16th Annual NECLIME Meeting Madrid, October 14 17 2015 de... · 2015-10-19 · 16th NECLIME Meeting...

16th Annual NECLIME Meeting Madrid, October 14 – 17, 2015

ABSTRACTS

16th NECLIME Meeting Madrid, October 14–17, 2015

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16th Annual NECLIME Meeting

Geominero Museum

Geological Survey of Spain

(Instituto Geológico y Minero de España - IGME)

Madrid – October 14–17, 2015

Under the sponsorship of the

Department of Geology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Salamanca

and the

Research Project nº CGL2011-23438/BTE (Environmental characterization of Miocene lacustrine

systems with marine-like faunas from the Duero and Ebro basins: geochemistry of biogenic

carbonates and palynology), Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra Jaume Almera (Spanish Council for

Scientific Research - CSIC).

ABSTRACTS

Eduardo Barrón (Ed.)


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ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

Chairman:

- María F. Valle, Salamanca University, Spain

Executive Secretary:

- Eduardo Barrón, Geological Survey of Spain, Madrid

Members:

- Angela A. Bruch, Senckenberg Research Institute, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

- Manuel Casas-Gallego, Robertson (UK) Ltd., United Kingdom

- José María Postigo-Mijarra, School of Forestry Engineering. Technical University of Madrid

- Isabel Rábano Gutiérrez del Arroyo, Geological Survey of Spain, Madrid

- Mª Rosario Rivas-Carballo, Salamanca University, Spain

- Torsten Utescher, Steinmann Institute, Bonn University, Germany


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PROGRAMME

Wednesday, October 14th

Geominero Museum (Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, IGME)

16.00-18.00 Reception of participants

18.00-19.00 Guided visit to the Museum

19.00... Short walking city tour through the centre of Madrid

Thursday Morning, October 15th

9.30-10.00 Reception of participants

10.00-10.15 Inauguration of 16th NECLIME Meeting

10.15-10.45 Introduction to NECLIME and information about the latest activities

10.45-11.45 Invited conference: Reconstructing palaeofloras based on fossils, climate and phylogenies

Dr. Pablo Vargas (Real Jardín Botánico, CSIC)

11.45-12.15 Coffee break

12.15-12.35 Wilfried Konrad and Anita Roth-Nebelsick DERIVATION OF PALAEO-CO2 FROM STOMATAL DENSITY VIA THE OPTIMALITY PRINCIPLE AND LEAF ENERGY BALANCE

12.35-12.55 Wen-Yun Chen, Tao Su and Zhe-Kun Zhou SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF LEAF PHYSIOGNOMY FEATURES OF WOODY DICOTYLEDONS IN CHINA AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH CLIMATE


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12.55-13.15 Thomas Gillot, Isabelle Cojan and David Badia

PALEOSOLS, AN UNDERESTIMATED TOOL FOR PALEOCLIMATIC RECONSTRUCTION IN CONTINENTAL SUCCESSIONS. APPLICATION TO THE LORANCA AND DIGNE-VALENSOLE BASINS - EARLY TO MIDDLE MIOCENE

Thursday Afternoon, October 15th

16.00-17.00 Invited conference: Quaternary (and Recent) flora and vegetation of

the Iberian Peninsula. Evolution and their role in a Mediterranean environment

Dr. Fátima Franco (Autónoma University, Madrid)

17.00-17.20 Yong-Jiang Huang, Hai Zhu, Tao Su and Zhe-Kun Zhou

EARLY PLEISTOCENE CLIMATES AT HEQING OF THE SOUTHEASTERN BORDER OF THE TIBETAN PLATEAU EXTRACTED FROM A SEED AND FRUIT FOSSIL ASSEMBLAGE

17.20-17.40 Tao Su, Zhe-Kun Zhou, Jonathan M. Adams, Torsten Wappler, Yong-Jiang Huang, Fréderic M.B. Jacques and Yu-Sheng (Christopher) Liu PLANT-INSECT INTERACTIONS IN OAK FORESTS UNDER QUATERNARY CLIMATE CHANGES


18.15-18.35 Poster session

18.35-18.55 Zhe-Kun Zhou, Tao Su and Yong-Jiang Huang PLANT BIODIVERSITY SHAPED BY PALEOENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES IN YUNNAN, SW CHINA

18.55-19.25 Torsten Utescher, Boglárka Erdei, Louis François and Alexandra-Jane Henrot

