (Preboreal–Boreal) transition, following the Preboreal Oscillation (after 11 150 cal. yr BP). The Preboreal Oscillation coincided with higher lake‐levels, its end being followed by a rapid expansion of Corylus, Quercus, Ulmus and Tilia . The Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres lake‐level record suggests that radiocarbon plateau at 12 600, 10 000 and 9500 14 C yr BP corresponded to periods of generally lower lake‐level. This suggests that an increase in solar activity may have contributed to both climatic dryness and a decrease in atmospheric radiocarbon content. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Distribution, sediment magnetism and geochemistry of the Saksunarvatn (10 180 ± 60 cal. yr BP) tephra in marine, lake, and terrestrial sediments, northwest Iceland - John T. Andrews; Aslaug Geirsdóttir; Jórunn Hardardóttir; Sarah Principato; Karl Grönvold; Gréta B. Kristjansdóttir; Gudrún Helgadóttir; John Drexler; Arny Sveinbjörnsdóttir (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
In 1997, seismic surveys in the troughs off northwest and north Iceland indicated the presence of a major, regional sub‐bottom reflector that can be traced over large areas of the shelf. Cores taken in 1997, and later in 1999 on the IMAGES V cruise, penetrated through the reflector. In core MD99‐2269 in Húnaflóaáll, this reflector is shown to be represented by a basaltic tephra with a geochemical signature and radiocarbon age correlative with the North Atlantic‐wide Saksunarvatn tephra. We trace this tephra throughout northwest Iceland in a series of marine and lake cores, as well as in terrestrial sediments; it forms a layer 1 to 25 cm thick of fine‐ to medium‐grained basaltic volcanic shards. The base of the tephra unit is always sharp but visual inspection and other measurements (carbonate and total organic carbon weight %) indicate a more diffuse upper boundary associated with bioturbation and with sediment reworking. Off northwest Iceland the Saksunarvatn tephra has distinct sediment magnetic properties. This is evident as a dramatic reduction in magnetic susceptibility, an increase in the frequency dependant magnetic susceptibility and ‘hard’ magnetisation in a −0.1T IRM backfield. Geochemical analyses from 11 sites indicate a tholeiitic basalt composition, similar to the geochemistry of a tephra found in the Greenland ice‐core that dates to 10 180 ± 60 cal. yr BP, and which was correlated with the 9000 14 C yr BP Saksunarvatn tephra. We present accelerator mass spectrometry 14 C dates from the marine sites, which indicate that the ocean reservoir correction is close to ca. 400 yr at 9000 14 C yr BP off northwest Iceland. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Early to middle Holocene silicic tephra horizons from the Katla volcanic system, Iceland: new results from the Faroe Islands - Stefan Wastegård (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Comparatively few Icelandic tephra horizons dated to the early part of the Holocene have so far been detected outside Iceland. Here, I present several tephra horizons that have been recorded in a Holocene peat sequence on the Faroe Islands. Geochemical analyses show that at least two dacitic and one rhyolitic tephra layers were erupted from the Katla volcanic system on southern Iceland between ca. 8000 and 5900 cal. yr BP. The upper two layers can be correlated with the SILK tephras described from southern Iceland, whereas the third, dated to ca. 8000 cal. yr BP, has a geochemistry virtually identical to the rhyolitic component of the Vedde Ash. The results suggest that the Late Weichselian and early Holocene eruption history of the Katla volcano was probably more complex than inferred from Iceland. A new, early Holocene rhyolitic tephra dated to ca. 10 500 cal. yr BP probably originates in the Snæfellsnes volcanic centre in western Iceland. These new findings may play an important role in developing a Holocene tephra framework for northwest Europe. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Loch Lomond Readvance on the Isle of Mull, Scotland: glacier reconstruction and palaeoclimatic implications - Colin K. Ballantyne (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Geomorphological mapping of Mull provides evidence for an icefield 143 km 2 in area flanked by six corrie glaciers with a total area of ca. 13 km 2 . The absence of Lateglacial periglacial features, shorelines and pollen sites from the area occupied by this readvance, together with radiocarbon dating of shell fragments, confirm that it occurred during the Loch Lomond (Younger Dryas) Stade. The thickness of glacigenic deposits within the area of the readvance is attributed to reworking of paraglacial sediments. Up‐valley continuity of recessional moraines indicates that the ice remained active and near to equilibrium during retreat, consistent with slow warming following the coldest part of the stade. Reconstructed equilibrium line altitudes (ELAs) imply vigorous snow‐blowing by westerly winds, and are consistent with a general southwestwards decline in ELAs across the Scottish Highlands. An ELA of 250 m was calculated for the Mull Icefield using an ablation:accumulation balance ratio (ABR) approach. Palaeotemperature and palaeoprecipitation estimates were derived by calculating a theoretical regional ELA from meteorological data and assuming that the combination of temperature and precipitation implied by the theoretical ELA approximates conditions at 250 m on Mull during the Loch Lomond Stade. The result indicates a mean July sea‐level temperature of 5.7 ± 0.5°C and a mean annual precipitation at 250 m of ca. 2700–3800 mm (best estimate 3200 mm), indicating higher precipitation totals than at present owing to more vigorous atmospheric circulation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Holocene evolution of the London Thames. Archaeological excavations (1991–1998) for the London Underground Limited Jubilee Line Extension Project, J. Sidell, K. Wilkinson, R. Scaife and N. Cameron, Museum of London Archaeology Service Monograph no. 5, 2000 (144 pp) ISBN 1‐901992‐10‐1 - Simon G. Lewis (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Late Cenozoic environments and hominid evolution: a tribute to Bill Bishop, P. Andrews and P. Banham, Geological Society Publishing House, Bath 1999 (274 pp) ISBN 1‐86239‐036‐3 - Simon J. Carr (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Debris‐covered glaciers, M. Nakawo, C. F. Raymond and A. Fountain, International Association of Hydrological Sciences, Publication No. 264, IAHS Press, Wallingford 2000 (288 pp) ISBN 1‐901502‐31‐7 - Jaap J. M. van der Meer (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Global biogeochemical cycles in the climate system, E.‐D. Schulze, M. Heimann, S. Harrison, E. Holland, J. Lloyd, I. C. Prentice and D. Schimel (eds), Academic Press, San Diego 2001 (350 pp, plus colour inserts) ISBN 0‐12‐631260‐5 - Ian Fairchild (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Ice sheets and Late Quaternary environmental changes, M. J. Siegert, Wiley, Chichester 2001 (231 pp) ISBN 0‐471‐98570‐8 - Kurt H. Kjær (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

High‐resolution study of Icelandic tephras in the Kangerlussuaq Trough, southeast Greenland, during the last deglaciation - Anne E. Jennings; Karl Grönvold; Rachael Hilberman; Mikie Smith; Morten Hald (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Tephra abundance data and geochemistry in Late‐glacial and Holocene sediments on the East Greenland shelf are presented. Two well‐known tephras were identified from electron microprobe analysis of tephra shards picked from ash peaks in the cores. These are the Vedde Ash and Saksunarvatn Ash, which probably were deposited on the shelf after transport on drifting ice. The radiocarbon dates (marine reservoir corrected by −550 yr) that constrain the timing of deposition of the tephra layers compare well with the terrestrial and ice‐core ages of the tephras without requiring additional reservoir correction to align them with the known tephra ages. Several prominent tephra layers with a composition of Ash Zone 2 tephra punctuate the deglacial sediments. These tephra peaks coincide with significant light stable isotope events (signifying glacial meltwater) and fine‐grained sediments poor in ice‐rafted detritus. We interpret the Ash Zone 2 tephra peaks as sediment released from the Greenland Ice Sheet during strong melting pulses of the deglaciation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

River basin sediment systems: archives of environmental change, D. Maddy, M. G. Macklin and J. C. Woodward (eds), Balkema, Rotterdam 2001 (503 pp) ISBN 90‐5809‐342‐5 - Henk J.A. Berendsen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

European quaternary refugia: a factor in large carnivore extinction? - Hannah J. O'Regan; Alan Turner; David M. Wilkinson (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The extinction of large carnivores in Europe during the Quaternary is reviewed and the potential role of glacial refugia in these extinctions is investigated using the VORTEX model for population viability analysis. A model was built for a medium sized big cat similar to the extinct Panthera gombaszoegensis utilising life history data from the modern jaguar Panthera onca . This approach highlighted the potential importance of glacial refugia in the extinction process. Even model refugia the size of the Italian peninsula did not guarantee persistence of a population over a 1000 yr time span, illustrating the role of chance in survival in such a refugium. An area the size of the largest Mediterranean island was unable to support a big cat population for a period of 1000 yr. The models also demonstrated the importance of inbreeding as a mechanism for extinction in refugia. It is suggested that repeated genetic bottlenecks during successive glaciations would tend to remove lethal recessive alleles from the population, increasing the probability of survival in refugia in subsequent glaciations. The history of extinction of large carnivores in the European Quaternary is interpreted in the light of these results. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Fission‐track dating of a tephra layer related to Poti‐Malal and Seguro drifts in the Río Grande basin, Mendoza, Argentina - Lydia E. Espizua; Giulio Bigazzi; Pedro J. Iunes; Julio C. Hadler; Ana Maria Osorio (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Two old drift units called Poti‐Malal and Seguro have been differentiated in the Río Grande basin based on relative‐age criteria, stratigraphical relationships, morphology and fission‐track dating. A tephra dated at 0.226 ± 0.025 Ma was deposited on the Poti‐Malal drift and underlies the Seguro outwash, which is inferred to equate with marine oxygen isotope stage 6. The stratigraphical position and age suggest that the tephra post‐dates the Poti‐Malal glaciation and that it is older than the Seguro drift. The Poti‐Malal glaciation must be at least as old as Early–Middle Pleistocene, and the Seguro glaciation is assigned to the penultimate glaciation. The tephra unit may have been deposited during marine oxygen isotope stage 7. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Active tectonics and alluvial rivers, S. A. Schumm, J. F. Dumont and J. M. Holbrook, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2000 (276 pp) ISBN 0‐521‐66110‐2 (hardback) - A.C. Seijmonsbergen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Deformation of glacial materials, A. J. Maltman, B. Hubbard and M. J. Hambrey, Special Publication No. 176, Geological Society Publishing House, Bath 2000 (344 pp) ISBN 1‐06329‐072‐X - Wishart Mitchell (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Late Wisconsin periglacial environments of the southern margin of the Laurentide Ice Sheet reconstructed from pollen analyses - Linda Heusser; Terryanne Maenza‐Gmelch; Thomas Lowell; Rebecca Hinnefeld (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Full‐glacial pollen assemblages from four radiocarbon‐dated interstadial deposits in southwestern Ohio and southeastern Indiana imply the presence of herbaceous vegetation (tundra or muskeg with subarctic indicator Selaginella selaginoides ) on the southern margin of the Miami lobe of the Laurentide Ice Sheet ca. 20 000 14 C yr BP. Scattered Picea (spruce) and possibly Pinus (pine) may have developed regionally ca. 19 000 14 C yr BP, and ca. 18 000 14 C yr BP, respectively. Spruce stumps in growth position support a local source of pollen. Prior to the ca. 14 000 14 C yr BP glacial advance, small amounts of Quercus (oak) and other deciduous pollen suggest development of regional boreal (conifer–hardwood) forests. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Response of chironomids to late quaternary environmental change in the Taitao Peninsula, southern Chile Julieta Massaferro and Stephen J. Brooks. Journal of Quaternary Science Vol 17 No 2 2002, pages 101–111. - Julieta Massaferro; Stephen J. Brooks (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The original article to which this Erratum refers was published in Journal of Quaternary Science Vol 17 No 2 2002, pages 101–111 Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Glacial Lake Victoria, a high‐level Antarctic Lake inferred from lacustrine deposits in Victoria Valley - Brenda L. Hall; George H. Denton; Bret Overturf; Chris H. Hendy (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
We present evidence of a large lake (Glacial Lake Victoria) that existed in Victoria Valley in the dry valleys region of Antarctica between at least 20 000 and 8600 14 C yr BP. At its highstands, Glacial Lake Victoria covered 100 km 2 and was ca. 200 m deep. The chronology for lake‐level changes comes from 87 AMS radiocarbon dates of lacustrine algae preserved in deltas and glaciolacustrine deposits that extend up to 185 m above present‐day lakes on the valley floor. The existence of Glacial Lake Victoria, as well as other large lakes in the dry valleys, indicates a climate regime significantly different from that of today at the last glacial maximum and in the early Holocene. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Holocene vegetation and climate change in southern New Zealand: linkages between forest composition and quantitative surface moisture reconstructions from an ombrogenous bog - Janet M. Wilmshurst; Matt S. McGlone; Dan J. Charman (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
This paper presents a Holocene pollen record from an ombrotrophic bog in Southland, New Zealand, together with multiproxy data (testate amoebae, peat humification and plant macrofossils) from the same core to establish an independent semiquantitative record of peatland surface moisture. Linkages between reconstructed peatland surface moisture and regional forest composition are investigated using redundancy analysis of the forest pollen data constrained with predicted bog water‐table depths. Over 32% of the pollen data variance can be explained by surface moisture changes in the bog, suggesting a common cause of water‐table and regional vegetation change. Water tables were higher during the early to mid‐Holocene when the forest was dominated by podocarp taxa. Water tables lowered after about 3300 cal. yr BP coevally with the expansion of Nothofagus species, culminating with the dominance of Nothofagus subgenus Fuscospora in the past 1200 cal. yr BP. This is in apparent opposition to the warm/dry to cool/wet trend suggested by subjective interpretation of pollen data alone, from this and other studies. We suggest that during the late Holocene, drier summers associated with shifts in solar insolation caused reduced surface wetness and summer humidity, which together with a trend to cooler winters, apparently favoured the regeneration of Nothofagus species. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Multiproxy evidence of an early Holocene (8.2 kyr) climate oscillation in central Nova Scotia, Canada - Ian Spooner; Marianne S. V. Douglas; Lisa Terrusi (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
An early Holocene lake sediment record from central Nova Scotia contains a minerogenic oscillation that is closely correlative with the 8.2 kyr event (ca. 8200 cal. yr BP), an event that has not been reported elsewhere in Atlantic Canada. A variety of biological and sedimentological indicators have been examined to characterise autochthonous and allochthonous changes that occurred during this time. The minerogenic upper oscillation (UO, ca. 8400 cal. yr BP) is marked by an increase in the chrysophyte:diatom ratio. Following the oscillation, the diatom community reflects a shift to more productive, less acidic conditions. The pollen record shows no major response to this short‐lived event. Lithostratigraphic analyses indicates that the UO is characterised by an increase in clastic content, magnetic susceptibility and mean sediment grain size, all indicators of changing environmental conditions, most likely the result of regional cooling. The Taylor Lake record adds to a growing body of evidence for a widespread, hemispheric climate oscillation at 8.2 kyr. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late‐glacial and Holocene history of the dry forest area in the south Colombian Cauca Valley - Juan Carlos Berrío; Henry Hooghiemstra; Robert Marchant; Orlando Rangel (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Two sedimentary cores with pollen, charcoal and radiocarbon data are presented. These records document the Late‐glacial and Holocene dry forest vegetation, fire and environmental history of the southern Cauca Valley in Colombia (1020 m). Core Quilichao‐1 (640 cm; 3° 6′N, 76° 31′W) represents the periods of 13 150–7720 14 C yr BP and, following a hiatus, from 2880 14 C yr BP to modern. Core La Teta‐2 (250 cm; 3° 5′N, 76° 32′W) provides a continuous record from 8700 14 C yr BP to modern. Around 13 150 14 C yr BP core Quilichao‐1 shows an active Late‐glacial drainage system and presence of dry forest. From 11 465 to 10 520 14 C yr BP dry forest consists mainly of Crotalaria , Moraceae/Urticaceae, Melastomataceae/Combretaceae, Piper and low stature trees, such as Acalypha, Alchornea, Cecropia and Celtis . At higher elevation Andean forest comprising Alnus , Hedyosmum , Quercus and Myrica was common. After 10 520 14 C yr BP the floral composition of dry forest changed, with extensive open grass vegetation indicative of dry climatic conditions. This event may coincide with the change to cool and dry conditions in the second part of the El Abra stadial, an equivalent to the Younger Dryas. From 8850 14 C yr BP the record from La Teta indicates dry climatic conditions relative to the present, these prevailing up to 2880 14 C yr BP at Quilichao and to 2720 14 C yr BP at La Teta. Severe dryness reached maxima at 7500 14 C yr BP and 4300 14 C yr BP, when dry forest reached maximum expansion. Dry forest was gradually replaced by grassy vegetation, reaching maximum expansion around 2300 14 C yr BP. After 2300 14 C yr BP grassy vegetation remains abundant. Presence of crop taxa (a.o. Zea mays ), disturbance indicators ( Cecropia ) and an increase in charcoal point to the presence of pre‐Columbian people since 2300 14 C yr BP. After 950 14 C yr BP, expansion of secondary forest taxa may indicate depopulation and abandonment of previously cultivated land. After 400 14 C yr BP, possibly related to the Spanish conquest, secondary forest expanded and charcoal concentrations increased, possibly indicating further reduction of cultivated land. During the past century, Heliotropium and Didymopanax became abundant in an increasingly degraded landscape. