Deposition of modern pollen and plant macroremains in a hypersaline prairie lake basin

1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (5) ◽  
pp. 539-548 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. E. Vance ◽  
R. W. Mathewes
Keyword(s):  
Great Plains ◽  
Saline Lakes ◽  
Lake Level ◽  
Lacustrine Sediments ◽  
Northern Great Plains ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Plant Macroremains ◽  
Modern Pollen ◽  
Near Shore

Comparisons between current vegetation patterns and deposition of modern pollen and plant macroremains in a saline lake basin on the northern Great Plains are used to assess the value of plant remains as indicators of past local vegetation dynamics and lake-level changes. Results indicate that both modern pollen spectra and assemblages of plant macroremains reflect clearly the composition of the local vegetation, whereas plant macroremains best reflect lake size. Cactaceae pollen and seeds are confined to upland prairie deposits. Liguliflorae (Compositae) and Leguminosae pollen, Selaginella densa microspores, and Euphorbia and Cruciferae seeds are more abundant in prairie upland deposits than in shoreline or lacustrine environments. An abundance (> 50%) of Ruppia pollen distinguishes near-shore lake sediments, indicating that this taxon is a useful marker of shallow shoreline environments in saline lakes. Seeds of Chenopodiaceae, Erigeron, Cruciferae, and Cyperaceae, as well as Chara oogonia, are more abundant in near-shore lacustrine sediments than in the central lake area, suggesting that they too are indicators of shoreline proximity. These data are useful for paleobotanical reconstructions of past lake-level dynamics. Key words: saline lakes, Great Plains, pollen, paleobotany, paleohydrology, environmental reconstruction.

scholarly journals Phytoplankton productivity across prairie saline lakes of the Great Plains (USA): a step toward deciphering patterns through lake classification models

2009 ◽  
Vol 66 (9) ◽  
pp. 1435-1448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Courtney R. Salm ◽  
Jasmine E. Saros ◽  
Sherilyn C. Fritz ◽  
Christopher L. Osburn ◽  
David M. Reineke
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Nutrient Limitation ◽  
Great Plains ◽  
Saline Lakes ◽  
Information Criterion ◽  
The United States ◽  
Northern Great Plains ◽  
Classification Models ◽  
Phytoplankton Productivity ◽  
P Limitation

We investigated patterns of primary production across prairie saline lakes in the central and northern Great Plains of the United States. Based on comparative lake sampling in 2004, seasonal predictors of algal primary productivity were identified within subsets of similar lakes using a combination of Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) and classification and regression trees (CART). These models indicated complex patterns of nutrient limitation by nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and iron (Fe) within different lake groups. Nutrient enrichment assays (control, + Fe, + N, + P, + N + P) were performed in spring and summer of 2006 to determine if phytoplankton in selected lakes followed predicted patterns of nutrient limitation. Both the comparative lake sampling and experimental results indicated that N limitation was widespread in these prairie lakes, with evidence for secondary P limitation in certain lakes. In the experiments, iron did not stimulate primary production. Our results suggest that given the diverse geochemical nature of these lakes, classification models that separate saline lakes into subsets may be an effective method for improving predictions of algal production.

scholarly journals Optical Stimulation Luminescence Dating of Deltas Revealed the Early to Mid-Holocene Lake-level Fluctuations of Daihai, Inner Mongolia, Northern China

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shixin Huang ◽  
Xi Chun
Keyword(s):  
Lake Level ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Asian Summer Monsoon ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Lacustrine Sediments ◽  
Northern China ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Monsoon Precipitation ◽  
Lake Level Fluctuations