TRACING PRECIPITATION PATTERNS IN SW EUROPE IN THE MIOCENE – A STUDY BASED ON DIVERSITIES OF PLANT FUNCTIONAL TYPES

19.00-19.15 Angela Bruch EARLY HOMINID EXPANSION INTO SOUTHERN EUROPE AND PALEOBOTANICAL EVIDENCES OF POSSIBLE CLIMATIC CONSTRAINTS


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Friday Morning, October 16th

9.30-11.00 NECLIME news and discussion

11.00-11.20 Manuel Casas-Gallego

LAST OCCURRENCE OF SOME PALEOGENE SPECIES DURING THE LATE OLIGOCENE IN NW SPAIN

11.20-11.40 Cristina Alcalde-Olivares

PALAEOENVIRONMENTAL INTERPRETATION OF TWO MACROFOSSIL SITES IN NORTHERN IBERIAN PENINSULA


12.15-12:35 Bainian Sun, Qiujun Wang, Fujun Ma, Junling Dong and Yi Yang

CUTICULAR STRUCTURES OF SEVERAL PALMS FROM THE PALAEOGENE IN SOUTH CHINA AND THEIR GEOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE

12.35-12.55 Desa Đorđević-Milutinović, Branka Stevanović, Goran Ćulafić

EARLY MIOCENE NELUMBO FROM BERANE BASIN IN MONTENEGRO. FOSSILIZED LEAVES, ROOTS AND RHIZOMES

12.55-13.15 Svetlana Popova, Torsten Utescher, Dmitry V. Gromyko and Angela A. Bruch

CLIMATE AND VEGETATION DYNAMICS FROM THE HIGH ARCTIC TO THE CASPIAN REGION DURING THE CENOZOIC - A STUDY BASED ON FOSSIL MACRO- AND MICROFLORAS

13.15-13.35 Jian Huang and Zhe-Kun Zhou

MIOCENE FLORA AND CLIMATE OF WENSHAN, SW CHINA AND THEIR ECOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS

Friday Afternoon, October 16th

16.00-16.20 Eduardo Barrón, Pere Anadón, María Teresa Martín-Rubio, Julio

Rodríguez-Lázaro, Rosa Utrilla, Antonio Vázquez PALAEOENVIRONMENTAL AND PALAEOCLIMATIC ASPECTS FROM PALYNOLOGICAL DATA OF TWO ATALASSIC SALINE MIOCENE LACUSTRINE SYSTEMS OF THE IBERIAN PENINSULA

16.20-16.40 Enrique Peñalver FOSSIL INSECTS AND PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY


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16.40-17.00 José Mª Postigo-Mijarra, Eduardo Barrón LATE MIOCENE CLIMATE IN THE NORTHEASTERN IBERIAN PENINSULA: NEW DATA FOR THE LA CERDANYA BASIN

17.0-17.20 José María Fernández-Palacios, Lea de Nascimento, Robert J. Whittaker A RECONSTRUCTION OF PALAEO-MACARONESIA, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE LONG-TERM BIOGEOGRAPHY OF THE ATLANTIC ISLAND LAUREL FORESTS

17.20-17.40 Olena Sirenko, Tetiana Stefanska and Olesya Bondar LATE PLIOCENE CLIMATIC FLUCTUATIONS IN THE SOUTHERN UKRAINE AND THEIR DISPLAY IN BIOTA COMPOSITION

17.15-17.30 Nelsa Cardoso, Nei Ahrens Haag, Camile Urban and Karen Adami Rodrigues WEST AMAZON – PALEOCLIMATIC INTERPRETATIONS THROUGH PALEOFLORA

17.30-18.00 Closure of the Meeting

21.30 Conference dinner: Bogotá restaurant, 20 Belén street

Saturday morning, October 17th

10.00- Guided visit to the Royal Botanical Garden


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INDEX

invited conferences

Reconstructing palaeofloras based on fossils, climate and phylogenies .................................................... 12

Pablo Vargas Quaternary (and Recent) flora and vegetation of the Iberian Peninsula. Evolution and their role in a

Mediterranean environment................................................................................................................... 13

Fátima Franco Múgica

oral communications

Derivation of palaeo-CO2 from stomatal density via the optimality principle and leaf energy balance

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………14

Wilfried Konrad and Anita Roth-Nebelsick

Spatial distribution of leaf physiognomy features of woody dicotyledons in China and their relationship

with climate ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………15

Wen-Yun Chen, Tao Su and Zhe-Kun Zhou

Paleosols, an underestimated tool for palAeoclimatic reconstruction in continental successions.

