Late Glacial Atmospheric Radiocarbon Variations Recorded in Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) Wood from KwiatkÓw, Central Poland

ABSTRACTOur project aimed to construct a Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) chronology for part of the Late Glacial and reconstruct changes in the 14C concentrations during this period. Kwiatków (Kolska Basin, central Poland) proved to be very prospective site, in which wood from the end of Allerød was recognized. A level of organic deposits with so-called fossil forest was encountered within the late-Vistulian terrace of the low valley of the Warta river. Dendrochronological analysis of over 267 samples complying to the requirements of the method allowed, at the present stage of the research, to construct a chronology spanning 265 yr. Fifty-two samples (5 consecutive rings each) were subjected to α-cellulose extraction and 14C measurements. Ninety-six results and the wiggle-matching technique anchor the chronology to the period 13,821–13,561 cal BP (Acomb=141.6%) according to the D_Sequence procedure and the IntCal13 calibration curve or to 13,800–13,540 cal BP according to the wiggle-matching technique using the χ2 test and raw data, i.e. the Heidelberg tree-ring sequence.

Quaternary stratigraphy and palaeogeography of Poland

Though the stratigraphical and palaeogeographical framework of the Quaternary in Poland is still to be completed, several crucial points have been confirmed recently. The preglacial series, accepted for years as belonging to the Lower Pleistocene, is undoubtedly of Early Pliocene age, with a huge hiatus above almost until the uppermost Lower Pleistocene. The earliest glaciation in Poland (Nidanian) occurred at about 900 ka BP when the ice sheet reached the mid-southern part of the country. The following Podlasian Interglacial embraced the Brunhes/Matuyama boundary in the middle, in a similar fashion to the corresponding Cromerian Complex in Western Europe. The late Early and early Middle Pleistocene interglacials in Poland comprised 2–3 optima each, whereas every one of the younger interglacials was characterised by a single optimum only. The Late Vistulian ice sheet was most extensive in the western part of Poland (Leszno Phase) whereas the younger Poznań Phase was more extensive in the central and eastern part of the country. This was due to the varied distance from the glaciation center in Scandinavia, making the ice sheet margin reach a terminal position in different times. Palaeoclimatological research in the Tatra Mountains has provided new evidence for the atmospheric circulation over Europe. During cold phases of the Pleistocene in Poland a continental climate extended further westwards, quite the opposite that occurring during warmer intervals.

Palynology and Archaeology of Late Vistulian and Early Holocene Sites in Lubuskie Lake District, Western Poland

The Lubuskie Lake District played an important part in recolonisation of the Polish Plain due to its location and the character of the terrain. Despite that, it is and especially its northern part, poorly explored regarding both history of Late Glacial and early Holocene settlements, and the natural environment. The paper presents results of multidisciplinary research in this area. The most spectacular discoveries were connected with remains of settlements of the Hamburgian culture societies at Myszęcin - currently the richest site of this culture over the entire North European Plain. In the vicinity of this site several Late Palaeolithic and Mesolithic settlements of varied functions were recorded. First palynological records came from the Younger Dryas sediments in this area. In a log with a palynological spectrum comprising Younger Dryas and the beginning of the Holocene, a charcoal dust was found and it could indicate human activity as humans lived at a lake shore. An important complement to the image of the Late Glacial settlement at the Lubuskie Lake District was provided by the research near Lubrza that resulted in data regarding settlements of the Federmesser and Świderian culture societies. This region was not typical in a palynological spectrum of deposits during Allerød but also indicated highly diversified thickness of basal peat in a small area.

The Glacial History of the Svalberd Archipelago from Late Vistulian to the Present Time / Historia zlodowacenia archipelagu Svalbard od późnego vistulianu do współczesności

The glacial history of the Svalbard archipelago is often a hot topic for researches, but the articles usually refer to a particular piece of Svalbard. The authors of this work studied many scientific articles based on the researches to find and collect this history. Svalbard archipelago is located in the Arctic, at the edge of the continental shelf of Europe. The end of shelf boundary noted occurrence of ice caps in the past glaciations. In turn, the main elements of the landscape of the archipelago are glaciers that are currently in a recession. Spitsbergen (the biggest island of the archipelago) sets the limit of Pleistocene glaciations, and the current state of glaciers allows determining the place where the recession is intense. The main aim of the authors in this study is to show this history only from the late Vistulian to the late Holocene (the beginning of 21st century). Interstadials and Stadials start time varies, as their duration in different places, according to various authors. It is very hard to collect all information and describe this history. By knowing the history of glaciation, we can distinguish in the late Vistulian: Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), Bølling/Older Dryas/Allerød and Younger Dryas (YD). LGM was the stadial in which was the maximum extent of ice sheet in late Vistulian. After this period, ice sheet began to retreat from the continental shelf. In turn, YD was the stadial in which the last advance of glaciers took place, about 11 000 years BC. In the Holocene we can distinguish Holocene Climatic Optimum (in the meantime short Cooling Holocene), Revdalen Stadial, Medieval Warm Period, Little Ice Age (LIA) and 20th century warming. The maximum extent of glaciers in Holocene was in LIA. In LIA, the extent of glaciers was bigger than in YD. In 20th century a warming started and continues until now.

Early development of late Vistulian (Weichselian) lacustrine sediments in the Żabieniec swamp (central Poland)

The early sedimentological and ecological developmental stages of a late Vistulian lake in the Żabieniec swamp near Łódź (central Poland) were analysed by radiometric dating, changes in the frequency of specimens and species composition of Cladocera and multivariate statistical analysis (DCA). The longevity of the lake resulted in a fairly complete sedimentary record from approximately 22 ka to 11 ka cal BP. Species composition and the variability in the frequency of Cladocera specimens has made it possible to distinguish eleven zones of their development, which are well correlated with radiocarbon data. The results were compared to those from other sites of north and central Europe. The initial Cladocera development comprises the richest and oldest late Vistulian Cladocera record in Europe. These cladoceran assemblages show that a deep, oligotrophic, moderately cold-water lake was present at the beginning. It appears that the cladoceran development was mainly due to climate change, but also to changes in locally prevailing conditions in the water body. The high frequency of cladocerans, as well as the presence of cladoceran taxa preferring warmer water, was noted before approximately 16 ka BP. The biota suggests that the Oldest Dryas cooling was not severe and fairly variable in terms of humidity and temperature. The changes in Cladocera composition give evidence of what is described as the Intra-Bølling Cold Oscillation. It is also concluded that the Bølling is represented by two phases in the Żabieniec lake sediments.