Lake-level reconstruction of inland enclosed lakes especially for monsoon-sensitive areas is of great significance to reveal regional climate changes. Daihai, a typical enclosed lake at the marginal of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) area in north China, is sensitive to climate changes due to its unique regional characteristics. There were a series of lakeshore terraces, highstand lacustrine sediments, and braided river deltas, providing sufficient geomorphologic and stratigraphic evidence for the reconstruction of lake-level fluctuations of Daihai. Reconstructed lake-level variations during the early and mid-Holocene were constructed based on 22 quartz optical stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages from six well-preserved profiles around Daihai Basin. Our results indicated Daihai showed a relatively low level at 10.2 ka, and a gradually increasing lake level following the enhanced monsoon precipitation during the mid-Holocene. Specifically, the high lake level began to develop at 8.1 ka and reached the maximum at 5.2 ka, with ∼40 m higher than present. At this time, the lake area expanded to ∼400 km2, approximately six times as large as that of present, corresponding to the maximum monsoon precipitation and intensity of EASM during the mid-Holocene. However, our stratigraphic records showed a part of the depositional records in the north and east of the Daihai was missed after 5.2 ka, probably indicating a sudden drop of the Daihai lake level. These rapid level fluctuations were likely to be interpreted by some local scenarios and need to be further investigated in the future. Overall, the lake-level fluctuation of Daihai during the early and mid-Holocene was slightly different from that observed in the previously published regional records. Possibly, the interaction of the EASM and regional feedback from topography, and hydrology factors might have contributed to the spatial complexity and distinction.

scholarly journals American White Pelicans and Recreational Boaters on Lakes of the North American Great Plains: Habitat Use Overlap

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn A. Gaudet ◽  
Christopher M. Somers
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Great Plains ◽  
The Other ◽  
Northern Great Plains ◽  
Economic Prosperity ◽  
Shoreline Development ◽  
Point Count ◽  
The North ◽  
Pelecanus Erythrorhynchos ◽  
Near Shore

Shoreline development and boating on lakes of the northern Great Plains of North America have increased due to recent economic prosperity. Few studies have examined the general characteristics of habitats used by foraging waterbirds and boats to determine levels of overlap. To address this issue, we conducted point count surveys of American White Pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) and boats on two important recreational lakes in southern Saskatchewan, Canada. The majority of pelicans and boats detected used near-shore areas of the lakes, identifying the importance of shallow water habitats and providing evidence of significant overlap. The location of pelicans relative to the shore did not change in the presence of boats, and there was no significant relationship between boat numbers and pelican numbers. These analyses suggest that pelicans did not make major changes to their habitat use on the lakes as a result of boating activity. When pelicans and boats were present simultaneously at point count locations, pelicans appeared to avoid boats on one lake, but showed no detectable avoidance behavior on the other lake. The importance of interactions between recreational boating and foraging pelicans is currently unclear. Set-back distances to protect foraging pelicans from boating activity do not appear necessary based on our analyses.

scholarly journals The quick death of a lake: human impact on Lake Tresssee (N Germany) during the last 6000 years – an approach using pollen, Cladocera and sedimentology

2020 ◽  
pp. 156-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Stolz ◽  
Irena A. Pidek ◽  
Magdalena Suchora
Keyword(s):  
Lake Level ◽  
Human Impacts ◽  
Climate Impacts ◽  
Water Level Fluctuations ◽  
Absolute Maximum ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Early Medieval ◽  
Migration Period ◽  
Pollen Diagram

Human-induced fluctuation of lake levels has been a common phenomenon in Europe since Neolithic times. At present, Lake Tresssee is a eutrophic lake covering less than 5 ha in northern Germany, but its sudden shrinking from ~125 ha before 1800 is considered a consequence of anthropogenic lowering of the lake level. We investigated the history of anthropogenic vegetation changes and water level fluctuations by multiproxy studies of a 4 m core from the former lake area. Our analyses of pollen and Cladocera subfossil, chemistry and sedimentological features yielded important conclusions about interactions between land-use history and climate impacts on the lake and its surroundings. The results indicate that the highest lake level persisted until the Late Atlantic. Since the Subboreal there have been several fluctuations, mostly in consequence of climate impacts. Later, different phases of sediment input to the lake from tributary streams and probably also from aeolian processes from an adjacent dune field were observed. At ~2800 BC the sedimentation rate decreased in consequence of fluvial impacts, as the lake basin was nearly filled up with deposits. As a result of greater human impacts, from the Early Bronze Age the macrophyte zone expanded in the lake, the oxygen content of the water continuously decreased, and heathlands developed in the surroundings. From the Late Iron Age and in the Early Medieval, pollutants probably from ironworks are detectable by geochemical analyses in the corresponding segments. In the pollen diagram the Migration Period is clearly visible, but the suggested radiocarbon date is younger than in Lake Belau in the neighboring region of Schleswig-Holstein. Most probably our pollen diagram did not register the absolute maximum values of Fagus related to the Migration Period. From the Early Medieval a clear phase of resettlement occurs. Since the Early Modern period, the lake level has shrunk rapidly in consequence of historically documented human activity.

scholarly journals Patterns of seasonal phytoplankton distribution in prairie saline lakes of the northern Great Plains (U.S.A.)