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Stable carbon and oxygen isotopic evidence for late Pleistocene to middle Holocene climatic fluctuations in the interior of southern Africa - Jeannette M. Smith; Julia A. Lee‐Thorp; Judith C. Sealy (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Stable carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of ungulate grazers from four archaeological sites located in different environs within the Caledon River Valley have provided a relatively well‐dated proxy palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic sequence for the period between 16 000 and 6000 calendar (cal.) yr BP. Within the overall trend towards hot mid‐Holocene temperatures and a summer rainfall pattern, stable carbon isotope results show that there were three periods when growth season temperatures were cool enough for C 3 grasses to be present: 16 000–14 000; 10 200–9600, and 8400–8000 cal. yr BP. Similar trends were recorded in stable oxygen isotope values, reflecting shifts in either temperature or available moisture. Although having a similar pattern to that of the lower altitude site, sites situated in foothills and montane portions of the valley consistently maintained lower temperatures until the mid‐Holocene altithermal. At this time growth season temperatures warmed sufficiently for a 100% C 4 grassland to expand in altitude from the warmer low lying localities. In relation to present understanding of synoptic and global climatic patterning, these findings suggest that the early to middle Holocene transition was not a gradual warming trend, but rather it was marked by a series of climatic fluctuations. Of particular note is the possible global, rather than regional, occurrence of the 8200 cal. yr BP ‘event’. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A chronology for the long pollen record from Lake Wangoom, western Victoria (Australia) as derived from uranium/thorium disequilibrium dating - K. J. Harle; H. Heijnis; R. Chisari; A. P. Kershaw; U. Zoppi; G. Jacobsen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The chronology of a long pollen record from Lake Wangoom, one of the few long palaeoenvironmental records from southeastern Australia, is discussed in light of the acquisition of new uranium/thorium disequilibrium (UTD) dates. Of crucial importance has been the estimation of ages for two major pre‐Holocene phases of forest expansion recorded in the sequence, with implications for the timing of periods of high effective precipitation in the region. The new UTD ages indicate that the oldest forest phase falls within the Penultimate Interglacial whereas the later phase corresponds with the Last Interglacial. This is older than indicated by previously reported UTD and radiocarbon dates, but confirms a chronology based on direct correlation with the pollen record from marine core E55‐6. The new chronology of the Lake Wangoom sequence provides evidence that phases of sustained forest development in southeast Australia relate to interglacial periods. In comparison, interstadial periods appear to be characterised by only minor arboreal development. Marked differences in the pattern of vegetation development evident in each of the interglacials are thought to reflect varying climatic and anthropogenic influences. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Summary findings of the fourth international radiocarbon intercomparison (FIRI)(1998–2001) - Elisabetta Boaretto; Charlotte Bryant; Israel Carmi; Gordon Cook; Steinar Gulliksen; Doug Harkness; Jan Heinemeier; John McClure; Edward McGee; Philip Naysmith; Goran Possnert; Marian Scott; et al. (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Interlaboratory comparisons have been widely used in applied radiocarbon science. These are an important part of ongoing quality assurance (QA) programmes, which are vital to the appropriate interpretation of the evidence provided by the 14 C record in Quaternary applications (including climate change and environmental reconstruction). International comparisons of laboratory performance are an essential component of the quality assurance process in radiocarbon dating. If the user community is to have confidence in radiocarbon results, it needs to be assured that laboratories world wide are producing measurements that are reliable and in accordance with ‘good practice’. The findings from the most recent (completed in 2001) and extensive (more than 90 participating laboratories) radiocarbon intercomparison (FIRI) are reported here. This study was designed (i) to assess comparability, or otherwise, of the results from different laboratories and (ii) to quantify the extent and possible causes of any interlaboratory variation. The results demonstrate that there are no significant differences amongst the main measurement techniques (gas proportional counting, liquid scintillation counting and accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS)) but there is evidence of small laboratory offsets relative to known age samples for some laboratories. There is also evidence in some cases of underestimation of measurement precision. Approximately 10% of all results were classified as extreme (outliers) and these results were generated by 14% of the laboratories. Overall, the evidence supports the fact that radiocarbon laboratories are generally accurate and precise but that, notwithstanding internal QA procedures, some problems still occur, which can best be detected by participation in independent intercomparisons such as FIRI, where the results allow individual laboratories to assess their performance and to take remedial measures where necessary. The results from FIRI are significant in that they show a broad measure of agreement between measurements made in different laboratories on a wide range of materials and they also demonstrate no statistically significant difference between measurements made by radiometric or AMS techniques. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Amino‐acid geochronology and the British Pleistocene: secure stratigraphical framework or a case of circular reasoning? - Danny McCarroll (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Aminostratigraphy is central to the recently revised correlation of Quaternary deposits in the British Isles, providing a link between terrestrial deposits and marine Oxygen Isotope Stages. The central tenet of British aminostratigraphy, however, that shells from the same interglacial yield very similar ratios, so that the characteristic ratios from different interglacials are distinct, remains uncertain. The data available suggest that amino‐acid ratios from different interglacials do not fall into discrete groups, but overlap considerably. It is therefore not valid to assign individual shells to Oxygen Isotope Stages simply on the basis of their amino‐acid ratios, which means that filtering data to remove high or low values, on the assumption that they represent reworked shells, is unacceptable. The range of ‘characteristic ratios’ assigned to British warm stages may have been underestimated and the degree of separation between them overestimated. Amino‐acid ratios should be treated as sample data that are naturally variable. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Predicted and observed Holocene sea‐levels on the Australian coast: what do they indicate about hydro‐isostatic models in far‐field sites? - R. J. Haworth; R. G. V. Baker; P. G. Flood (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Data relating to Holocene sea‐level elevations and ages, obtained by radiocarbon dating of relict calcareous skeletons of intertidal organisms from widely spaced parts of the Australian coast, a far‐field region of comparative tectonic stability, are divisible into two sets, namely: pre‐ and post‐ ca. 3600 yr BP. The older ages are from material consistently between 1.5 m and 2.2 m higher than present sea‐level, whereas the younger ages (ca. 3600–1500 yr BP) generally cluster around 1 m above present sea‐level. The elevations do not display any decline in amplitude from north to south over an extensive transect, contrary to predictions by hydro‐isostatic models. Also, there appears to be little difference between time–elevation results for the coasts of North Queensland, New South Wales and the Bass Strait region adjacent to Tasmania, despite differences in the width of the continental shelf in these three locations, and the expectation of some hydro‐isostatic warping of the continental shelf subsequent to the onset of the Holocene transgression. Results from the south and southwest coasts of Western Australia also display similar elevations to the east coast for the same time periods. There is sufficient evidence extending over 20° of latitude to suggest that north–south differences related to hydro‐isostatic influence is limited or non‐existent. There is insufficient data to test hydro‐isostatic models across continental shelves. Hydro‐isostasy, and the lithological elasticity it reflects, may not be as pronounced in far‐field sites with narrow continental shelves as models predict. Stable far‐field passive continental margins may be the best place to measure the ratio of inputs of eustatic and hydro‐isostatic influences on Holocene relative sea‐levels. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A revised chronology for the ‘Fjord Stade’ moraine in Disko Bugt, west Greenland - Antony J. Long; David H. Roberts (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
This paper re‐evaluates the age of the ‘Fjord Stade’ moraine in Disko Bugt, a large marine embayment in west Greenland. Previous work suggests that this moraine is part of a widespread moraine complex present throughout west Greenland, which formed ca. 9300 cal. yr BP in response to either a regional climate change or the effects of topographic controls on ice‐sheet recession. We present the results of a relative sea‐level study using data from eight isolation basins that straddle the ‘Fjord Stade’ moraine in southeast Disko Bugt. Our results suggest that the moraine here formed between ca. 8400 and 7700 cal. yr BP. This is later than previously thought, and similar in timing to a widespread cooling event recorded in the Greenland ice‐core records. This chronological similarity raises the possibility that the ‘Fjord Stade’ moraine in the study area records an ice marginal response to a major short‐lived climatic cooling during the early Holocene (the so‐called ‘8200 event’). Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Fluctuations in relative sea‐level during the past 3000 yr in the Onnetoh estuary, Hokkaido, northern Japan - Yuki Sawai; Hiroo Nasu; Yoshinori Yasuda (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
This paper presents the results of a litho‐, bio‐ and chronostratigraphical study of the evidence for late Holocene sea‐level change, palaeoseismicity and coastal evolution at the Onnetoh estuary, northwest Japan. Alternating peat and mud couplets record evidence for four falls in relative sea‐level since ca. 2500 cal. yr BP. In the latest instance, intertidal mud with a salt‐tolerant diatom and plant macrofossil flora is abruptly overlain by a freshwater peat containing abundant macrofossil remains of the conifer Picea glehnii . These stratigraphical changes record an abrupt change from tidal flat to upland, with no intermediate transition through saltmarsh. In the other three instances, the stratigraphy records a more gradual fall in relative sea‐level, as shown by gradational stratigraphical contacts and transitional diatom and plant macrofossil assemblages. Once established, these freshwater peat communities are gradually submerged and become overlain by saltmarsh and then intertidal muds. Radiocarbon ages and tephra date the emergence events to 2700–1750 (gradual), 1350–950 (gradual), 650–300 (gradual) and ca. 400 cal. yr BP (abrupt). These ages are similar to a sequence of emergence events recorded at the Akkeshi estuary, 70 km to the west of the present study site. The three falls in relative sea‐level may record coseismic, or swift post‐seismic, uplift caused by plate boundary subduction earthquakes on the Kurile subduction zone. The oldest relative sea‐level fall is correlated with the so‐called ‘Yayoi regression’, dated to 1500–3000 cal yr BP in other parts of Japan. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Contemporary and fossil foraminifera from isolation basins in northwest Scotland - J. M. Lloyd; J. R. Evans (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Isolation basins are widely used in sea‐level reconstructions, but contemporary analogues have been poorly studied comparatively. Recent research has identified isolation basins with extended transitional isolation contacts that pose problems in sea‐level interpretations. This paper presents foraminiferal results from 24 contemporary isolation basins combined with data from two isolation basins with extended isolation contacts. Foraminiferal associations identified from the contemporary basins show a clear relationship with water salinity and sill altitude that supports interpretation of the extended fossil sequences. An association dominated by Miliammina fusca , Mf, signifies a basin close to final isolation from marine influence. Increasing marine inundation of basins is signified by a series of associations dominated by the following foraminifera; Ja, Jadammina macrescens and M. fusca ; ME, M. fusca and Elphidium williamsoni ; Ew, E. williamsoni ; HE, Haynesina germanica and E. williamsoni ; Nd, Nonion depressulus . These associations can be used to interpret the sedimentary isolation sequences from Loch nan Corr and Rumach VI. A pilot study of the stable isotope signature from the two species H. germanica and E. williamsoni is reported from Rumach VI and Loch nan Corr. The results show the potential of stable isotope analysis for environmental reconstruction from isolation basins, in particular using δ 18 O for salinity reconstruction. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Changes in coastal zone processes at a high sea‐level stand: a late Holocene example from Belgium - Cecile Baeteman; David B. Scott; Mark Van Strydonck (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
This paper presents the results of an investigation of late Holocene deposits on the Belgian coastal plain. The upper clastic deposits overlying the uppermost intercalated peat bed were studied on the basis of lithology, radiocarbon dates and foraminiferal assemblages to determine why silting‐up phases or peat beds are lacking, and to establish the evolution of the sedimentary environments as well as the age of the deposits. Two contrasting sites, in quite different locations and showing a different stratigraphy, were studied. It appears that the coastal evolution was not gradual and continuous, but characterised by short periods with high‐energy conditions alternating with long periods where low‐energy conditions and little sedimentation prevailed. The evolution is determined mainly by tidal channel activity. At about 3400 cal. yr BP, the peat was eroded in narrow zones by the main tidal channels and this until the landward limit of the plain. The peat was only partly flooded and mudflats fringed the channels. With time, new tributaries formed and the channel network progressively enlarged. The channels were rapidly filled, followed by a period of little sedimentation, which lasted at least until 1400–1200 cal. yr BP. The following channel activity is characterised by lateral sedimentation, rather than vertical erosion, together with increased sediment reworking. The mechanisms of coastal change in the late Holocene might be similar over the entire plain, but the timing of the changes is certainly not. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Holocene land‐ and sea‐level changes in Great Britain - Ian Shennan; Ben Horton (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Analysis of more than 1200 radiocarbon dated samples that constrain relative sea‐levels in Great Britain over the past 16 000 yr provides estimates of current land‐level changes (negative of relative sea‐level change). Maximum relative land uplift occurs in central and western Scotland, ca. 1.6 mm yr −1 , and maximum subsidence is in southwest England, ca. 1.2 mm yr −1 . Sediment consolidation, arising from autocompaction as the sediment accumulates and from land drainage, increases the subsidence in areas with thick sequences of Holocene sediments, with an average effect equivalent to at least an extra ca. 0.2 mm yr −1 land subsidence, but more in parts of southeast England, 0.5–1.1 mm yr −1 . Modelled changes in tidal range during the mid‐ to late Holocene in eastern England suggest that the calculated rate of land subsidence is overestimated unless such changes are quantified. The effect is most significant for large coastal lowlands, the Fenland and Humber (ca. 0.5 and 0.6 mm yr −1 ), that were tidal embayments during the mid‐ to late Holocene. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Holocene uplift rates and historical rapid sea‐level changes at the Gargano promontory, Italy - Giuseppe Mastronuzzi; Paolo Sansò (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
This paper uses a combination of geomorphological and radiometric data from the northern coast of the Gargano promontory (comprising the Fortore River coastal plain and Punta delle Pietre Nere) to reconstruct Holocene uplift rates. The coastal plain consists of a sandy progradational beach sequence that extends seawards from the base of a relict cliff. This cliff probably marks the maximum position reached by the Holocene transgression. Altimetric data compared with the age of beach deposits and the available eustatic sea‐level curves indicate an average Holocene uplift rate of 1.5 mm yr −1 . A similar uplift rate has been estimated by dating a bioherm constituted of calcareous algae, Vermetids and subordinately by Cladocora caespitosa (L.), which crops out in the locality of Punta delle Pietre Nere. This deposit, which was previously assigned an interglacial age, yielded a mid‐Holocene age by means of Th/U and 14 C age determinations. Our observations also reveal evidence for coseismic deformation along the northern coast of the Gargano promontory during the last millennium. Vertical displacements of >0.5 m have affected the Punta delle Pietre Nere coastal block, and were preceded by periods of slow coastal subsidence, which increased rapidly shortly before a major earthquake. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Fossil testate amoebae in coastal deposits in the UK: implications for studies of sea‐level change - Helen M. Roe; Dan J. Charman; W. Roland Gehrels (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Assemblages of testate amoebae in UK saltmarshes are strongly correlated with elevation and flooding duration, suggesting that if adequately preserved in sediments they may be used as accurate sea‐level indicators. To examine the preservation of testate amoebae in the fossil record in coastal environments, subsamples were collected from a range of coastal sites around Britain, including saltmarsh, coastal reedswamp, isolation basin, back‐barrier and coastal raised bog sites. The results showed that testate amoebae are present in the fossil record, although in variarble species diversities, concentrations and states of preservation. Testate amoebae were found to be well preserved in isolation basin infills and coastal raised bog deposits, where diverse assemblages (>20 taxa) were recorded. In the upper part of the isolation basin sequence from Loch nan Corr, northwest Scotland, the testate amoebae assemblages showed a greater degree of sensitivity to transitional salinity changes than existing foraminferal and larger testate amoebae data sets. This implies that testate amoebae, particularly small to medium‐sized specimens (15–300 µm), may hold considerable potential for sea‐level reconstruction in these environments. Preservation of testate amoebae in a freshly sampled core of saltmarsh sediment from South Wales was reasonable, although test distribution decreased significantly in abundance below 18 cm. The assemblage composition was similar to that found in the contemporary surface environment. The preservation of testate amoebae in saltmarsh and coastal reedswamp deposits of mid‐Holocene age was variable and generally poor. Partial dehydration of the sediment samples may account for this. Further studies are required to examine the palaeoecology and distribution of testate amoebae in similar coastal settings, to strengthen these preliminary findings. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Pleistocene coastal stratigraphy, sea‐level highstands and neotectonism of the southern Australian passive continental margin—a review - Colin V. Murray‐Wallace (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Located in a tectonically stable, intraplate setting and in the far field of former ice sheets, the southern Australian passive continental margin represents a globally important region for quantifying sea level during Pleistocene highstands. The stratigraphical record of the southern Australian margin is dominated by geographically extensive coastal barrier, estuarine and peritidal landforms of bioclastic, temperate carbonate affinity, a function of regional aridity. Siliciclastic successions dominate the eastern Australian coastline. Despite the generally high level of tectonic stability, regional contrasts are evident in the elevation of Pleistocene shoreline deposits that largely relate to pre‐Quaternary geotectonic setting. The most complete record of Pleistocene highstand deposits occurs in the Murray Basin–Coorong Coastal Plain region, and indicates that interglacial sea‐level highstands, for at least the past 11 interglacials, did not deviate by more than 6 m from present sea‐level. The Pleistocene marginal marine record of southern Australia is dominantly represented by coastal successions deposited during marine oxygen isotope stages 5e and 7, equating with relative sea‐level maxima of 2–6 m and greater than 1 m above present sea‐level (APSL) respectively. Intertidal facies of Late Pleistocene interstadial successions rarely occur above present sea level. The most reliable record of glacio‐eustatic (ice equivalent) sea level is registered on coastlines developed on stable Precambrian cratons such as the Gawler Craton (Eyre Peninsula), where a consistent elevation of 2 m APSL is registered for over 500 km for the last interglacial shoreline (125 ka). Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Global glacial isostatic adjustment: palaeogeodetic and space‐geodetic tests of the ICE‐4G (VM2) model - W. R. Peltier (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Analyses of the global process of glacial isostatic adjustment and post‐glacial relative sea‐level change continue to deliver important insights into Earth system form and process. One successful model of the related phenomenology is based upon a spherically symmetric internal viscoelastic structure for the solid Earth, which has been denoted VM2, and a model of the most recent deglaciation event of the current ice‐age, denoted ICE‐4G. The primary purpose of this paper is to describe several new a posteriori tests that have recently been performed to further investigate the quality of this global ‘solution’ to the inverse problem for both mantle viscosity and deglaciation history that is posed by the observables associated with this large‐scale geodynamic phenomenon. I focus especially upon the ‘misfits’ of observations to the theoretical predictions of this model, which I am currently using to further refine its properties, and upon predictions made using it of geophysical signals that should soon become visible in the context of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite mission. Among the required refinements to ICE‐4G, one that is necessary to eliminate a recently revealed misfit to space geodetic constraints on the present‐day rate of radial motion at the Yellowknife location well to the west of Hudson Bay, and a similar misfit to absolute gravity measurements to the southwest of the Bay, is the insertion of a ‘Keewatin Dome’ of thick ice centred over Yellowknife with a ridge of ice extending to the south east. In the geomorphological literature, the existence of such a Keewatin Dome previously has been hypothesised but chronological control was lacking on the surface features that suggested its former existence. An important additional constraint that requires the late glacial existence of this important feature consists of new inferences of the Last Glacial Maximum lowstand of the sea from sites in the far field of the main concentrations of land ice. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sedimentary record of a tsunami during Roman times, Bay of Cadiz, Spain - L. Luque; J. Lario; J. Civis; P. G. Silva; C. Zazo; J. L. Goy; C. J. Dabrio (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Historical data show that the Gulf of Cadiz has been exposed to destructive tsunamis during at least the past 2000 yr. The last tsunami was generated by the AD 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which affected the Atlantic coasts of Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Today, these littoral areas are intensely populated and the expected damage could be much greater. Tsunami studies are of great importance in helping to determine the recurrence interval of these events. The presence of washover fan deposits on the inland margin of the Valdelagrana Spit bar (Cadiz, Spain) indicates the occurrence of a high energy marine event ca. 2300 cal. yr BP. Historical, geomorphological, sedimentological, palaeontological and geochronological data suggest that a tsunami could have affected the area during Roman times. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late Quaternary relative sea‐level changes and vertical movements at Lipari (Aeolian Islands) - N. Calanchi; F. Lucchi; P. A. Pirazzoli; C. Romagnoli; C. A. Tranne; U. Radtke; J. L. Reyss; P. L. Rossi (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Indicators of former sea‐levels are recognised on the emergent portion of Lipari, Aeolian Islands. They correlate with three raised shorelines, located at elevations of 43–45 m above present sea‐level (I), 23–27 m (II) and about 12 m (III). According to stratigraphical constraints, these shorelines correlate with the sea‐level highstands corresponding to marine oxygen isotope substages 5e (124 ka), 5c (100 ka) and 5a (81 ka), respectively. The correlation of the shoreline I with substage 5e is supported by a U/Th age (119 ± 6 ka) obtained from corals. Chronological and height data relevant to the fossil shorelines indicate that Lipari was affected by uplift with an average rate of 0.34 mm yr −1 during the past 125 ka. This uplift rate accords with the average uplift rates obtained, during the same time period, from the nearby islands of Filicudi (0.31 mm yr −1 ) and Salina (0.36 mm yr −1 ). Combined, these data suggest a similar uplift trend related to regional tectonic processes. In contrast to the long‐term uplift, a localised submergence trend, documented especially for the last century, affects the eastern coast of Lipari. This subsidence is related to neo‐ and/or volcano‐tectonic processes. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Modern distribution of saltmarsh testate amoebae: regional variability of zonation and response to environmental variables - Dan J. Charman; Helen M. Roe; W. Roland Gehrels (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Sea‐level reconstruction from biological indicators in saltmarsh sediments requires an understanding of the modern ecology of the organisms concerned. Previous work suggested that testate amoebae are a potential new group of organisms to use for sea‐level reconstruction, especially combined with diatoms and foraminifera. This paper analyses data from three saltmarshes on the Taf estuary, South Wales, the River Erme, Devon, and at Brancaster, Norfolk (UK) to (i) test for the presence and zonation of testate amoebae in relation to elevation; (ii) examine the similarity of zonation patterns between marshes; and (iii) explore the relationship between assemblage composition and a wider range of environmental variables. In addition we provide an update on the identification of testate amoebae on saltmarshes. Our results confirm that at all sites the primary environmental gradient is tidal inundation. Major changes in taxa along the tidal gradient are similar except for the lowest elevations, where different taxa become dominant at different sites. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) shows that assemblage composition is also strongly related to other variables, independent of the tidal position. Salinity, particle size and organic matter content are particularly important, and there is a statistically significant geographical effect on assemblages. Relationships between sea‐level and assemblage composition are often stronger for individual sites, suggesting that local data sets should be used for quantitative sea‐level reconstructions. However, the combined data set would provide more robust estimates of past sea‐level change from fossil data. Other environmental variables explain as much of the variability in species assemblages as tidal parameters and should be considered more often in sea‐level reconstructions based on microfossil indicators. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The marine Eemian of the Baltic: new pollen and diatom data from Peski, Russia, and Põhja‐Uhtju, Estonia - Arto Miettinen; Katja Rinne; Heikki Haila; Hannu Hyvärinen; Matti Eronen; Irina Delusina; Ene Kadastik; Volli Kalm; Philip Gibbard (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Several relatively well‐preserved last interglacial (Eemian, marine oxygen isotope substage 5e; ca. 130–116 ka) deposits containing marine diatom flora have been found in Finland. In addition to these Finnish sites, more numerous Eemian (Mikulino) marine deposits are known from the northwestern part of Russia and from Estonia. Two new clayey and silty deposits covered by till, one at Peski, Russia, and the other Põhja‐Uhtju, Estonia, were studied for pollen and diatom content. At Peski, the deposit representing the Eemian interglacial is 3.8 m thick. The polyhalobous diatom flora in the Corylus and Carpinus zones indicates the maximum of the marine transgression during the climatic optimum. Later, the increasing proportion of brackish water diatom flora indicates a lowering in the relative sea‐level, and finally, during a very late phase of the Eemian, the sharply increasing proportion of freshwater species indicates the isolation of the sedimentary basin from the Eemian Sea. At Põhja‐Uhtju, according to the pollen, the Eemian deposit is 3.5 m thick. Diatoms occur only in a layer 1.6 m thick, which represents the period of Corylus and Carpinus zones, and thus the period of the climatic optimum. The brackish–marine diatom flora consists mainly of littoral, shallow‐water species. Although Peski is situated at a higher altitude than Põhja‐Uhtju at present, the diatom stratigraphy at Peski indicates deeper and more saline conditions than at Põhja‐Uhtju during the Eemian. This probably is the result of variations in glacio‐isostatic rebound between these sites, which can be accounted for by differences of the ice load during the final phase of the Saalian glaciation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sea‐level changes and neotectonics: an introduction - Antony J. Long; Colin Murray‐Wallace; Christophe Morhange (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Defining the centre of glacio‐isostatic uplift of the last Scottish ice‐sheet: the Parallel Roads of Glen Roy, Scottish Highlands - Alastair G. Dawson; Shaun Hampton; Peter Fretwell; Stephan Harrison; Peter Greengrass (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The Parallel Roads of Glen Roy, Scottish Highlands, represent a series of ice‐dammed lake shorelines produced during the cold climate of the Younger Dryas. It is shown here that each lake shoreline exhibits evidence of glacio‐isostatic tilting associated with the decay of the last (Late Devensian) ice sheet. The directions of tilting of the three shorelines (in the quadrant between north and east), are at variance with published glacio‐isostatic uplift isobases based on marine shoreline data that suggest a pattern of decreased uplift towards the northwest. The gradient of shoreline tilting (between 0.11 and 0.14 m km −1 ) is similar to measured regional tilts of a well‐developed marine shoreline (the Main Rock Platform) considered to have been produced in Scotland during the same period of extreme cold climate. Consideration of the ice‐dammed lake shoreline data also points to the former occurrence of two separate episodes of tectonic activity during the Younger Dryas. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late Quaternary sea‐level change and isostatic and tectonic land movements along the Belgian–Dutch North Sea coast: geological data and model results - P. Kiden; L. Denys; P. Johnston (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Early and middle Holocene sea‐level data from Belgium plot ca. 2 m above data from the western Netherlands, reflecting differential tectonic and isostatic movements. The total uplift rate of Belgium relative to the western Netherlands decays gradually from 0.66 m kyr −1 at 7500 cal. yr BP to less than 0.25 m kyr −1 since 5000 cal. yr BP. The tectonic component of this relative movement, inferred from Eemian sea‐level data, is in the order of 0.06 to 0.16 m kyr −1 . The isostatic component of the uplift is related to the last phase of the collapse of a peripheral bulge under The Netherlands and the Dutch and German sectors of the North Sea, and to hydroisostatic subsidence of the North Sea basin caused by water loading as sea‐level rose. Comparisons with isostatic rebound models show that they predict well the Holocene isostatic movement between Belgium and the western Netherlands, and that the predictions are improved when the tectonic component is removed from the observations. Preliminary evaluation of sea‐level data from the Dutch sector of the North Sea shows that glacio‐hydroisostatic subsidence relative to Belgium was significantly greater than for the western Netherlands coastal area, and spatially highly variable. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Norwegian sea‐surface palaeoenvironments of marine oxygen‐isotope stage 3: the paradoxical response of dinoflagellate cysts - F. Eynaud; J. L. Turon; J. Matthiessen; C. Kissel; J. P. Peypouquet; A. de Vernal; M. Henry (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
High‐resolution marine palynological data have been obtained from two very long sediment cores (MD952009 and MD952010) retrieved from the southern Norwegian Sea. The dinoflagellate cyst assemblages show pronounced fluctuations in composition, which correlate strongly with magnetic susceptibility records and also mimic the δ 18 O signal of the GISP2 Greenland ice‐core. If focusing on the period from 48 to 30 cal. kyr BP, this correlation suggests a paradoxical response of the sea‐surface environments to the atmospheric conditions over Greenland: when the Greenland δ 18 O signal reflects warm interstadial conditions, the Norwegian Sea depicts cold sea‐surface temperatures with quasi‐perennial sea‐ice cover (based on dinoflagellate cysts). In contrast, when the Greenland δ 18 O records cold stadial periods, the Norwegian Sea‐surface temperatures are warm (based on dinoflagellate cysts), probably linked to inflow of the North Atlantic Drift. These results, similar in both cores, are contrary to those of previous studies and shed light on a possible decoupling of Norwegian sea surface‐water conditions and atmospheric conditions over Greenland. This decoupling could be linked to an atmosphere–ocean system behaving similar to that which the Northern Hemisphere is experiencing at present, i.e. strongly variable owing to the North Atlantic Oscillation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Topographically‐independent ice flow in northwestern British Columbia: implications for Cordilleran Ice Sheet reconstruction - S. J. McCuaig; M. C. Roberts (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Studies in southern British Columbia have shown that Cordilleran Ice Sheet flow was controlled by topograph, even in full glacial time. New ice‐flow evidence from the Nass River region, northern British Columbia, however, indicates that ice was thicker there and that the continental ice‐sheet phase of glaciation was reached. Inspection of high elevation sites has revealed a suite of ice‐flow indicators (mainly striae) undetected by earlier work. These suggest that at the Last Glacial Maximum (Fraser Glaciation), ice flowed southwestward across the Nass River region from an ice divide that probably was located in the Skeena Mountain area. Comparisons with adjacent work allow this divide to be mapped over a wide area. The results suggest that maximum ice thicknesses in the northern part of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet were larger than reported previously. The location of storm tracks in full glacial time may have played an important role in the production of an ice sheet that was thicker in northern British Columbia than it was in the southern half of the province. During deglaciation, ice thinned and gradually became confined to fiords and valleys, resulting in numerous and variable ice‐flow directions at that time. Topographic control was thus exerted on ice flow only after the glacial maximum was reached, despite the significant amount of relief in this region. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A high resolution, multiproxy Late‐glacial record of climate change and intrasystem responses in northwest England - Richard T. Jones; Jim D. Marshall; Stephen F. Crowley; Alan Bedford; Nigel Richardson; Jan Bloemendal; Frank Oldfield (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A lacustrine carbonate sequence from Hawes Water, Lancashire, UK, has been studied using stable isotopic, lithological, pollen and mineral magnetic analysis. The data reveal four abrupt climatic oscillations in the Late‐glacial Interstadial leading up to the onset of the Loch Lomond Stadial. The data also point to climatic warming relatively early within the stadial, ca. 12 500 GRIP yr, prior to the onset of the Holocene. The oxygen isotope record is taken as a signature of climate forcing against which the response of the lake‐system can be monitored. By adopting this approach it is revealed that the response of the biological system to the rapid climatic oscillations is non‐linear and primarily a function of the antecedent conditions. A significant end‐Devensian isotopic excursion (A) is matched by only minor changes in the cold‐adapted floras and faunas. During the warmer interstadial, the response of the biological ecosystem (events B–D) is clearly influenced by thresholds: major changes in the catchment vegetation associated with relatively minor oscillations in the isotopic signature. The stratigraphical patterns reveal significant lag effects between the onset of climate deterioration and resulting changes in vegetation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A multiproxy record of Holocene environmental changes in the central Kola Peninsula, northwest Russia - Nadia Solovieva; Vivienne J. Jones (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A sediment core from Chuna Lake (Kola Peninsula, northwest Russia) was studied for pollen, diatoms and sediment chemistry in order to infer post‐glacial environmental changes and to investigate responses of the lake ecosystem to these changes. The past pH and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) of the lake were inferred using diatom‐based transfer functions. Between 9000 and 4200 cal. yr BP, slow natural acidification and major changes in the diatom flora occurred in Chuna Lake. These correlated with changes in regional pollen, the arrival of trees in the catchment, changes in erosion, sediment organic content and DOC. During the past 4200 yr diatom‐based proxies showed no clear response to changes in vegetation and erosion, as autochthonous ecological processes became more important than external climate influences during the late Holocene. The pollen stratigraphy reflects the major climate patterns of the central Kola Peninsula during the Holocene, i.e. a climate optimum between 9000 and 5400/5000 cal. yr BP when climate was warm and dry, and gradual climate cooling and an increase in moisture during the past 5400/5000 yr. This agrees with the occurrence of the north–south humidity gradient in Fennoscandia during the Holocene. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Isotopic climate record in a Holocene stalagmite from Ursilor Cave (Romania) - Bogdan Petroniu Onac; Silviu Constantin; Joyce Lundberg; Stein‐Erik Lauritzen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The PU‐2 stalagmite from Ursilor Cave provides the first dated Romanian isotope record for the Holocene. The overall growth rate of the speleothem was 3.5 cm kyr −1 , corresponding to a temporal resolution of 142 y between each isotope analysis. The ‘Hendy’ tests indicate that isotopic equilibrium conditions occurred during the formation of PU‐2, and hence that it is suitable for palaeoclimatic studies. The relationship between δ 18 O and temperature was found to be positive. This can be interpreted either as rain‐out with distance from the west‐northwest ocean source of evaporation or shifts in air mass source with changing North Atlantic Oscillation indices. Applying five U–Th thermal ionisation mass spectrometric (TIMS) dates to a 17.5 cm isotope profile (δ 18 O and δ 13 C) along the stalagmite growth axis enabled a tentative interpretation of the palaeoclimate signal over the past 7.1 kyr. Spikes of depleted isotopic δ 18 O values are centred near ca. 7, ca. 5.2 and ca. 4 ka, reflecting cool conditions. The record shows two warm intervals between ca. 3.8 and ca. 3.2 ka (the maximum warmth) and from ca. 2 to ca. 1.4 ka, when the δ 18 O values were less negative than present. The ‘Holocene Climate Optimum’ spanning the time interval from ca. 6.8 to ca. 4.4 ka is not well expressed in the PU‐2 stalagmite. Individual spikes of lighter δ 13 C are interpreted as indicative of periods of heavy rainfall, at ca. 7, ca. 5.5, and ca. 3.5 ka. The overall trend to lighter δ 13 C in the PU‐2 stalagmite may reflect a gradual decrease in water–rock interaction. The results demonstrate that the effect of North Atlantic oceanic changes extended to the investigated area. Nevertheless, some differences in temporal correlation and intensity of stable isotopic response to these climatic events have been found, but the exact nature of these differences and the underlying mechanism is yet to be determined. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Changes of treelines and alpine vegetation in relation to post‐glacial climate dynamics in northern Fennoscandia based on pollen and chironomid records - Heikki Seppä; Marjut Nyman; Atte Korhola; Jan Weckström (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Palaeoclimatic records derived from a variety of independent proxies provide evidence of post‐glacial changes of temperature and soil moisture in northern Fennoscandia. We use pollen percentage, pollen influx, stomatal and chironomid records from Toskaljavri, a high‐altitude lake in northern Finland, to assess how treelines and alpine vegetation there have responded to these climate changes. The evidence suggests that the cool, moist climate of the early Holocene supported birch forest in the area 9600 cal. yr BP onwards and that a rise of temperature triggered the immigration of pine at 8300 cal. yr BP. At 6100–4000 cal. yr BP altitudinal treeline in the area was formed by pine, in contrast to the modern situation where mountain birch reaches a higher elevation. Alpine vegetation also demonstrates clear changes. Plant communities typical of dry, oligotrophic heaths of northern Fennoscandia expanded during the dry climatic period at 7000–4000 cal. yr BP and decreased in response to cooler and moister conditions after 4000 cal. yr BP. Alpine plant communities favouring moist sites show an inverse pattern, expanding after a change towards moister climate after 4000 cal. yr BP. In a redundancy analysis (RDA), a statistically significant proportion of the variability in the total chironomid assemblages was captured by changes in the pollen types reflecting alpine vegetation typical of moist sites. Although chironomid community changes appeared to follow the major patterns in the alpine vegetation succession, the present study does not support a direct link between the changing treeline position and chironomid stratigraphy. Rather, the data indicate that the terrestrial and aquatic environments have each responded directly to the same ultimate cause, namely changing Holocene climate. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Depositional history of the North Taymyr ice‐marginal zone, Siberia—a landsystem approach - Helena Alexanderson; Lena Adrielsson; Christian Hjort; Per Möller; Oleg Antonov; Saskia Eriksson; Maksim Pavlov (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The sediment–landform associations of the northern Taymyr Peninsula in Arctic Siberia tell a tale of ice sheets advancing from the Kara Sea shelf and inundating the peninsula, probably three times during the Weichselian. In each case the ice sheet had a margin frozen to its bed and an interior moving over a deforming bed. The North Taymyr ice‐marginal zone (NTZ) comprises ice‐marginal and supraglacial landsystems dominated by thrust‐block moraines 2–3 km wide and large‐scale deformation of sediments and ice. Large areas are still underlain by remnant glacier ice and a supraglacial landscape with numerous ice‐walled lakes and kames is forming even today. The proglacial landsystem is characterised by subaqueous (e.g. deltas) or terrestrial (e.g. sandar) environments, depending on location/altitude and time of formation. Dating results (OSL, 14 C) indicate that the NTZ was initiated ca. 80 kyr BP during the retreat of the Early Weichselian ice sheet and that it records the maximum limit of a Middle Weichselian glaciation (ca. 65 kyr BP). During both these events, proglacial lakes were dammed by the ice sheets. Part of the NTZ was occupied by a thin Late Weichselian ice sheet (20–12 kyr BP), resulting in subaerial proglacial drainage. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Weichselian sediments at Foss‐Eikeland, Jæren (southwest Norway): sea‐level changes and glaciation history - S. Raunholm; E. Larsen; H. P Sejrup (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The Jæren area in southwestern Norway has experienced great changes in sea‐levels and sedimentary environments during the Weichselian, and some of these changes are recorded at Foss‐Eikeland. Four diamictons interbedded with glaciomarine and glaciofluvial sediments are exposed in a large gravel pit situated above the post‐glacial marine limit. The interpretation of these sediments has implications for the history of both the inland ice and the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream. During a Middle Weichselian interstadial, a large glaciofluvial delta prograded into a shallow marine environment along the coast of Jæren. A minor glacial advance deposited a gravelly diamicton, and a glaciomarine diamicton was deposited during a following marine transgression. This subsequently was reworked by grounded ice, forming a well‐defined boulder pavement. The boulder pavement is followed by glaciomarine clay with a lower, laminated part and an upper part of sandy clay. The laminated clay probably was deposited under sea‐ice, whereas more open glaciomarine conditions prevailed during deposition of the upper part. The clay is intersected by clastic dykes protruding from the overlying, late Weichselian till. Preconsolidation values from the marine clay suggest an ice thickness of at least 500 m during the last glacial phase. The large variations in sea‐level probably are a combined effect of eustasy and glacio‐isostatic changes caused by an inland ice sheet and an ice stream in the Norwegian Channel. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Use of environmental magnetic measurements to validate the vertical extent of ice masses at the Last Glacial Maximum - John Walden; Colin K. Ballantyne (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Analysis of soil samples from above and below trimlines representing the upper limit of glacial erosion at the Last Glacial Maximum demonstrates that soils with prolonged weathering histories above such trimlines yield significantly different mineral magnetic signatures from soils below trimlines. The nature of the contrast is conditioned by lithology. Basalt soils above the trimline yield significantly higher values of concentration‐dependent magnetic parameters (χ, χ arm , IRM 3T , soft IRM and hard IRM) than those below the trimline, due probably to transformation of non‐magnetic iron‐bearing minerals into magnetic forms. Conversely, for sandstone soils most magnetic parameters yield significantly lower values for above‐trimline samples, probably reflecting loss of ferrimagnetic minerals by dissolution and oxidation to aniferrimagnetic forms. These significant contrasts represent a new approach to validating high‐level weathering limits as periglacial trimlines cut at the Last Glacial Maximum. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Comment: Cosmogenic radionuclide dating of glacial landforms in the Lahul Himalaya, northern India: defining the timing of Late Quaternary glaciation. L. A. Owen, L. Gualtieri, R. C. Finkel, M. W. Caffee, D. I. Benn and M. C. Sharma (2001). (Journal of Quaternary Science 16 : 555–563) - P. J. Taylor; W. A. Mitchell (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Lake Peipsi. Geology A. Miidel and A. Raukas (eds) Sulemees Publishers Tallinn 1999 (148 pp) 800 Est. Krooni, ISBN 9985‐60‐728‐7 - Jeff Blackford (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Foraminifera, testate amoebae and diatoms as sea‐level indicators in UK saltmarshes: a quantitative multiproxy approach. W. Roland Gehrels, Helen M. Roe and Dan J. Charman Journal of Quaternary Science Vol 16 No 3 2001, pages 201–220. - W. Roland Gehrels; Helen M. Roe; Dan J. Charman (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The original article to which this Erratum refers was published in Journal of Quaternary Science 16 (3) 2001, 201‐220.

The diatoms: applications for the environmental and earth sciences E. F. Stoermer and J. P. Smol Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1999 (469 pp) £70/US$115 ISBN 0 521 58281 4 - Reed Scherer (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Reply: Cosmogenic radionuclide dating of glacial landforms in the Lahul Himalaya, northern India: defining the timing of Late Quaternary glaciation - L. A. Owen; L. Gualtieri; R. C. Finkel; M. W. Caffee; D. I. Benn; M. C. Sharma (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

A multi‐technique study of the glacial stratigraphy of Co. Clare and Co. Kerry, southwest Ireland - Andrew E. Richards (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A multi‐technique approach has been adopted in a study of the lithostratigraphy of glacial deposits in southwestern Ireland, including clast lithological analysis, fine sand geochemistry, low frequency mass specific susceptibility and fine sand calcium carbonate (equivalent) content. A revised lithostratigraphical scheme is suggested for the Quaternary glacial deposits of the region, together with a simple strategy that may be adopted for stratigraphical studies in other regions of southern Ireland. It appears that geochemical determinations via inductively coupled plasma–atomic absorption spectrometry are particularly useful in characterising and discriminating between till units within local stratigraphical studies and may be used to inform the applicability of other utilitarian techniques for use on a regional scale. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Chronology of the last recession of the Greenland Ice Sheet - Ole Bennike; Svante Björck (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A new deglaciation chronology for the ice‐free parts of Greenland, the continental shelf and eastern Ellesmere Island (Canada) is proposed. The chronology is based on a new compilation of all published radiocarbon dates from Greenland, and includes crucial new material from southern, northeastern and northwestern Greenland. Although each date provides only a minimum age for the local deglaciation, some of the dates come from species that indicate ice‐proximal glaciomarine conditions, and thus may be connected with the actual ice recession. In addition to shell dates, dates from marine algae, lake sediments, peat, terrestrial plants and driftwood also are included. Only offshore and in the far south have secure late‐glacial sediments been found. Other previous reports of late‐glacial sediments (older than 11.5 cal. kyr BP) from onshore parts of Greenland need to be confirmed. Most of the present ice‐free parts of Greenland and Nares Strait between Greenland and Ellesmere Island were not deglaciated until the early Holocene. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Formation and reorientation of structure in the surge‐type glacier Kongsvegen, Svalbard - John Woodward; Tavi Murray; Andrew McCaig (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Kongsvegen, a surge‐type glacier in Spitsbergen, Svalbard, shares a tide‐water margin with the glacier Kronebreen. The complex has been in retreat since a surge advance of Kongsvegen around 1948. The surface of Kongsvegen displays suites of deformational structures highlighted by debris‐rich folia. These structures are melting out to form a network of sediment ridges in the grounded terminal area. The structures are also visible in a marginal, 1 km long, 5–20 m high cliff‐face at the terminus. Current models for the evolution of deformational structures at Kongsvegen divide the structures into suites based on their orientation and dip, before assigning a mechanism for genesis based on structure geometry. Interpretation of aerial photographs and field mapping of surface structures suggest that many structures were reorientated or advected during the surge. We suggest that many of the deformational structures highlighted by debris‐rich folia represent reorientated, sediment‐filled crevasses. Some evidence of thrusting is apparent but the process is not as ubiquitous as previously suggested. Many deformational structures also appear to have been offset by more recent structures. Mechanisms of structural development must, therefore, be considered within the context of distinct stages of glacier flow dynamics and multiple surge episodes. Furthermore, evidence for thrusting and folding within the glacier systems of Svalbard has been used as the basis for interpreting Quaternary glacial landforms in the UK. The findings of this paper, therefore, have implications for interpretations of the Quaternary record. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Geomorphology and style of plateau icefield deglaciation in fjord terrains: the example of Troms‐Finnmark, north Norway - David J. A. Evans; Brice R. Rea; James D. Hansom; W. Brian Whalley (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
In spite of a widespread distribution, the way in which plateau icefields affect the glaciation and deglaciation of adjacent terrains is not particularly well‐known. This paper aims to identify how the deglaciation of the fjord and plateau terrain of north Norway has influenced the glacial geomorphology and relative sea‐level history of both local and adjacent areas and so serve as a model for interpreting similar areas along the continental margins of northwest Europe and elsewhere. The identification of moraines and their relationships with the Main shoreline of northern Norway allows the margins of the Øksfjordjøkelen, Svartfjelljøkelen and Langfjordjøkelen plateau icefields to be identified in the adjacent terrains. In locations where ice margins are uncertain, it is also possible to reconstruct ice limits by means of glacier models appropriately constrained by known local conditions and dates. Earlier glacier margins, characterised in north Norway by ice shelves floating in the local inlets of major fjords, also can be related to known regional shorelines. The distribution of high shoreline fragments, augmented by radiocarbon dates, helps show the extent to which inter‐island channels and outermost parts of fjords can become deglaciated relatively early in comparison with published maps of regional deglaciation. Plateau‐icefield‐centred glaciation became important sometime after 14 000 14 C yr BP and was characterised by glacier readvances up to, and in some locations beyond, earlier moraines and raised marine features. Although overlooked until recently, the identification of the influence of plateau icefields on local glaciation, and their interaction with local and regional marine limits, is of great importance in accurate palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Aeolian origin of the red earth in southeast China - Shangfa Xiong; Donghuai Sun; Zhongli Ding (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A clay‐like deposit known as ‘red earth’ is widely distributed over the terraces and high lands of the Yangtze River valley in southeast China. Its typical pedo‐stratigraphical features have attracted the interest of pedologists and geologists for many years, although its origin is still debated. Here we report an analyses of the grain‐size distributions, rare‐earth element (REE) patterns and upper continental crust (UCC)‐normalised major elemental composition of the red earth and compare them with those of the loess and other aeolian deposits in northern China. The results show that the red earth in southeast China has two or three end‐member grain‐size distributions, similar to the sedimentary characteristics and geochemical composition of aeolian deposits found in northern China. Together with other evidence from field observations, these results suggest that the red earth is probably of aeolian origin. On the basis of these data, we suggest that thick aeolian dusts were also deposited in the wet subtropics and that the effect of the winter monsoonal winds upon the dust transport in eastern China was more important than previously believed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Response of chironomids to Late Quaternary environmental change in the Taitao Peninsula, southern Chile - Julieta Massaferro; Stephen J. Brooks (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
An Erratum has been published for this article in Journal of Quaternary Science 17(7) 2002, 721. There is conflicting evidence concerning the extent and timing of late Quaternary climate variability in southern South America and how this may be linked to climate change in the Northern Hemisphere. Critical unresolved questions include whether or not a cool period occurred in southern South America during the Younger Dryas Chronozone (YDC) (11 000–10 000 14 C yr BP; 13 000–11 200 yr BP), and the timing of wet and dry phases during the Holocene. To date most evidence is from glacial, pollen and beetle records but, in an attempt to resolve these questions, we have used chironomid midges as an independent proxy in one of the first studies of its kind in Patagonia. We investigated the dynamics of midge assemblages during the Late‐glacial and Holocene at Lago Stibnite on the Taitao Peninsula, southern Chile (46°S). Changes in the midge assemblage suggest that the climate may have become cooler and drier during the YDC. During the Holocene there were cyclical changes in the midge assemblage that may have been in response to trophic change and/or to changes in precipitation when conditions appear to have been drier than today at 9400–6300 14 C yr BP and 2400–1600 14 C yr BP. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Holocene environmental reconstruction from deltaic deposits in northeast Greenland - Hanne H. Christiansen; Ole Bennike; Jens Böcher; Bo Elberling; Ole Humlum; Bjarne H. Jakobsen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Terraces of different age in the Zackenberg delta, located at 74°N in northeast Greenland, have provided the opportunity for an interdisciplinary approach to the investigation of Holocene glacial, periglacial, pedological, biological and archaeological conditions that existed during and after delta deposition. The raised Zackenberg delta accumulated mainly during the Holocene Climatic Optimum, starting slightly prior to 9500 cal. yr BP (30 m a.s.l.) and continued until at least 6300 cal. yr BP (0.5 m a.s.l.). Evidence of sea‐level change is based on conventional 14 C dates of shells from the marine delta bottomsets, 14 C AMS dating of macroscopic plant material from the foresets and of fluvial deposits. Arthropod and plant remains from 7960 cal. yr BP in the delta foresets include the oldest evidence of the arctic hare in Greenland and evidence of a rich herb flora slightly different from the modern flora. Empetrum nigrum and Salix herbacea remains indicate a summer temperature at least as high as today during delta deposition. Post‐depositional nivation activity, dated by luminescence, lichenometry and Schmidt Hammer measurements indicate mainly late Holocene activity, at least since 2900 yr BP, including Little Ice Age (LIA) avalanche activity. Pedological analyses of fossil podsols in the Zackenberg delta, including 14 C AMS dating of selected organic rich B‐horizons, show continued podsol development during the Holocene Climatic Optimum and into the subsequent colder period of the late Holocene, until 3000–2400 yr BP. A Neo‐Eskimo house ruin found on the lower part of the delta, presently being eroded by the sea, is dated to AD 1800. It presumably was abandoned prior to AD 1869, and suggests that some of the last Eskimos that lived in northeast Greenland might have occupied the Zackenberg delta. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late Quaternary depositional history of the Reuss delta, Switzerland: constraints from high‐resolution seismic reflection and georadar surveys - Frank O. Nitsche; Alan G. Green; Heinrich Horstmeyer; Frank Büker (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Glacial erosion has caused overdeepening of many alpine valleys. After retreat of the ice, they were filled with heterogeneous deposits of glacial, lacustrine and fluvial sediments. A typical example of such a valley segment and its infill is the Reuss delta on the southern shore of Lake Lucerne in Switzerland. To obtain a detailed three‐dimensional image of this valley segment, the ETH Institute of Geophysics has acquired several two‐dimensional, high‐resolution seismic and georadar profiles, and conducted a three‐dimensional georadar survey. Interpretations of these geophysical data were constrained by a geological core extracted from a borehole 300 m deep near the investigation site. The seismic profiles imaged ca. 600 m of sediment infill above bedrock. Based on their reflection characteristics, five different deposition units were distinguished. These units were interpreted as a succession of clay/silt at the base, followed by different sand units with variable but generally increasing amounts of gravel. This succession represented a prograding delta that filled the southern part of Lake Lucerne. The latest fluvial development of the region is best represented by the georadar data. In particular, the three‐dimensional georadar data set provides a detailed view of an ancient braided river channel Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Pollen‐based biome reconstructions for Colombia at 3000, 6000, 9000, 12 000, 15 000 and 18 000 14 C yr ago: Late Quaternary tropical vegetation dynamics - Robert Marchant; Hermann Behling; Juan‐Carlos Berrio; Antoine Cleef; Joost Duivenvoorden; Henry Hooghiemstra; Peter Kuhry; Bert Melief; Elisabeth Schreve‐Brinkman; Bas Van Geel; Thomas Van der Hammen; Guido Van Reenen; et al. (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Colombian biomes are reconstructed at 45 sites from the modern period extending to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The basis for our reconstruction is pollen data assigned to plant functional types and biomes at six 3000‐yr intervals. A reconstruction of modern biomes is used to check the treatment of the modern pollen data set against a map of potential vegetation. This allows the biomes reconstructed at past periods to be assessed relative to the modern situation. This process also provides a check on the a priori assignment of pollen taxa to plant functional types and biomes. For the majority of the sites, the pollen data accurately reflect the potential vegetation, even though much of the original vegetation has been transformed by agricultural practices. At 18 000 14 C yr BP, a generally cool and dry environment is reflected in biome, assignments of cold mixed forests, cool evergreen forests and cool grassland–shrub; the latter extending to lower altitudes than presently recorded. This signal is strongly recorded at 15 000 and 12 000 14 C yr BP, the vegetation at these times also reflecting a relatively cool and dry environment. At 9000 14 C yr BP there is a shift to biomes thought to result from slightly cooler environmental conditions. This trend is reversed by 6000 14 C yr BP; most sites, within a range of different environmental settings, recording a shift to more xeric biome types. There is an expansion of steppe and cool mixed‐forest biomes, replacing tropical dry forest and cool grassland–shrub biomes, respectively. These changes in biome assignments from the modern situation can be interpreted as a biotic response to mid‐Holocene climatic aridity. At 3000 14 C yr BP the shift is mainly to biomes characteristic of slightly more mesic environmental conditions. There are a number of sites that do not change biome assignment relative to the modern reconstruction, although the affinities that these sites have to a specific biome do change. These ‘anomalies’ are interpreted on a site‐by‐site basis. Spatially constant, but differential response of the vegetation to climatic shifts are related to changes in moisture sources and the importance of edaphic controls on the vegetation. The Late Quaternary reconstruction of large‐scale vegetation dynamics in Colombia allows an understanding of the environmental controls on these to be developed. In particular, shifts in the character of the main climatic systems that influence Colombian vegetation are described. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late Weichselian and Holocene sediment flux and sedimentation rates in Andfjord and Vågsfjord, North Norway - Liv Plassen; Tore O. Vorren (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
Late Weichselian and Holocene sediment flux and sedimentation rates in a continental‐shelf trough, Andfjord, and its inshore continuation, Vågsfjord, North Norway, have been analysed. The study is based on sediment cores and high‐resolution acoustic data. Andfjord was deglaciated between 14.6 and 13 14 C kyr BP (17.5 and 15.6 calibrated (cal.) kyr BP), the Vågsfjord basin before 12.5 14 C kyr BP (14.7 cal. kyr BP), and the heads of the inner tributary fjords about 9.7 14 C kyr BP (11.2 cal. kyr BP). In Andfjord, five seismostratigraphical units are correlated to a radiocarbon dated lithostratigraphy. Three seismostratigraphical units are recognised in Vågsfjord. A total volume of 23 km 3 post‐glacial glacimarine and marine sediments was mapped in the study area, of which 80% are of Late Weichselian origin. Sedimentation rates in outer Andfjord indicate reduced sediment accumulation with increasing distance from the ice margin. The Late Weichselian sediment flux and sedimentation rates are significantly higher in Vågsfjord than Andfjord. Basin morphology, the position of the ice front and the timing of deglaciation are assumed to be the reasons for this. Late Weichselian sedimentation rates in Andfjord and Vågsfjord are comparable to modern subpolar glacimarine environments of Greenland, Baffin Island and Spitsbergen. Downwasting of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet, and winnowing of the banks owing to the full introduction of the Norwegian Current, caused very high sedimentation rates in parts of the Andfjord trough at the Late Weichselian–Holocene boundary. Holocene sediment flux and sedimentation rates in Andfjord are about half the amount found in Vågsfjord, and about one‐tenth the amount of Late Weichselian values. A strong bottom current system, established at the Late Weichselian–Holocene boundary, caused erosion of the Late Weichselian sediments and an asymmetric Holocene sediment distribution. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Microscopic charcoal in sediments: Quaternary fire history of the grassland and savanna regions in South Africa - L. Scott (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The microscopic charcoal content of several Quaternary pollen sequences is used to investigate fire history in South Africa both during the Holocene and the Late Pleistocene. Although fluctuations in charcoal composition are recorded, it is difficult to link them directly to either human‐made or natural fires. Strong long‐term variations in microscopic charcoal of Middle and Upper Pleistocene layers are independent of pollen indications of past temperature and moisture conditions. Holocene charcoal sequences from different areas show no correlation, so no phases of regional burning are found. Some fluctuations in charcoal probably are the result of local burning in the various regions. The arrival of Iron Age people some 2000 yr ago apparently did not coincide with widespread wild fires, as these events do not consistently appear in regional microscopic charcoal records. The only exception appears to be the Wonderkrater spring deposit. Relatively open savanna environments, which are implied by pollen analysis at some sites during this period and the generally low microscopic charcoal contents, were either caused by climate change or controlled burning by Iron Age people. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Linking the North Atlantic to central Europe: a high‐resolution Holocene tephrochronological record from northern Germany - Christel van den Bogaard; Hans‐Ulrich Schmincke (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A high‐resolution Holocene tephrochronology for northern Germany has been established based on systematic tephrostratigraphical analysis of three peat bogs. Microscopic volcanic ash layers have been traced and characterised petrographically and by the chemical composition of the glass shards. At least 37 ash horizons representing 16 different explosive volcanic eruptions have been identified and many can be correlated between the three sites, up to 100 km apart. The tephra layers can be related to Icelandic volcanic sources and some correlated to the eruptions of Askja 1875, Hekla 3, Hekla Selsund, Hekla 4 and Hekla 5, as well as to unspecified eruptions of Icelandic volcanic systems, e.g. Torfajökull. The source volcanoes for some tephra layers remain unidentified. Some tephra layers were known previously from the North Atlantic region (e.g. Sluggan, Glen Garry), others have not been recorded previously in the literature (e.g. microlite tephra). This study provides the first comprehensive Holocene tephrostratigraphical record for northern Germany, complementing the North Atlantic tephrostratigraphical dating framework, effectively extending it into central Europe. The study shows that Icelandic ash layers are even more widespread than hitherto thought. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Evolution of a periglacial landscape in the Late Devensian: environments and palaeobotany of the Mepal area, Cambridgeshire, England - R. G. West; R. G. O. Burton; R. Andrew; M. E. Pettit (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The landscape evolution of the Mepal area from Late Devensian Block Fen Terrace times to the beginning of the Flandrian, a period of ca. 8000 radiocarbon years, is reconstructed. Stratigraphy is based on borehole transects and single boreholes, centred on a depression between the Block Fen Terrace and the Isle of Ely. Within the depression is a Devensian late‐glacial sequence, with the Windermere Interstadial represented by radiocarbon‐dated organic sediments. Pollen and plant macroscopic remains of the late‐glacial sediments are analysed. Plant communities with Betula developed in the interstadial. Before and after the interstadial there is much reworked pollen in the inorganic sediments, derived from local pre‐Devensian Pleistocene sediments, including temperate Ipswichian Stage sediments, and from mass‐wasting of the local Jurassic bedrock. Periods of such mass‐movement occur before and after the deposition of the late‐glacial lake sediments. Deposition of aeolian sediment occurs later than the main period of mass movement, but before the Windermere Interstadial. The relationship of the aeolian sediments in time and space to permafrost, indicated by local contraction polygons and cracks, is discussed. Solifluction diverted the flow of the River Great Ouse from a northeast direction in Block Fen Terrace times to a southwest direction as a channel developed to the west of the Chatteris–March ‘island’. This led to a drainage divide in Flandrian times. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Editorial - James Scourse (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Comment: the Greenland 8200 cal. yr BP event detected in loss‐on‐ignition profiles in Norwegian lacustrine sediment sequences A. Nesje S. O. Dahl (2001)(Journal of Quaternary Science, 16, 155‐166) - K.D. Bennett (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Interglacial high‐tide coasts in the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary, southwest Britain: a comparison for the Ipswichian and Holocene - J. R. L. Allen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The Ipswichian high‐tide coast in the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary at the time of the highest sea‐levels (5–10 m OD) was wave‐dominated almost everywhere. It is defined by raised beaches and inshore sand shoals, and only in comparatively long but narrow inlets (Somerset Levels) are estuarine conditions evident. The modern Holocene seaway is wave‐dominated at high tide only up to and including the inner Bristol Channel. A muddy upper shore typifies the large, tide‐dominated Severn Estuary to the east and northeast. The larger depth and width of the Ipswichian seaway may explain its greater wave‐dominance, but it is also possible that differences in the sediment regime also contribute to the contrast observed. With water levels continuing to rise, the Holocene seaway could reach Ipswichian depths within a few thousand years and evolve toward greater wave‐dominance. A secondary effect may be the transgression and substantial removal of the Holocene estuarine sequence associated with the Severn Estuary Levels. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sedimentology, palaeoecology and geochronology of Marine Isotope Stage 5 deposits on the Shetland Islands, Scotland - Adrian M. Hall; John E. Gordon; Graeme Whittington; Geoffrey A. T. Duller; Hendrik Heijnis (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
New stratigraphical, palynological and dating evidence is presented for pre‐Late Devensian/Weichselian sediments at Fugla Ness and Sel Ayre, Shetland. The Fugla Ness Peat rests on till and formed during an interglacial that saw the development of maritime heaths, with scattered trees and shrubs, including Pinus and possibly Ilex . A decline into stadial conditions is marked by overlying periglacial breccia and till. The Sel Ayre Organic Sands and Gravels lie between periglacial breccias and beneath till and appear to record a changing interstadial environment in which trees were absent and the vegetation comprised largely heaths, with Bruckenthalia , and grasslands. The Fugla Ness Peat is dated to 110+40/−35 ka by uranium series disequilibrium, suggesting that it formed during the Ipswichian/Eemian Interglacial (Marine Isotope Substage 5e). Luminescence ages of ca. 98–105 ka on intercalated sands within the Sel Ayre Organic Sands and Gravels place these deposits in Marine Isotope Substage 5c (Brørup Interstadial). The two sites provide the first detailed record of Marine Isotope Stage 5 environments on Shetland. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Stomatal evidence for a decline in atmospheric CO 2 concentration during the Younger Dryas stadial: a comparison with Antarctic ice core records - J. C. Mcelwain; F. E. Mayle; D. J. Beerling (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
A recent high‐resolution record of Late‐glacial CO 2 change from Dome Concordia in Antarctica reveals a trend of increasing CO 2 across the Younger Dryas stadial (GS‐1). These results are in good agreement with previous Antarctic ice‐core records. However, they contrast markedly with a proxy CO 2 record based on the stomatal approach to CO 2 reconstruction, which records a ca. 70 ppm mean CO 2 decline at the onset of GS‐1. To address these apparent discrepancies we tested the validity of the stomatal‐based CO 2 reconstructions from Kråkenes by obtaining further proxy CO 2 records based on a similar approach using fossil leaves from two independent lakes in Atlantic Canada. Our Late‐glacial CO 2 reconstructions reveal an abrupt ca. 77 ppm decrease in atmospheric CO 2 at the onset of the Younger Dryas stadial, which lagged climatic cooling by ca. 130 yr. Furthermore, the trends recorded in the most accurate high‐resolution ice‐core record of CO 2 , from Dome Concordia, can be reproduced from our stomatal‐based CO 2 records, when time‐averaged by the mean age distribution of air contained within Dome Concordia ice (200 to 550 yr). If correct, our results indicate an abrupt drawdown of atmospheric CO 2 within two centuries at the onset of GS‐1, suggesting that some re‐evaluation of the behaviour of atmospheric CO 2 sinks and sources during times of rapid climatic change, such as the Late‐glacial, may be required. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Palaeoenvironmental significance of the mammalian faunas of Italy since the Pliocene - Sophie Montuire; Federica Marcolini (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)
The evolution of mammalian communities is a significant tool for reconstructing past environments and climate. In this paper, a palaeoecological and palaeoenvironmental reconstruction based on the study of the Italian mammal faunas ranging from Middle Pliocene to the Holocene is presented using the cenogram method and quantification of temperatures based on arvicolid species richness. These analyses reveal open and arid conditions during glacial periods and less open and more humid conditions during interglacials, with some differences between north and central–south Italy. Northern and Southern communities reflect similar trends in the evolution of palaeoenvironments and in the variation of the temperatures, but differences in estimated temperatures, which indicate a more temperate climate for southern Italy throughout the period, are considered here. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Stomatal evidence for a decline in atmospheric CO2 concentration during the Younger Dryas stadial: a comparison with Antarctic ice core records - J. C. Mcelwain; F. E. Mayle; D. J. Beerling (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Evolution of a periglacial landscape in the Late Devensian: environments and palaeobotany of the Mepal area, Cambridgeshire, England - R. G. West; R. G. O. Burton; R. Andrew; M. E. Pettit (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2002)

