Journal of Quaternary Science最新文献

The Last Interglacial (LIG) or Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e, spanning 129 to 116 kyrs ago, is recognised as one of the warmest periods in the Quaternary, with global sea surface temperatures (SSTs) 1°C–2°C higher than today, sea levels 5–10 m above the current level and biogeographical range expansion of specific tropical species into the Mediterranean. We present new stratigraphic, palaeoecological and palaeobiogeographic data from the uplifted marine terraces of Kastellos Bay, Karpathos (Aegean Sea, Greece). Detailed sedimentological analysis reveals that the so-called “Tyrrhenian” terrace comprises multiple depositional cycles, with only the uppermost bed attributable to MIS 5e. From this unit, we document 64 molluscan taxa, including members of the “Senegalese fauna” and several species not previously reported from Greek LIG deposits. Ecological affinities of the assemblage indicate a heterogeneous infralittoral environment with mean annual SSTs of around 20°C, consistent with other Mediterranean records. By revising and integrating Greek species lists into a Mediterranean–Atlantic framework, we demonstrate that the Aegean Ecoregion forms a key link between eastern and western Mediterranean faunas and shares affinities with the Saharan Upwelling region. These results refine the palaeobiogeographic interpretation of tropical species dispersal into the Mediterranean and highlight the need for robust chronological calibrations of Greek LIG sites to improve reconstructions of faunal dynamics under warm climate scenarios.

Only one last interglacial relative sea-level indicator point (SLIP) has been recognised for Fenland, eastern England, and the nearest penultimate interglacial SLIP is located on the north Norfolk coast. Such limited information restricts the regional input to, and hence the relevance of, global reconstructions of late Middle and Late Pleistocene sea level. Marine-influenced deposits without such relevant data are known in Fenland, but their age and connection to past relative sea level (RSL) were largely uncertain. To improve this situation, new age-estimate data are presented and assessed in combination with existing age-estimate and new and existing palaeoecological data. Sea level relative to the marine-influenced deposits of Fenland is approximated based on brackish-marine faunal analyses. Results distinguish between marine-influenced deposits of penultimate and last interglacial sites. Fenland marine-influenced deposits of both interglacial stages share similar altitudinal envelopes (between a few metres above and below present ordnance datum (OD)), in common with Kirmington to the north and those of the British south coast, the Channel Islands and northwest France. Peak Fenland minimum RSL approximation (RSLA) of 2.5 m OD in the penultimate interglacial is commensurate with the north Norfolk coast SLIP but contrasts with the below OD peak of the global record. Timing of the peak Fenland maximum RSLA of 3.75 m OD late in the last interglacial at 116 ± 16 ka is commensurate with the Dutch record (116–105 ka), but contrasts with the early peak of some global records.

The southwestern Cape of South Africa experiences a complex and dynamic climate, shaped by the interplay between the temperate Southern Hemisphere westerly winds and the subtropical easterlies. Despite the climatic sensitivity of the region, relatively few studies have examined how conditions have varied since the last deglaciation in response to significant changes in global boundary conditions. Here, we present a 30 000-year sedimentary record from a coastal wetland at Pearly Beach on the southern Cape coast, focusing on climatic changes that occurred during the last glacial–interglacial transition. Downcore variations in grain size and inorganic geochemical composition provide evidence for a period of heightened storm activity between ~18.5 and 14.0 cal ka BP, which we interpret to reflect intensified westerly wind-driven activity. This period of increased storminess coincides with a slowdown in Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) during Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1: ∼18–14.6 ka) and subsequent warming in the southeast Atlantic Ocean. We propose that this warming enhances moisture uptake by westerly frontal systems, leading to stronger storms in the southern Cape. The intensification of westerly-driven storms occurred concurrently with a broader cooling trend across South Africa, suggesting that AMOC variability during HS1 may have influenced climate across much of the region.

The sediment signature of glacial erosion products exported from Hudson Strait to the Labrador Sea during Hudson Strait Heinrich (HS-H) events is evaluated using four distinct proxies: paired δ¹⁸Ο and δ¹³C data on the carbonate fraction, εNd and U–Pb isotopes in the silicate fraction, the mineral composition of the <2 mm bulk sediment fraction, and the lithologic composition of the >2 mm granules. Most detrital carbonate was eroded from Ordovician limestones on the floor of Hudson Strait. Silicate components were derived largely from Paleoproterozoic metamorphic and igneous bedrock, mostly on southern Baffin Island. A five-component sediment unmixing model shows that HS-H sediments were predominantly from Hudson Strait, whereas intervening sediment in the SW Labrador Sea has a predominant signature from Labrador but includes some detrital carbonate. Carbonate derived from the Western Basin and red sandstone granules from Keewatin are most abundant in the early part of HS-H 1, 2, and 4. Sediment budgets imply 10–15 m deepening of Hudson Strait over the last glacial cycle. The magnitude and longevity of detrital carbonate transport by icebergs during HS-H events require the inmixing of debris throughout the entire ice stream as it crossed the Abloviak sill.