Application to the Loranca and Digne-Valensole Basins - Early to Middle Miocene…………………....16

Thomas Gillot, Isabelle Cojan and David Badia

Early Pleistocene climates at Heqing of the southeastern border of the Tibetan Plateau extracted

from a seed and fruit fossil assemblage……………………………………………………………………………………..17

Yong-Jiang Huang, Hai Zhu, Tao Su and Zhe-Kun Zhou

Plant-insect interactions in oak forests under Quaternary climate changes .............................................. 18

Tao Su, Zhe-Kun Zhou, Jonathan M. Adams, Torsten Wappler, Yong- Jiang Huang, Frédéric M.B.

Jacques and Yu-Sheng (Christopher) Liu

Plant biodiversity shaped by paleoenvironmental changes in Yunnan, SW China……………………….19

Zhe-Kun Zhou, Tao Su and Yong-Jiang Huang


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Tracing precipitation patterns in SW Europe in the Miocene – a study based on diversities of plant

functional types ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…….21

Torsten Utescher, Boglárka Erdei, Louis François and Alexandra Henrot

Early hominid expansion into Southern Europe and paleobotanical evidences of possible climatic

constraints……….………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…….23

Angela A. Bruch

Last occurrence of some Paleogene species during the Late Oligocene in NW Spain…………….…….24

Manuel Casas-Gallego Palaeoenvironmental interpretation of two macrofossil sites in northern Iberian Peninsula

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…………….…….25

Cristina Alcalde-Olivares Cuticular structures of several palms from the Palaeogene in South China and their geological

significance …………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…………….…….27

Bainian Sun, Qiujun Wang, Fujun Ma, Junling Dong and Yi Yang Early Miocene Nelumbo from Berane Basin in Montenegro. Fossilized leaves, roots and rhizomes ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…………….…….28

Desa Đorđević-Milutinović, Branka Stevanović and Goran Ćulafić Climate and vegetation dynamics from the High Arctic to the Caspian region during the Cenozoic

– a study based on fossil macro- and microfloras…………………………………………………..…………….…….29

Svetlana Popova, Torsten Utescher, Dimitry V. Gromyko and Angela A. Bruch Miocene Flora and climate of Wenshan, SW China and their ecological implications….……….…….31

Jian Huang and Zhe-Kun Zhou Palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic aspects from palynological data of two athalassic saline

Miocene lacustrine systems of the Iberian Peninsula………………………………………………….……….…….32

Eduardo Barrón, Pere Anadón, María Teresa Martín-Rubio, Julio Rodríguez-Lázaro, Rosa Utrilla and

Antonio Vázquez

Fossil insects and palaeoclimatology……………………….………………………………………………….……….…….34

Enrique Peñalver

Late Miocene climate in the Northeastern Iberian Peninsula: New data for the La Cerdanya

Basin………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….36

José María Postigo-Mijarra and Eduardo Barrón


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A reconstruction of Palaeo-Macaronesia, with particular reference to the long-term biogeography

of the Atlantic island laurel forests…………………………………………………………………………………………….38

José María Fernández-Palacios, Lea de Nascimento and Robert J. Whittaker

Late Pliocene climatic fluctuations in the Southern Ukraine and their display in biota

composition..................................…………………………………………………………………………………………….39

Olena Sirenko, Tetiana Stefanska and Olesya Bondar

West Amazon – Palaeoclimatic interpretations through palaeoflora………………………………………….40

Nelsa Cardoso, Nei Ahrens Haag, Camile Urban and Karen Adami Rodrigues

poster session

Dynamics of biodiversity in the Bulgarian Cenozoic flora based on macropalaeobotanical data….42

Vladimir Bozukov and Torsten Utescher

A revisión of past climate of the Macaronesian Arquipelagos during the Last Glaciation cycle……43

Lea de Nascimento et al. Quantification of component diversities within circumalpine carbonates across the

Paleogene/Neogene transition…………………………………………………………………………………………………..44

James H. Nebelsick, Davide Bassi, Florian Nitsch and Tobias B. Grun

Miocene vegetation and climate in the centre of the Duero Basin (Spain) from palynological data .............................................................................................................................................................. 46

