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Holocene environmental history of Warming Land, northern Greenland: a study based on lake sediments

Wangritthikraikul, Kannika LU (2023) In Dissertations in Geology at Lund University GEOR02 20231
Department of Geology
Abstract
A sediment record obtained from a small lake in Warming Land, northern Greenland was subjected to biostratigraphic and geochemical analyses to investigate environmental and climatic changes during the last c. 2300 years. Macrofossil analysis, encompassing both vegetation and fauna, was applied to assess the ecological dynamics of the lake and its catchment. Geochemical proxies in the form of total organic carbon (TOC) and total nitrogen (TN) contents together with X-ray Fluorescence core scanning (XRF-CS) were utilized to gain insight into the sources of sediment organic matter and catchment hydrology. The present-day vegetation is dominated by herbaceous plants, such as Saxifraga oppositifolia, Dryas integrifolia, and Cerastium sp., along... (More)
A sediment record obtained from a small lake in Warming Land, northern Greenland was subjected to biostratigraphic and geochemical analyses to investigate environmental and climatic changes during the last c. 2300 years. Macrofossil analysis, encompassing both vegetation and fauna, was applied to assess the ecological dynamics of the lake and its catchment. Geochemical proxies in the form of total organic carbon (TOC) and total nitrogen (TN) contents together with X-ray Fluorescence core scanning (XRF-CS) were utilized to gain insight into the sources of sediment organic matter and catchment hydrology. The present-day vegetation is dominated by herbaceous plants, such as Saxifraga oppositifolia, Dryas integrifolia, and Cerastium sp., along with dwarf shrubs including Salix arctica. Together with terrestrial bryophytes, macroscopic remains of these plants are common in the sediments. The macrofossil records indicate no major changes in flora and fauna during the examined timeframe, suggesting general environmental stability. However, fluctuations in macrofossil concentrations supported by changes in some of the geochemical parameters reflect variations in runoff and catchment erosion, likely coupled to long-term changes in precipitation and snowmelt. It is noteworthy that a relatively warm episode after about 1500 cal yr BP was succeeded by a shift to generally colder and drier climatic conditions at approximately 400 cal yr BP, likely associated with the Little Ice Age. The uppermost part of the sediment sequence does not provide any direct evidence of the ongoing warming but signs of sediment diagenesis are manifested by increasing TOC contents, which are possibly augmented by ongoing alterations of the sedimentary environment. (Less)
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author
Wangritthikraikul, Kannika LU
supervisor
organization
course
GEOR02 20231
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
North Greenland, Warming Land, palaeoecology, lake sediments, geochemistry
publication/series
Dissertations in Geology at Lund University
report number
659
funder
Development and Promotion of Science and Technology Talents Project (DPST)
language
English
id
9131617
date added to LUP
2023-06-30 14:00:12
date last changed
2023-06-30 14:00:12
@misc{9131617,
  abstract     = {{A sediment record obtained from a small lake in Warming Land, northern Greenland was subjected to biostratigraphic and geochemical analyses to investigate environmental and climatic changes during the last c. 2300 years. Macrofossil analysis, encompassing both vegetation and fauna, was applied to assess the ecological dynamics of the lake and its catchment. Geochemical proxies in the form of total organic carbon (TOC) and total nitrogen (TN) contents together with X-ray Fluorescence core scanning (XRF-CS) were utilized to gain insight into the sources of sediment organic matter and catchment hydrology. The present-day vegetation is dominated by herbaceous plants, such as Saxifraga oppositifolia, Dryas integrifolia, and Cerastium sp., along with dwarf shrubs including Salix arctica. Together with terrestrial bryophytes, macroscopic remains of these plants are common in the sediments. The macrofossil records indicate no major changes in flora and fauna during the examined timeframe, suggesting general environmental stability. However, fluctuations in macrofossil concentrations supported by changes in some of the geochemical parameters reflect variations in runoff and catchment erosion, likely coupled to long-term changes in precipitation and snowmelt. It is noteworthy that a relatively warm episode after about 1500 cal yr BP was succeeded by a shift to generally colder and drier climatic conditions at approximately 400 cal yr BP, likely associated with the Little Ice Age. The uppermost part of the sediment sequence does not provide any direct evidence of the ongoing warming but signs of sediment diagenesis are manifested by increasing TOC contents, which are possibly augmented by ongoing alterations of the sedimentary environment.}},
  author       = {{Wangritthikraikul, Kannika}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  series       = {{Dissertations in Geology at Lund University}},
  title        = {{Holocene environmental history of Warming Land, northern Greenland: a study based on lake sediments}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}