2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Courtney R Salm ◽  
Jasmine E Saros ◽  
Callie S Martin ◽  
Jarvis M Erickson
Keyword(s):  
Great Plains ◽  
Saline Lakes ◽  
Northern Great Plains ◽  
Phytoplankton Distribution

scholarly journals Optical dating of sediments from manas lake in northwestern china: Paleoenvironmental and neotectonic implications

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-187
Author(s):  
Yuen-Yeung Tse ◽  
Sheng-Hua Li
Keyword(s):  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Sedimentary Environments ◽  
Sedimentary Records ◽  
The Past ◽  
Age Gap ◽  
Optically Stimulated Luminescence Dating ◽  
Near Shore ◽  
Closed Lake

Abstract Manas Lake is a closed lake basin in northern Xinjiang Province of China, with its current lake bed at 244 m a.s.l. Sediments from the lake area provide valuable information about the paleoenvironmental changes in the Westerlies-dominated arid region. To obtain a chronological constraint on the past changes, optically stimulated luminescence dating was conducted on sediments from the lake beaches. The results show that lacustrine episodes dated at ~80–73 ka ago were recorded in northwestern side of the lake at 270 m a.s.l., while paleoshoreline to near-shore environments during ~80–90 ka ago were recorded in the opposite side of the lake at 262 m a.s.l. The ~80 ka old sedimentary layers are overlain by paleoshoreline sediments formed within the last ~1 ka, separated by a large age gap. From this study and the results from previous studies, it is concluded that breaks in sedimentary records are common in the lake area at elevation > 260 m a.s.l. When comparing sedimentary environments at different times from different sites in this study and previous studies, it is suggested that a small amount of uplift of the northwestern side of Manas Lake relative to the southeastern side may have occurred in the last 80 ka.

scholarly journals Paleohydrology, Sedimentology, and Geochemistry of Two Meromictic Saline Lakes in Southern Saskatchewan

2007 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
William M. Last ◽  
Laurie A. Slezak
Keyword(s):  
Great Plains ◽  
Saline Lakes ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Northern Great Plains ◽  
Climatic Fluctuations ◽  
South Central ◽  
Basin Morphology ◽  
Organic Productivity ◽  
Inorganic Carbonate

ABSTRACT The Northern Great Plains of western Canada contain numerous saline and hypersaline lakes. Most of these lakes are shallow (< 3 m) and exhibit playa characteristics. Some, however, are relatively deep, permanent water bodies. The sediment records of these deep perennial saline lakes offer an excellent opportunity to evaluate key paleohydrologic and hydrochemical parameters. Variations in these parameters may, in turn, be interpreted with respect to climatic fluctuations in the region. Waldsea and Deadmoose lakes, located in south-central Saskatchewan, are both presently meromictic, with saline Mg-Na-SO4-CI waters overlying denser hypersaline brines of similar composition. The modern sediments of the lakes consist of a mixture of organic matter, finegrained detrital elastics (mainly clay minerals, carbonate minerals, quartz, and feldspars), and finely crystalline endogenic/authigenic precipitates (aragonite, gypsum, calcite, pyrite, and mirabilite). Variations in mineralogy and chemistry of sediment cores from the morphologically simple Waldsea basin show that the lake was much shallower and more saline about 4000 years ago. Although water levels have since generally increased in the basin giving rise to higher organic productivity and greater inorganic carbonate precipitation, there is also evidence of several hydrologie reversals during the last 2000 years. The stratigraphy preserved in nearby Deadmoose Lake is much more complex because of the irregular basin morphology. Lower water levels about 1000 years ago created several isolated but still relatively deep lakes in the Deadmoose basin.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document