Submarine landslides can generate tsunamis and pose risks to underwater infrastructure, but a lack of direct observations of such slides hinders our understanding of their development and hazard potential. Studying the morphology of past slides can offer insights into their preconditioning and failure. Here, new high-quality 2D and 3D seismic data were used to determine, for the first time, the extent and morphology of the Stad Slide (~0.4 Ma) on the northeast Atlantic margin. With a volume of ~4300 km³ and a maximum thickness of ~360 m, we reveal that this slide is the largest by volume on the proximal North Sea Fan and amongst the largest known megaslides globally. Its large volume was likely facilitated by retrogressive development along layers of glacimarine and contouritic sediment. The broad timing of the Stad Slide aligns with enhanced glacial sedimentation in this region, which is likely to have preconditioned failure by increasing overpressure in underlying sediments. The slide headwalls are infilled by an ~200 m-thick contourite drift that may have formed the weak layer for subsequent sliding on the North Sea Fan.

How fast is Planet Earth being eroded? How much of this erosion is “natural”, and how much has it accelerated due to human action? More than a century ago, Sherlock (1922) claimed that the amount of sediment moved by humankind exceeded that of any other geomorphic agent. But was he right? The question has been much debated in the years since then (Hooke, 2000; Syvitski et al., 2005; Wilkinson, 2005; Giosan et al., 2017). Alongside numerical modelling, two principal empirical approaches have been adopted in attempts to answer this question. The first involves the measurement of contemporary rates of sediment flux (i.e., sediment transport) via different agencies. Flux of sediment reflects landscape stability and instability, whether of climatic, tectonic or human origin, or some combination. Transporting agencies include glacier ice and the wind (mainly aeolian dust), but globally, the dominant means of sediment movement from land to sea is via rivers, as suspended or dissolved load (Gibbs, 1970; Douglas, 1990; Milliman,1990). Studies have ranged in spatial scale from measurement of experimental soil erosion plots under different land cover types (e.g., Rapp, 1975), through small catchment monitoring (Boardman et al., 1990), to analysis of sediment discharge from major river basins like the Yangtse and Ganges (Walling and Webb, 1983; Summerfield and Hulton, 1994). The alternative approach is historical, commonly involving the examination of sedimentary “archives” in lakes, river valleys and estuaries to establish longer-term rates of change. The papers in this joint virtual special issue (VSI) of Geoarchaeology and Journal of Quaternary Science adopt this second strategy via a series of empirical-historical case studies that cover a range of different environments and timescales (Table 1). It is an approach based on the assumption that at some point in the past, human impact on erosion rates was minimal relative to natural agencies, and that this provides a baseline for assessing any subsequent increase of anthropogenic causation. In regions such as Europe and South Asia, this baseline is believed to date to mid-Holocene times, whereas it continued into the late Holocene in areas such as temperate North America (van Vliet-Lanoë et al., 1992; Dearing and Jones, 2003; Hoffmann et al., 2010).

While a shared theme underpins this joint special issue, that of soil erosion, and the study of the complex interplay between climate and anthropogenic mechanisms, the allocation or “badging” of articles as either Geoarchaeology or Journal of Quaternary Science was based on the extent to which colleagues explicitly engaged with archaeological phenomena in their studies. For example, van Zon et al.'s (2025) assessment of the role of Roman road

The Holocene history of Australia's climate is surprisingly poorly understood. This is, in part, because of the relatively weak forcing of Holocene climate versus that of the late Pleistocene. However, it is commonly suggested that eastern Australia dried during the mid- to late-Holocene and that this was in response to increased activity in the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), in particular, the intensification of the El Niño phase of ENSO. While this has been inferred from numerous locations, data from K'gari (a subtropical sand island adjacent to the east coast) was amongst the first used to develop this hypothesis and features heavily in the discussion of ENSO intensification. This study examines published and new data from three ≥4.5 m deep K'gari lakes that demonstrate a strong drying event during the middle Holocene (from 7640 to 5600 cal a BP), followed by a wetter late Holocene climate. This contrasts somewhat with previous arguments about K'gari's history that suggest a late Holocene drying. In turn, this indicates a need to re-evaluate the notion that ENSO intensification drove late-Holocene drying in the region. It also indicates that even large, deep lakes on K'gari, which are iconic landmarks with substantial cultural, ecological and economic values, are vulnerable to drying.