Cold marine indicators of the late Quaternary: the new dinoflagellate cyst genus Islandinium and related morphotypes - Martin J. Head; Rex Harland; Jens Matthiessen (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Round, brown, spiny dinoflagellate cysts characterise many modern high‐latitude assemblages. Abundance is often highest where summer sea‐surface temperatures seldom exceed 7 °C and where winter sea‐surface temperatures are around 0 °C, making this morphological group important for reconstructing cold intervals within marine Quaternary sequences. Our analysis of modern sediments from the Beaufort Sea of Arctic Canada, the Kara and Laptev seas of Arctic Russia, and across the Arctic Ocean, allows us to recognise the new cyst genus Islandinium along with the extant species Islandinium minutum (Harland and Reid in Harland et al ., 1980 ) new combination (basionym: Multispinula? minuta ), Islandinium? cezare (de Vernal et al ., 1989 ex de Vernal in Rochon et al ., 1999) new status and combination (basionym: Multispinula? minuta var. cezare ) sensu lato , and Echinidinium karaense new species. Of these, the generotype Islandinium minutum is a well‐known but morphologically problematic species. We have re‐examined the type material from the Beaufort Sea and studied specimens from across the Arctic, and our observations clarify ambiguities in the original description of this species. The archeopyle of Islandinium minutum results from the loss of three apical plates, an unusual style among peridiniphycidean dinoflagellates. The asymmetrical location of these plates around the apex is distinctive, and probably contributed to earlier misunderstandings of the archeopyle. Previous attributions to Multispinula? and Algidasphaeridium? are unsustainable. Maps showing the distribution of Islandinium minutum are given for the Northern Hemisphere and show this species to be polar to north‐temperate, whereas Islandinium? cezare s.l. and Echinidinium karaense appear to be more restricted to polar environments. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Relationships between dinoflagellate cyst assemblages in surface sediment and hydrographic conditions in the Bering and Chukchi seas - Taoufik Radi; Anne de Vernal; Odile Peyron (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Palynological analyses were performed on 52 surface sediment samples from the eastern part of the Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea in order to document the regional distribution of dinoflagellate cyst assemblages and their relationship with sea‐surface conditions. The assemblages present a relatively high species diversity (20 taxa are recovered routinely), especially in the Bering Sea, where they are dominated by Operculodinium centrocarpum and the cyst of Pentapharsodinium dalei accompanied mainly by Spiniferites elongatus s.l., Spiniferites ramosus, Impagidinium pallidum , Brigantedinium spp., Islandinium minutum, Selenopemphix quanta, Selenopemphix nephroides, Quinquecuspis concreta and the cyst of Polykrikos kofoidii . The percentages of the main taxa vary with latitude, and principal component analysis shows that the distribution of assemblages is closely related to hydrographic conditions, notably the seasonal duration of sea‐ice cover and the sea‐surface temperature in February. The dinoflagellate cyst assemblages from the Bering Sea differ significantly from those of subarctic seas of the North Atlantic, with respect to their species composition and relationships with sea‐surface conditions. In particular, the occurrence of the cyst of Polykrikos kofoidii and Quinquecuspis concreta and the positive correlation between the percentages of Operculodinium centrocarpum and the extent of sea‐ice, constitute peculiar features in the Bering Sea assemblages. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Distribution of organic‐walled dinoflagellate cysts in surface sediments from transects across the Polar Front offshore southeast Greenland - Karin P. Boessenkool; Marie‐josé Van Gelder; Henk Brinkhuis; Simon R. Troelstra (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The Polar Front along the southeast Greenland Margin denotes the contrasting hydrographic properties of the polar and Atlantic water masses on either side. The remains of planktonic organisms in underlying sediments are expected to reflect these contrasts. To test this, we quantitatively analysed the organic‐walled dinoflagellate cyst (dinocyst) assemblages in surface sediments from transects across the present‐day Polar Front on the southeast Greenland Margin. Proportional differences are found between the composition of the dinocyst assemblages on either side of the Polar Front. The influence of polar water can be traced in the dinocyst record as high abundances of Algidasphaeridium? minutum and the presence of Pentapharsodinium dalei . The influence of Atlantic water is reflected in the presence of Operculodinium centrocarpum and Selenopemphix quanta . All samples include taxa from both environments, but the quantitative composition of the cyst assemblages clearly reflects the hydrographic features of the overlying surface water masses. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Distribution of modern dinoflagellate cysts from inshore areas along the coast of southern Norway - Kari Grøsfjeld; Rex Harland (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Surface sediment samples from inshore areas along the coast of Norway, from Kragerø in the south to Kristiansund in mid‐Norway, were analysed for their dinoflagellate cyst content in order to establish a modern reference data base. Ultimately these data should furnish a firm foundation for dinoflagellate cyst research in the area in terms of both their spatial and their temporal records. Our aim is to build a data base containing reference samples from the various fjords and inshore areas along the entire Norwegian coast. Dinoflagellate cysts have been recovered from all the samples studied and three main areas have been distinguished based upon their cyst assemblages; the western part of Skagerrak, the southwestern coast of Norway bordering the North Sea, and the west coast of Norway bordering the Norwegian Sea. The dinoflagellate cyst assemblages from these areas are, most probably, closely related to oceanographic parameters and reflect latitudinal or climatic trends along this stretch of the coast. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Application of artificial neural networks (ANN) to high‐latitude dinocyst assemblages for the reconstruction of past sea‐surface conditions in Arctic and sub‐Arctic seas - Odile Peyron; Anne de Vernal (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The artificial neural network (ANN) method was applied to dinoflagellate cyst (dinocyst) assemblages to estimate palaeoceanographical conditions. The ANN method was adapted to three distinct data bases covering the northern North Atlantic ( N = 371), plus the Arctic seas ( N = 540) and the Bering Sea ( N = 646). The relative abundance of 23 dinocyst taxa was calibrated against hydrographic variables (sea‐surface temperature, salinity and density in February and August, and seasonal extent of sea‐ice cover) using ANNs. The estimation of hydrographical parameters based on an ANN yields high coefficients of correlation between observations and reconstructions for each variable selected. The validation tests performed on the different data bases suggest more accurate calibration at the scale of the North Atlantic and Arctic ( N = 540) than on a multibasin scale, i.e. when including the subpolar North Pacific ( N = 646). The ANN calibrations and the modern analogue technique (MAT) have been applied to two sequences from the northwest North Atlantic spanning the past 25 000 yr for the purpose of comparison. Both approaches yielded similar results, generally within the range of their respective uncertainties, demonstrating their suitability. The main discrepancies generally correspond to assemblages with poor modern analogues for which we have to admit a higher degree of uncertainties in the reconstruction, whatever the approach used. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late Holocene dinoflagellate cysts as indicators for short‐term climate variability in the eastern Laptev Sea (Arctic Ocean) - Martina Kunz‐Pirrung; Jens Matthiessen; Anne de Vernal (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
A sediment sequence from the eastern Laptev Sea shelf (Siberian Arctic, Russia) has been studied for dinoflagellate cysts in order to reconstruct sea‐surface conditions during the late Holocene. Variability of assemblage composition and derived sea‐surface temperature estimates indicate that the neoglacial cooling was not a gradual climate change from 2510 to 900 cal. yr BP. Relatively stable conditions, with temperatures that were warmer than today, were punctuated by a few cooling events in summer on centennial time‐scales. During these events temperatures reached modern values. This suggests that modern conditions may have been established abruptly within a short period in the past 1000 yr, which is not documented in our record. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Late Quaternary sea‐surface conditions at DSDP Hole 594 in the southwest Pacific Ocean based on dinoflagellate cyst assemblages - Fabienne Marret; Anne de Vernal; Ferial Benderra; Rex Harland (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Investigation of organic‐walled dinoflagellate cyst distribution in 118 surface sediments from the Southern Ocean documents the relatively high diversity of cyst taxa (46 species) and distinct cyst assemblages in relation to surface water masses and temperature gradient. The Antarctic Water is characterised by the dominance of Selenopemphix antarctica accompanied by Brigantedinium spp. and Impagidinium pallidum . The Subantarctic Water association consists mainly of Nematosphaeropsis labyrinthus , Impagidinium paradoxum and Impagidinium sphaericum , whereas the Subtropical Water association is dominated by Operculodinium centrocarpum and Spiniferites membranaceus . Multivariate analyses (non‐metric multidimensional scaling) demonstrate the relationships with sea‐surface conditions and enable the application of the best analogue method on the Southern Ocean dinoflagellate cyst data base for reconstructing past sea‐surface conditions. The dinoflagellate cyst record from DSDP 594 (45°31.41'S, 174°56.88'E; 1204 m, southern margin of the Chatham Rise) shows important fluctuations in species composition from glacial to interglacial over the last 140 000 yr. Reconstruction of winter and summer SSTs reveals much lower temperature than present by 6 to 10 °C during marine oxygen isotope stages 6, 4 and 2, and higher temperature by 2–3 °C during substage 5e. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dinoflagellate cyst assemblages as tracers of sea‐surface conditions in the northern North Atlantic, Arctic and sub‐Arctic seas: the new ‘ n = 677’ data base and its application for quantitative palaeoceanographic reconstruction - Anne de Vernal; Maryse Henry; Jens Matthiessen; Peta J. Mudie; André Rochon; Karin P. Boessenkool; Frédérique Eynaud; Kari GrØsfjeld; Joël Guiot; Dominique Hamel; Rex Harland; Martin J. Head; et al. (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The distribution of dinoflagellate cyst (dinocyst) assemblages in surface sediment samples from 677 sites of the northern North Atlantic, Arctic and sub‐Arctic seas is discussed with emphasis on the relationships with sea‐surface parameters, including sea‐ice cover, salinity and temperature of the coldest and warmest months. Difficulties in developing a circum‐Arctic data base include the morphological variation within taxa (e.g. Operculodinium centrocarpum , Islandinium ? cezare and Polykrikos sp.), which probably relate to phenotypic adaptations to cold and/or low salinity environments. Sparse hydrographical data, together with large interannual variations of temperature and salinity in surface waters of Arctic seas constitute additional limitations. Nevertheless, the use of the best‐analogue technique with this new dinocyst data base including 677 samples permits quantitative reconstruction of sea‐surface conditions at the scale of the northern North Atlantic and the Arctic domain. The error of prediction calculated from modern assemblages is ±1.3 °C and ±1.8 °C for the temperature of February and August, respectively, ±1.8 for the salinity, and ±1.5 months yr −1 for the sea‐ice cover. Application to late Quaternary sequences from the western and eastern subpolar North Atlantic (Labrador Sea and Barents Sea) provide reconstructions compatible with those obtained using the previous dinocyst data base ( n = 371), which mainly included modern data from the northern North Atlantic. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dinoflagellate cyst assemblages in surface sediments of the Laptev Sea region (Arctic Ocean) and their relationship to hydrographic conditions - Martina Kunz‐Pirrung (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The occurrence and distribution of dinoflagellate cysts in surface sediments from the Laptev Sea shelf and the adjacent continental margin have been studied in relation to surface water conditions. Assemblages were interpreted by visual inspection and Q‐mode factor analysis. The inner Laptev shelf is a type‐area for polar environments because of the near absence of relatively warm waters from the Pacific or Atlantic oceans and an extensive seasonal sea‐ice cover. Assemblages are of low diversity and are dominated by the cold water taxon Islandinium minutum and related morphotypes. The common occurrence of distinctive polykrikoid cyst morphotypes is an indicator of polar environments. Furthermore, a strong supply of fresh water in summer influences the surface water conditions, and is a major factor controlling the occurrence and distribution of dinoflagellate cysts. The dinoflagellate cysts Nematosphaeropsis labyrinthus and Operculodinium centrocarpum are restricted to the continental margin, suggesting a relation to the inflow of relatively warm Atlantic waters along the Eurasian continental margin. An abundance maximum of Brigantedinium spp. at the shelf break is related to the mean position of the marginal ice zone. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Distribution of dinoflagellate cysts in the Canadian Arctic marine region - Peta J. Mudie; André Rochon (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The Canadian Arctic is a major gateway for transport of freshwater from the Arctic Ocean to the North Atlantic. This region comprises the Beaufort Sea, the Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) and northern sections of Baffin and Hudson bays. Subregional differences include major freshwater runoff to the Beaufort Sea and Hudson Bay, presence of Pacific and Atlantic Intermediate water in the west, and Atlantic Water in Baffin and Hudson bays. Principal component analysis of 50 core‐top samples shows four subregional dinoflagellate cyst assemblages. Outer Beaufort Shelf Assemblage I is co‐dominated by Operculodinium centrocarpum s.l. and Brigantedinium spp., with minor cysts of Pentapharsodinium dalei , Algidasphaeridium ? minutum s.l. and cysts of Polykrikos spp. Assemblage II in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago is co‐dominated by Brigantedinium spp., A. ? minutum s.l. and cysts of Polykrikos spp., including two Arctic morphotypes. Assemblage III in the North Water polynya exclusively comprises A. ? minutum s.l. and Brigantedinium spp. Assemblage IV in Baffin Bay is dominated by O. centrocarpum s.l. and Spiniferites spp., with Brigantedinium spp. on the shelves. The ratio of gonyaulacoid to protoperidinioid cysts (G : P) generally decreases with increased sea‐ice cover, but it may also decrease in river plumes and in polynyas. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dinoflagellate cyst evidence for warm interglacial conditions at the northern Barents Sea margin during marine oxygen isotope stage 5 - Jens Matthiessen; Jochen Knies (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Dinoflagellate cyst analysis has been conducted on a sediment core from the northern Barents Sea margin (eastern Arctic Ocean) to reconstruct sea‐surface conditions during marine oxygen isotope stage 5. Cyst concentrations and composition of assemblages display a distinct variability reflecting deglacial warming and the onset of relatively warm interglacial conditions in early stage 5. Dinoflagellate cyst assemblages of the last interglacial, which corresponds broadly to substage 5e, are comparable with those from recent sediments of the area, but have lower abundances of cold water taxa. Such assemblages suggest that sea‐surface temperatures of the last interglacial were therefore at least as warm as today or even warmer. After a distinct cooling, relatively stable cold conditions with minor periods of surface water warming prevailed from mid‐substages 5d to 5b. Temperatures might have been similar in substages 5a and 5e, but the different compositions of assemblages indicate a stronger stratification of surface waters, probably owing to a larger meltwater supply, in substage 5a. These results are compared with previous studies on marine carbonate and calcareous microfossil records from the Fram Strait and Yermak Plateau area, which show that the general view of a cold last interglacial in the eastern Arctic Ocean is untenable. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Marine dinoflagellate cysts and high latitude Quaternary paleoenvironmental reconstructions: an introduction - Peta J. Mudie; Rex Harland; Jens Matthiessen; Anne de Vernal (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Holocene variations of sea‐surface conditions in the southeastern Barents Sea, reconstructed from dinoflagellate cyst assemblages - Elena Voronina; Leonid Polyak; Anne De Vernal; Odile Peyron (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Palynomorphs were analysed in two sediment cores from the southeastern Barents Sea representing the past 8.3 and 4.4 kyr. High dinocyst contents and species diversity enabled the application of the best analogue method to quantitatively reconstruct sea‐surface salinities, temperatures and ice cover using 677 modern reference sites from the North Atlantic and Arctic seas, including new data from the Barents Sea reported here. At the southern core site, where waters are affected by the Atlantic inflow, sea‐surface conditions were relatively warm and stable between ca. 8000 and 5000 calendar yr BP. In contrast, the past 5 kyr had periods with cooler temperatures and extended ice cover, fluctuating mostly at 1–1.5 kyr frequencies at both sites. Most pronounced coolings occurred around 8.1, 5, 3.5–3.2 and 2.5 ka. The northern site additionally shows younger cooling events, tentatively dated to 1.4, 0.3 and 0.1 ka. Identified variations in sea‐surface conditions indicate changes in Atlantic water inputs to the Barents Sea. Our results generally correlate to palaeoclimatic reconstructions from northwestern Eurasia, exemplified by palynological records from Karelia. This correlation suggests that sea‐surface variations in the Barents Sea reflect large‐scale changes in atmospheric and oceanic interactions between the North Atlantic and the Arctic. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The geomorphological impact of Loch Lomond (Younger Dryas) Stadial plateau icefields in the central Lake District, northwest England - Derek A. McDougall (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Detailed geomorphological mapping has revealed evidence for the development of plateau icefields in the central fells of the English Lake District during the Loch Lomond (Younger Dryas) Stadial (ca. 12.9–11.5 ka). The largest plateau icefield system, which covered an area of approximately 55 km 2 (including outlet glaciers), was centred on High Raise. To the west, smaller plateau icefields developed on Grey Knotts/Brandreth and Dale Head, covering areas of 7 km 2 and 3 km 2 respectively. The geomorphological impact of these plateau icefields appears to have been minimal on the summits, where the survival of blockfields and other frost‐weathered debris (mostly peat‐covered) implies the existence of at least patches of protective, cold‐based ice. Ice‐moulded bedrock at some plateau edges, however, documents a transition to wet‐based, erosive conditions. Prominent moraine systems were produced by outlet glaciers, which descended into the surrounding valleys where their margins became sediment traps for supraglacial debris and inwash. In some valleys, ice‐marginal moraines record successive positions of outlet glaciers, which actively backwasted towards their plateau source. This interpretation differs from that of previous workers, who assumed an alpine style of glaciation, with reconstructed glaciers emanating from corries and valley heads. It is likely that plateau icefields were more common at this time in upland Britain than hitherto has been appreciated. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Microstructural interpretations of modern and Pleistocene subglacially deformed sediments: the relative role of parent material and subglacial processes - Anjana Khatwa; Slawek Tulaczyk (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Analysis of till micromorphology represents a relatively new technique that has been used most frequently to infer the importance of subglacial shear in till genesis. This study aims to calibrate the technique by comparing Pleistocene tills from United Kingdom with a modern till (the UpB till) from beneath Ice Stream B, West Antarctica. Despite the fact that all of the tills examined have been interpreted as deforming‐bed deposits, the modern till has significantly less abundant and diverse microstructures than those found in the Pleistocene tills. Seventeen examined thin‐sections of the UpB till contain recognisable microstructures over only 0–30% of individual thin‐section area. The most common microstructures are: (i) birefringent clay patterns that are interpreted as shear zones and (ii) adherent matrix structures, which we interpret as uncomminuted remnants of the parent glacial/glaciomarine diamictons. Fourteen thin‐sections of the Pleistocene tills were covered by microstructures in 10–95% of their area. The Pleistocene microstructures include birefringent clays and adherent matrix structures, as in the UpB till, but also laminations and deformed pods made of chalk and sorted sediments. We conclude that the same till‐forming process, i.e. subglacial deformation, may result in distinctly different till micromorphology. This is a consequence of the fact that microstructural characteristics are strongly influenced by factors other than shear deformation. We identify three controls that may be important for forming contrasting microstructural assemblages: (i) strain magnitude, (ii) the degree of heterogeneity of parent material, and (iii) relative importance of sediment sorting by flowing water in the subglacial environment. Thus till micromorphology is sensitive to multiple factors, which with proper calibration may enhance the existing capability to interpret past subglacial conditions from microstructures. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Moraine development at a small High‐Arctic valley glacier: Rieperbreen, Svalbard - Astrid Lyså; Ida Lønne (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Ice‐cored lateral and frontal moraine complexes, formed at the margin of the small, land‐based Rieperbreen glacier, central Svalbard, have been investigated through field observations and interpretations of aerial photographs (1936, 1961 and 1990). The main focus has been on the stratigraphical and dynamic development of these moraines as well as the disintegration processes. The glacier has been wasting down since the ‘Little Ice Age’ (LIA) maximum, and between 1936 and 1990 the glacier surface was lowered by 50–60 m and the front retreated by approximately 900 m. As the glacier wasted, three moraine ridges developed at the front, mainly as melting out of sediments from debris‐rich foliation and debris‐bands formed when the glacier was polythermal, probably during the LIA maximum. The disintegration of the moraines is dominated by wastage of buried ice, sediment gravity‐flows, meltwater activity and some frost weathering. A transverse glacier profile with a northward sloping surface has developed owing to the higher insolation along the south‐facing ice margin. This asymmetric geometry also strongly affects the supraglacial drainage pattern. Lateral moraines have formed along both sides of the glacier, although the insolation aspect of the glacier has resulted in the development of a moraine 60 m high along its northern margin. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The origin and flux of icebergs released into the Last Glacial Maximum Northern Hemisphere oceans: the impact of ice‐sheet topography - Grant R. Bigg; Martin R. Wadley (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The precipitation fields of a palaeoatmospheric general circulation model are used to derive estimates of the geographical distribution, and flux, of icebergs from the Laurentide, Fennoscandinavian and eastern Siberian ice‐sheets at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The atmospheric model fields from LGM simulations using CLIMAP or Peltier (ICE‐4G) ice orography were studied, to test the sensitivity of the predicted flux. The estimated Northern Hemispheric LGM iceberg flux is 3500–4000 km 3 yr −1 , of which about 60% issued directly into the North Atlantic. The iceberg flux from the St Lawrence area is of similar significance to that issuing from Hudson Strait in all estimates. Both the North Pacific and the Arctic received substantial iceberg fluxes (ca. 700 km 3 yr −1 ), with relatively minor differences occurring between the two ice‐sheet reconstructions. Apparent discrepancies between Arctic deep‐sea core samples of ice‐rafted debris and our estimates of mean glacial iceberg flux may be ascribed to coastal trapping of bergs, the existence of floating ice tongues or a rapid exit of icebergs from the Arctic basin into the Greenland Sea through the Fram Strait. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Chronology of latest Pleistocene lake‐level fluctuations in the pluvial Lake Chewaucan basin, Oregon, USA - Joseph M. Licciardi (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
New accelerator mass spectrometer radiocarbon ages from gastropods in shore deposits within the pluvial Lake Chewaucan basin, combined with stratigraphical and geomorphological evidence, identify an abrupt rise and fall of lake level at ca. 12 14 C ka. The lake‐level high is coeval with lake‐level lows in the well‐dated records of palaeolakes Bonneville and Lahontan, and with a period of relatively wet conditions in the more southerly Owens Lake basin. This spatial pattern of pluvial lake levels in the western USA at 12 14 C ka indicates a variable synoptic response to climate forcing at this time. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Cosmogenic radionuclide dating of glacial landforms in the Lahul Himalaya, northern India: defining the timing of Late Quaternary glaciation - Lewis A. Owen; Lyn Gualtieri; Robert C. Finkel; Marc W. Caffee; Doug I. Benn; Milap C. Sharma (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The timing of glaciation in the Lahul Himalaya of northern India was ascertained using the concentrations of cosmogenic 10 Be and 26 Al from boulders on moraines and drumlins, and from glacially polished bedrock surfaces. Five glacial stages were identified: Sonapani I and II, Kulti, Batal and Chandra. Of these, cosmogenic exposure ages were obtained on samples representative of the Batal and Kulti glacial cycles. Stratigraphical relationships indicate that the Sonapani I and II are younger. No age was obtained for the Chandra glacial advance. Batal Glacial Stage deposits are found throughout the valley, indicating the presence of an extensive valley glacial system. During the Kulti Stage, glaciers advanced ca. 10 km beyond their current positions. Moraines produced during the Batal Stage, ca. 12–15.5 ka, are coeval with the Northern Hemisphere Late‐glacial Interstadial (Bølling/Allerød). Deglaciation of the Batal Glacial Stage was completed by ca. 12 ka and was followed by the Kulti Glacial Stage during the early Holocene, at ca. 10–11.4 ka. On millennial time‐scales, glacier oscillations in the Lahul Himalaya apparently reflect periods of positive mass‐balance coincident with times of increased insolation. During these periods the South Asian summer monsoon strengthened and/or extended its influence further north and west, thereby enhancing high‐altitude summer snowfall. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A Weichselian deglaciation model applied to the Early Permian glaciation in the northeast Karoo Basin, South Africa - Sylvi Haldorsen; Victor Von Brunn; Rodney Maud; Edward D. Truter (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
It generally is assumed that the Early Permian Gondwana deglaciation in South Africa started with a collapse of the marine ice‐sheet. The northeast part of the Karoo Basin became ice‐free as a result of this collapse. The deglaciation here probably took place under temperate glacial conditions. Three glacial phases have been identified. Phase 1: the marine ice retreat of 400 km over the northeast Karoo Basin, which may have been completed over a few thousand years. The glaciers grounded in the shallower areas around the shore of the basin. Phase 2: the smaller, now mainly continental ice‐sheet here re‐stabilised and remained more or less stationary for several tens of thousand years. During this phase, between 50 and 200 m of massive glaciomarine mud with dropstones accumulated in the open, marine basin that became ice‐free during Phase 1. Isostatic uplift, as a response to the first rapid deglaciation phase, can be traced in the inland part of the region. Phase 3: the final deglaciation may have taken 10 to 20 kyr. After this time no new ice sheet was built up over southern Africa. The entire Early Permian deglaciation of the northeast Karoo Basin was completed within thousands rather than millions of years. Phases 1 and 3 had lengths similar to typical Quaternary deglaciations, whereas Phase 2 was a long, stable phase, more similar to a full Quaternary glaciation. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Climatic implications of loess deposits from the Beijing region - Shangfa Xiong; Zhongli Ding; Tungsheng Liu (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Variations in magnetostratigraphy, pedostratigraphy, grain size and magnetic susceptibility of the loess deposits near Beijing have been studied at two sections. The sections are about 400 km east of the main loess deposits in China, have a maximum thickness of 100 m and extend back to 1.1 Ma. The sequence consists of 14 loess–palaeosol couplets (S0‐S14), which correlate well with sequences in the Loess Plateau. Susceptibility records from the sites near Beijing are comparable to the Xifeng, Luochuan and Baoji sections located in the middle part of the Loess Plateau; however, the down‐core variations in the grain size in the Upper Lishi Formation exhibit some differences. The median grain size increases by about 25–30 µm from L4 to L2, with the sandy grains (>63 µm) increasing from 10–20 wt% to 40–50 wt% . This implies that the depositional environment of the dust sources in the Beijing loess section is different in some aspects from the Loess Plateau. The Beijing loess may have had a different dust source than the Loess Plateau. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Subglacial bedform geomorphology of the Irish Ice Sheet reveals major configuration changes during growth and decay - Chris D. Clark; Robert T. Meehan (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Sea‐level change in the Irish Sea since the Last Glacial Maximum: constraints from isostatic modelling - Kurt Lambeck; Anthony P. Purcell (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Models of glacio‐hydroisostatic sea‐level change have been published for the British Isles that are broadly consistent with the observational evidence, as well as with glaciological constraints. It has been argued, however, that the models fail to represent sea‐level change along the Irish Sea margins and in southern Ireland for the post‐deglaciation period. The argument rests on the interpretation of the depositional environment of the elevated ‘Irish Sea Drift’ on both sides of the Irish Sea: whether this is terrestrial or glaciomarine. The isostatic models for the British Isles are consistent with the former interpretation in that sea‐levels on either side of the Irish Sea, south of about the Isle of Man, are not predicted to have risen above present sea‐level at any time since the deglaciation of the Irish Sea. This implies that ice over both the Irish Sea and Ireland was relatively thin (ca. 600–700 m over Ireland). If the glaciomarine interpretation of the elevated Irish Sea Drift is correct, then the maximum ice thickness over central and southern Ireland would have to reach 2000 m, exceeding that over Scotland. Furthermore, for the resulting sea‐level change to be consistent with the Holocene evidence, this thick ice sheet could not have extended to the eastern side of the Irish Sea. Nor could it have been very thick at its northern and western limits. If such an ice model is extreme and incompatible with glaciological observations then the alternative is to accept the interpretation of the Irish Sea Drift as terrestrial in origin. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sedimentary evidence for deforming bed conditions associated with a grounded Irish Sea glacier, southern Ireland - Colm Ó Cofaigh; David J.A. Evans (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Introduction: The glaciation of the Irish Sea basin - Danny McCarroll; Jasper Knight; Kenneth Rijsdijk (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

A critical review of the glaciomarine model for Irish sea deglaciation: evidence from southern Britain, the Celtic shelf and adjacent continental slope - J. D. Scourse; M. F. A. Furze (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
In support of their ‘glaciomarine’ model for the deglaciation of the Irish Sea basin, Eyles and McCabe cited the occurrence of distal glaciomarine mud drapes onshore in the Isles of Scilly and North Devon, and of arctic beach‐face gravels and sands around the shores of the Celtic Sea. Glacial and sea‐level data from the southern part of the Irish Sea in the terminal zone of the ice stream and the adjacent continental slope are reviewed here to test this aspect of the model. The suggestion that the glacial sequences of both the Isles of Scilly and Fremington in North Devon are glaciomarine mud drapes is rejected. An actively calving tidewater margin only occurred early in the deglacial sequence close to the terminal zone in the south‐central Celtic Sea. Relative sea‐levels were lower, and therefore glacio‐isostatic depression less, than envisaged in the glaciomarine model. Geochronological, sedimentological and biostratigraphical data indicate that the raised beach sequences around the shores of the Celtic Sea and English Channel were deposited at, or during regression soon after, interglacial eustatic highstands. Evidence for ice‐rafting at a time of high relative sea‐levels is restricted to a phase(s) earlier than the Late Devensian. These data indicate that the raised beach sequences have no bearing on the style of Irish Sea deglaciation. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A critical review of the glaciomarine model for Irish sea deglaciation: evidence from southern Britain, the Celtic shelf and adjacent continental slope - J. D. Scourse; M. F. A. Furze (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Devensian glacigenic sedimentation and landscape evolution in the Cardigan area of southwest Wales - Michael J. Hambrey; Jeremy R. Davies; Neil F. Glasser; Richard A. Waters; Julian A. Dowdeswell; Philip R. Wilby; David Wilson; James L. Etienne (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The depositional processes associated with late Devensian ice in areas bordering the Irish Sea basin have been the subject of considerable debate. Among the key areas around the Irish Sea, southwest Wales occupies a particularly crucial position because it is here that ice flowing from the north impinged upon the coast orthogonally and encroached inland. Two main hypotheses have emerged concerning deglaciation of the Irish Sea basin. The traditional hypothesis holds that sedimentation was ice‐marginal or subglacial, whereas an alternative hypothesis that emerged in the 1980s argued that sedimentation was glaciomarine. Southwest Wales is well‐placed to contribute to this debate. However, few detailed sedimentological studies, linked to topography, have been made previously in order to reconstruct glacial environments in this area. In this paper, evidence is presented from four boreholes drilled recently in the Cardigan area, combined with data from coastal and inland exposures in the lower Teifi valley and adjacent areas. A complex history of glaciation has emerged: (i) subglacial drainage channel formation in pre‐Devensian time, (ii) deposition of iron‐cemented breccias and conglomerates possibly during the last interglacial (or in the early/mid‐Devensian interstadial), (iii) late Devensian ice advance across the region, during which a glaciolacustrine sequence over 75 m thick accumulated, within a glacial lake known as Llyn Teifi, (iv) a second high‐level glaciolacustrine succession formed near Llandudoch, (v) outside the Teifi valley, ice‐marginal, subglacial and glaciofluvial sediments were also laid down, providing a near‐continuous cover of drift throughout the area. Glacial advance was characterized by reworking, deformation and sometimes erosion of the underlying sediments. The glaciomarine hypothesis is thus rejected for southwest Wales. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Deglaciation of the Irish Sea Basin: a critique of the glaciomarine hypothesis - Danny McCarroll (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The glaciomarine model for deglaciation of the Irish Sea basin suggests that the weight of ice at the last glacial maximum was sufficient to raise relative sea‐levels far above their present height, destabilising the ice margin and causing rapid deglaciation. Glacigenic deposits throughout the basin have been interpreted as glaciomarine. The six main lines of evidence on which the hypothesis rests (sedimentology, deformation structures, delta deposits, marine fauna, amino‐acid ratios and radiocarbon dates) are reviewed critically. The sedimentological interpretation of many sections has been challenged and it is argued that subglacial sediments are common rather than rare and that there is widespread evidence of glaciotectonism. Density‐driven deformation associated with waterlain sediments is rare and occurs where water was ponded locally. Sand and gravel deposits interpreted as Gilbert‐type deltas are similarly the result of local ponding or occur where glaciers from different source areas uncoupled. They do not record past sea‐levels and the ad hoc theory of ‘piano‐key tectonics’ is not required to explain the irregular pattern of altitudes. The cold‐water foraminifers interpreted as in situ are regarded as reworked from Irish Sea sediments that accumulated during much of the late Quaternary, when the basin was cold and shallow with reduced salinities. Amino‐acid age estimates used in support of the glaciomarine model are regarded as unreliable. Radiocarbon dates from distinctive foraminiferal assemblages in northeast Ireland show that glaciomarine sediments do occur above present sea‐level, but they are restricted to low altitudes in the north of the basin and record a rise rather than a fall in sea‐level. It is suggested here that the oldest dates, around 17 000 yr BP, record the first Late Devensian (Weichselian) marine inundation above present sea‐level. This accords with the pattern but not the detail of recent models of sea‐level change. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Glaciomarine deposition around the Irish Sea basin: some problems and solutions - Jasper Knight (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Sedimentary evidence for deforming bed conditions associated with a grounded Irish Sea glacier, southern Ireland - Colm Ó Cofaigh; David J.A. Evans (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Along the south coast of Ireland, a shelly diamict facies, the Irish Sea Till , has been variously ascribed to subglacial deposition by a grounded Irish Sea glacier or to glacimarine sedimentation by suspension settling and iceberg rafting. Observations are presented here from five sites along the south coast to directly address this question. At these sites, sedimentary evidence is preserved for the onshore advance of a grounded Irish Sea glacier, which glacitectonically disturbed and eroded pre‐existing sediments and redeposited them as deformation till. Recession of this Irish Sea glacier resulted in the damming of ice‐marginal lakes in embayments along the south coast, into which glacilacustrine sedimentation then took place. These lake sediments were subsequently glacitectonised and reworked by overriding glacier ice of inland origin, which deposited deformation till on top of the succession. There is no evidence for deposition of the Irish Sea diamicts by glacimarine sedimentation at these sites. The widespread development of subglacial deforming bed conditions reflected the abundance of fine‐grained marine and lacustrine sediments available for subglacial erosion and reworking. Stratigraphical and chronological data suggest that the advance of a grounded Irish Sea glacier along the south coast occurred during the last glaciation, and this is regionally consistent with marine geological data from the Celtic Sea. These observations demonstrate extension of glacier ice far beyond its traditional limits in the Celtic Sea and on‐land in southern Ireland during the last glaciation, and remove the stratigraphical basis for chronological differentiation of surficial glacial drifts, and thus the Munsterian Glaciation, in southern Ireland. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Subglacial bedform geomorphology of the Irish Ice Sheet reveals major configuration changes during growth and decay - Chris D. Clark; Robert T. Meehan (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The belated realisation that ribbed (Rogen) moraines form such an integral part of Irish geomorphology, and the piecemeal approach to previous drumlin mapping, is probably responsible for the highly contrasting views of palaeoflow patterns of the Irish Ice Sheet. Using a high resolution (25 m) digital elevation model we present morphological maps of a large part (100 × 100 km) of the so‐called ‘Drumlin Belt’ of north central Ireland. The landforms comprise mostly ribbed moraine much larger than found elsewhere (up to 16 km in length), which in places are superimposed on each other. Contrary to most prior assessments we find the bedform record to contain numerous and overlapping episodes of bed formation (ribbed moraine, drumlins and crag‐and‐tails) that provide a palimpsest record of changing flow geometries. These demonstrate an ice sheet with a centre of mass and flow geometry that changed during growth and decay. Using distinctive flow patterns and relative age relationships between them we reconstruct ice sheet evolution into four phases during a single glacial cycle. In phase 1 (early in the glacial cycle), Scottish and local ice coalesced to form a northeast‐centred Irish Ice Sheet. As it grew its centre of mass migrated southwards, culminating in a major N–S divide positioned down the east of Ireland (phase 2, ca. Last Glacial Maximum). During retreat, the centre of mass migrated at least 120 km northwards and became established in northwest Ireland and at this point a dramatic bedforming event produced one of the world's largest and most contiguous ribbed moraine fields (phase 3). Final deglaciation is thought to be by fragmentation into many topographically controlled minor ice‐caps (phase 4). Rather than any dramatic or unexpected behaviour, the reconstructed phases indicate a relatively predictable pattern of ice sheet growth and decay with changes in centres of mass, and does not require major readvances or ice‐stream events. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Deglaciation of the Irish Sea Basin: a critique of the glaciomarine hypothesis - Danny McCarroll (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Glaciomarine deposition around the Irish Sea basin: some problems and solutions - Jasper Knight (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Reconstructing the depositional processes and setting (marine or terrestrial depositional environment) of late Devensian age glacigenic sediments around the Irish Sea basin (ISB) is critical for developing an all‐embracing and consistent glacial model that can account for all observed field evidence. Identifying episodes of marine and terrestrial glacial deposition from field data is considered the first step in achieving this goal. Criteria for distinguishing marine and terrestrial glacial environments in the ISB include the geomorphology, sedimentology and faunal content (biofacies) of the associated deposits. Exposures of glacigenic sediments around the ISB are very diverse in terms of their morphosedimentary characteristics and associated biofacies, and thus inferred depositional processes and setting. Possible reasons for the diverse geological record include the differing geometry of eastern and western ISB coasts, time‐transgressive ice retreat, and differential land rebound effects as a result of forebulge collapse and neotectonics. Poor geochronometric control on ice sheet events has not helped the correlation of ISB events with glacial and climatic events elsewhere. Future investigations of glacial sites around the ISB should use an integrated methodological approach involving a range of geomorphological, sedimentary and biofacies data, and dating control where possible. This will help in developing a more precise and holistic late Devensian glacial model that is constrained rigorously by field geological evidence. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sea‐level change in the Irish Sea since the Last Glacial Maximum: constraints from isostatic modelling - Kurt Lambeck; Anthony P. Purcell (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Devensian glacigenic sedimentation and landscape evolution in the Cardigan area of southwest Wales - Michael J. Hambrey; Jeremy R. Davies; Neil F. Glasser; Richard A. Waters; Julian A. Dowdeswell; Philip R. Wilby; David Wilson; James L. Etienne (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Introduction: The glaciation of the Irish Sea basin - Danny McCarroll; Jasper Knight; Kenneth Rijsdijk (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Millennial‐scale variability in the oceans: an ocean modelling view - Grant R. Bigg; Martin R. Wadley (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Climate and ocean‐only models have shown that the ocean will respond abruptly to significant perturbations in surface forcing. Centennial‐scale oscillation is a characteristic of circulation in large semi‐enclosed ocean basins such as the Arctic, whereas millennial‐scale adjustment to changes in surface forcing has been found in the global ocean component of climate models. We show that the millennial time‐scale in climate models is likely to be intrinsic to the ocean through its presence in an ocean‐only model. The strength of the thermohaline circulation is shown to be very sensitive to the magnitude of ice albedo and, to a lesser extent, perturbation in the surface freshwater flux. Modelled glacial ocean circulation, in contrast to present‐day simulations, requires an enhanced freshwater flux over the northern Atlantic, even in its non‐Heinrich state, to obtain realistic overturning in the North Atlantic. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Oxygen isotope and palaeotemperature records from six Greenland ice‐core stations: Camp Century, Dye‐3, GRIP, GISP2, Renland and NorthGRIP - Sigfus J. Johnsen; Dorthe Dahl‐Jensen; Niels Gundestrup; Jørgen P. Steffensen; Henrik B. Clausen; Heinz Miller; Valerie Masson‐Delmotte; Arny E. Sveinbjörnsdottir; James White (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Oxygen isotope variations spanning the last glacial cycle and the Holocene derived from ice‐core records for six sites in Greenland (Camp Century, Dye‐3, GRIP, GISP2, Renland and NorthGRIP) show strong similarities. This suggests that the dominant influence on oxygen isotope variations reflected in the ice‐sheet records was regional climatic change. Differences in detail between the records probably reflect the effects of basal deformation in the ice as well as geographical gradients in atmospheric isotope ratios. Palaeotemperature estimates have been obtained from the records using three approaches: (i) inferences based on the measured relationship between mean annual δ 18 O of snow and of mean annual surface temperature over Greenland; (ii) modelled inversion of the borehole temperature profile constrained either by the dated isotopic profile, or (iii) by using Monte Carlo simulation techniques. The third of these approaches was adopted to reconstruct Holocene temperature variations for the Dye 3 and GRIP temperature profiles, which yields remarkably compatible results. A new record of Holocene isotope variations obtained from the NorthGRIP ice‐core matches the GRIP short‐term isotope record, and also shows similar long‐term trends to the Dye‐3 and GRIP inverted temperature data. The NorthGRIP isotope record reflects: (i) a generally stronger isotopic signal than is found in the GRIP record; (ii) several short‐lived temperature fluctuations during the first 1500 yr of the Holocene; (iii) a marked cold event at ca. 8.2 ka (the ‘8.2 ka event’); (iv) optimum temperatures for the Holocene between ca. 8.6 and 4.3 ka, a signal that is 0.6‰ stronger than for the GRIP profile; (v) a clear signal for the Little Ice Age; and (vi) a clear signal of climate warming during the last century. These data suggest that the NorthGRIP stable isotope record responded in a sensitive manner to temperature fluctuations during the Holocene. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Evidence for Holocene climate variability from the sediments of a Scottish remote mountain lake - Richard W. Battarbee; Nigel G. Cameron; Paul Golding; Stephen J. Brooks; Roy Switsur; Doug Harkness; Peter Appleby; Frank Oldfield; Roy Thompson; Don T. Monteith; Andrew McGovern (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
High resolution sampling of sediment cores covering approximately the last 4000 yr from Lochan Uaine, a small corrie loch in the Scottish Cairngorm Mountains, show quasi‐periodic cycles in organic matter (measured as percentage loss on ignition). Analysis of these cycles show correspondences between loss on ignition, δ 13 C values and chironomid head capsule abundance. We interpret the changes as reflecting changes in lake productivity and hypothesise that they are driven by climate variability. However, it is not yet clear whether the periods of relatively high organic matter production and preservation are associated with colder or with warmer conditions. Nevertheless the results indicate the value of using sediments from remote, undisturbed mountain lakes as recorders of Holocene climate variability. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

How sensitive are river systems to climate and land‐use changes? A model‐based evaluation - T. J. Coulthard; M. G. Macklin (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Simulated Holocene sediment discharges from a high‐resolution cellular model of river evolution in northern England, driven by a peat‐bog proxy climate and palynological based land‐cover record, show a very close similarity to alluviation phases evident in British river valleys. Independent validation of the model indicates that British river systems have been surprisingly sensitive to short term (ca. 10 2 yr) climate fluctuations, although river dynamics also have been modulated by land‐use change and sediment supply. This has important implications for understanding alluvial system evolution, establishing controlling factors and, most importantly, forecasting river response to future climate and land‐use changes. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Editorial - Jane K. Hart; Keith Barber; Tony Payne; Paul Hughes; John Lowe (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Late Quaternary glaciation in Southern Africa: moraine ridges and glacial deposits at Mount Enterprise in the Drakensberg of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa - Colin A. Lewis; Peter M. Illgner (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Late Quaternary moraines and diamictons containing striated clasts are described from near Elliot in the Drakensberg of South Africa. An equilibrium line altitude (ELA) of 2109 m is suggested for the palaeoglacier associated with the innermost moraine. This glacier was fed by a very extensive snowblow area and the ELA may reflect the temperature–precipitation–wind ELA rather than the temperature–precipitation ELA and be considerably below the ‘regional’ ELA. Mean annual air temperatures when glaciation occurred were probably at least 10.0°C below those of the present. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Mid‐ and late‐Holocene climatic changes: a test of periodicity and solar forcing in proxy‐climate data from blanket peat bogs - Frank M. Chambers; Jeffrey J. Blackford (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
A wide range of palaeoenvironmental evidence from the Holocene has suggested periodicities in the Earth's climate of 10s to 1000s of years. Identifying these millennial‐, century‐ and decadal periodicities, and their impacts, is critical in developing a fuller understanding of natural climate variability. Any solar‐induced climatic change needs to be distinguished from other causes of natural climate variability and from short‐term catastrophic events induced either by external or internal processes. Such events might themselves generate a periodicity, or in combination with other forcing factors they may contribute towards a periodicity (and so spuriously imply a universal and continuing periodicity in the climate record), or they may resonate with a solar‐induced periodicity. Here, evidence from peat records for periodicity in climate change over the mid to late Holocene is reviewed and this is followed by a test of the replicability of claimed periodicities using blanket peat data covering the past 2000 yr from four sites in the British Isles. Results suggest that the mires studied do go through phases of being responsive to periodic forcing factors, with ca. 200, ca. 80 and 60–50 yr wavelengths reflected in some data sets. However, the patterns shown are not consistent. This could be the result of local conditions at individual mires (human impact, sensitivity and vegetation succession) or of changes in the strength or nature of global forcing factors. Assessing a solar–mire link remains difficult because the century‐scale variations of the Sun show different intervals between solar minima, the durations of which are themselves unequal, and because the proxy‐climate data‐sets from peat profiles may themselves not be dated with sufficient precision and/or accuracy. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Buried palaeosols of the Nevado de Toluca: an alternative record of Late Quaternary environmental change in central Mexico - Sergey Sedov; Elizabeth Solleiro‐Rebolledo; Jorge E. Gama‐Castro; Ernestina Vallejo‐Gómez; Arelia González‐Velázquez (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
Buried palaeosols of central Mexico, not previously analysed from a palaeopedological standpoint, have helped to develop a reliable regional model of Late Quaternary climatic change. This paper focuses upon morphological and micromorphological properties, particle‐size distribution, and extractable Fe, Al and Si of seven palaeosols (named PT1–PT7) in the vicinity of the Nevado de Toluca volcano. The characteristics of Andic Cambisol PT1, similar to those of modern soils in semi‐arid environments, indicate a drier climate in the first half of the Holocene. Humic Andosols PT2–PT4 are analogous to modern volcanic soils of humid forest environments. They show evidence that a moist palaeoclimate prevailed during marine oxygen isotope stages (OIS) 2 and 3. Luvisols PT5 and PT6, which are assumed to have formed at the end of marine OIS 5 to marine OIS 4, also indicate humid conditions. We attribute the differences between Andosols PT2–PT4 and Luvisols PT5–PT7 to variations in the duration in the pedogenesis rather than to changes in palaeoclimate. Micromorphological features of Andosol to Luvisol transition confirm that these soils form an evolutionary sequence. Being for the most part consistent with lacustrine records, the palaeosol properties do not reflect the episodes of ‘drier climate’ during the Last Glacial Maximum, however, as shown by diatom and palynological data from lake sediments. Mesoclimate variations and/or incompleteness of ‘soil memory’, reflecting mostly periods of humid pedogenesis, probably provide the reason for this disagreement. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sea‐surface conditions in northernmost Baffin Bay during the Holocene: palynological evidence - Elisabeth Levac; Anne De Vernal; Weston Blake Jr (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The analysis of cores collected in northernmost Baffin Bay, from within the area of the North Water Polynya, permits definition of a composite sedimentary sequence ca. 12 m thick spanning the last 10 000 14 C yr, with only a few discontinuities. Palynological analyses were performed in order to reconstruct changes in surface water conditions and biogenic production. Transfer functions, using dinocyst assemblages, were applied to estimate sea‐surface temperature (SST) and salinity, as well as the seasonal duration of sea ice cover. At the base of the record, prior to 9300 14 C yr BP, dinocysts and organic linings of benthic foraminifers are sparse, indicating harsh conditions and low productivity. After ca. 9300 14 C yr BP, the increased concentration of benthic foraminifers (up to 10 3 linings cm −3 ) and dinocyst fluxes (10 2 –10 3 cysts cm −2 yr −1 ) reveals high biological productivity related to open‐water conditions. The early to middle Holocene, from ca. 9000 to ca. 3600 14 C yr BP, is marked by relatively high species diversity in dinocyst assemblages and the significant occurrence of autotrophic taxa such as Spiniferites elongatus , Pentapharsodinium dalei and Impagidinium pallidum . This assemblage suggests conditions at least as warm as at present. From ca. 6400 to ca. 3600 14 C yr BP, transfer functions indicate warmer conditions than at present, with SST in August fluctuating up to 5.5°C. After 3600 14 C yr BP, the dinocyst record suggests a trend of decreasing temperature toward modern values, marked by recurrent cooling events. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Atlantic ocean heat piracy and the bipolar climate see‐saw during Heinrich and Dansgaard–Oeschger events - Dan Seidov; Mark Maslin (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
The millennial‐scale asynchrony of Antarctic and Greenland climate records during the last glacial period implies that the global climate system acts as a bipolar see‐saw driven by either high‐latitudinal and/or near‐equatorial sea‐surface perturbations. Based on the results of recent modelling of generic Heinrich and Dansgaard–Oeschger scenarios, we discuss the possibility that oscillations of the deep‐ocean conveyor may have been sufficient to cause this bipolar see‐saw. The bipolar climate asynchrony in our scenarios is caused by the toggle between North Atlantic heat piracy and South Atlantic counter heat piracy. Ocean circulation has an enhanced sensitivity to the northern deep‐water source as the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) cannot enter the Southern Ocean at depths shallower than the bottom of the Drake Passage. Any shoaling of the NADW can, therefore, increase the northward incursion of Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), and trigger an interhemispheric climate oscillation. As hundreds of years are required to warm the respective high latitudes, the observed climate lead and lags between the two hemispheres can be explained entirely by the variability of the meridional overturning and by the corresponding change in the oceanic heat transport. Accordingly, it is entirely feasible for the global climate to work like a pendulum, which theoretically could be controlled by pushing at either of the deep‐water sources. Our model scenarios suggest that it is entirely feasible for the bipolar climate see‐saw to be controlled solely by variations in NADW formation. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Comment: climatic inferences from glacial and palaeoecological evidence at the last glacial termination, southern South America. R.D. McCulloch, M.J. Bentley, R.S. Purves, N.R.J. Hulton, D.E. Sugden and C.M. Clapperton (2000) (Journal of Quaternary Science, 15, 409–417) - G. Wenzens (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Reply: climatic inferences from glacial and palaeoecological evidence at the last glacial termination, southern South America - R.D. McCulloch; D.E. Sugden (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Environmental change in the Pacific Basin. P.D. Nunn. Publisher Wiley, Chichester 1999 (357 pp) £95 ISBN 0‐471‐94945‐0 - Chris R. Fielding (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)

Palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic implications of the Late‐Quaternary sediment record of Vico volcanic lake (central Italy) - Biancamaria Narcisi (Journal of Quaternary Science, 2001)
A 15‐m‐long sediment core recovered from the Lago di Vico caldera lake in central Italy has been the subject of macrofacies description and sedimentological (organic carbon content, grain size and mineralogy) investigation. The results have been integrated with the pollen data from the same core in order to provide a regional climatic and environmental history, with inferences on past lake levels and on moisture and temperature regimes. Radiometric ( 14 C and 40 Ar/ 39 Ar) dating, biostratigraphical considerations and tephra analyses provide a chronological framework and indicate that the sequence spans the last 90 000 yr. Several moist periods have been identified that were characterised by enhanced weathering by hydrolysis of the catchment rocks. These alternated with relatively dry phases associated with lowering of lake‐levels. The lowest hydrolysis efficiency of the whole record, accompanied by notable aeolian deposition, was attained during the last glacial phase but moisture conditions were such that the lake‐level did not decrease, probably owing to reduced temperatures. Evidence for cool climate also emerges for the early Pleniglacial. The highest available moisture was achieved within the Holocene at 5 kyr BP. The Late Holocene does not show either increase of aridity or degradation of the vegetation cover, until at least Roman times. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.