Mª Rosario Rivas-Carballo and María Valle-Hernández

Shape index – a new parameter for heat transfer capacity of leaves ........................................................ 47

Anita Roth-Nebelsick, Christopher Traiser and Wilfried Konrad


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INVITED CONFERENCES

RECONSTRUCTING PALAEOFLORAS BASED ON FOSSILS, CLIMATE AND PHYLOGENIES

Pablo Vargas Real Jardín Botánico (CSIC), Plaza de Murillo 2, 28014 Madrid (Spain); [email protected]

Reconstruction of paleofloras is better performed by an integrative approach in which data and results primarily from taxonomy, paleobotany, paleoclimatology and phylogenetics are required. The closer to recent periods of time is the paleoflora, the more accurate and interdisciplinary become reconstruction analyses. In this paper we put together reconstruction inferences from different datasets and discuss how different disciplines help each other, albeit they are some times in disagreement. In particular, some examples of the paleofloras in the Mediterranean basin, California, South Africa and Macaronesia are presented.


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QUATERNARY (AND RECENT) FLORA AND VEGETATION OF THE IBERIAN

PENINSULA. EVOLUTION AND THEIR ROLE IN A MEDITERRANEAN ENVIRONMENT

Fátima Franco Múgica

Dpto. Ecología, C-114 Edificio Biología, Darwin 2, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049 Madrid, Spain;

[email protected]

The Iberian Peninsula is a singular territory in itself. Placed in the far Western

Mediterranean region, in terms of Biogeography, it could be defined as a cul-de-sac.

Located between the Eurasian and African plates, the Iberian Peninsula has played a hinge role

among the Holarctic and the Palaeotropical floral kingdoms. The relative motions produce a

combination of lateral and compressive forces which even, at some stages, have derived in the

desiccation of the Mediterranean Sea becoming completely enclosed. These factors among others,

have given the Iberian Peninsula the position of a mid stone along the vegetation past migration

pathways. No wonder, nowadays, an outstanding number and varied landscapes could be found

throughout the territory. In this talk, we will virtually travel to some of these vegetation mosaics.

A fair point to start the reconstruction of the recent Quaternary flora and vegetation dynamics

could be the glaciar periods. Using palaeobotanical tools such as pollen diagrams, it could be seen

how the Iberian Peninsula became a Refugia for different Tertiary and Boreal species. The main

effects of the glacial-interglacial climate oscillation could be the gradual extinction of Tertiary

tropical flora and the latitudinal and altitudinal shift of the Zonobiomes. The final vegetation

recovery took place in two different models dealing with the geographical position, namely, the

humid Iberia and the continental and dry Iberia.


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ORAL COMMUNICATIONS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15

DERIVATION OF PALAEO-CO2 FROM STOMATAL DENSITY VIA THE OPTIMALITY

PRINCIPLE AND LEAF ENERGY BALANCE

Wilfried Konrad1 and Anita Roth-Nebelsick2

1University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstrasse 12, D-72074 Tübingen, Germany; [email protected] 2State Museum of Natural History, Stuttgart, Rosenstein 1, D-70191 Stuttgart, Germany; anita.rothnebelsick@smns-

bw.de

It is well-known that the stomatal density of fossil leaves can be used as proxy for the CO2-

concentration of the palaeoatmosphere. Mathematical models based on the law of molecular

diffusion, on plant anatomy, and on a mechanistic submodel of assimilation allow to reconstruct

palaeo-CO2, provided environmental parameters such as temperature, atmospheric humidity and

soil water content are already known.

Mathematical models which utilise an optimality principle (assuming that plants adjust

stomatal density to climatic conditions in order to maximise assimilation while minimising

transpiration) are advantageous inasmuch as they need less input information than other models.

In this talk, an extended optimality model is presented, which includes also leaf energy

balance, that is, components of radiation interacting with a leaf, latent heat transported away by

transpiration and the contributions of heat conduction and convection.

It turns out that interesting variables such as stomatal conductivity, assimilation rate and

transpiration rate are differently affected by this refinement of the model when e.g. air

temperature, wind speed or humidity are varied. In view of reconstructing palaeo-CO2 from the

stomatal density of fossil leaves, the error margins of both model versions are compared and

discussed.

mailto:[email protected]


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SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF LEAF PHYSIOGNOMY FEATURES OF WOODY

DICOTYLEDONS IN CHINA AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH CLIMATE

Wen-Yun Chen1, Tao Su2 and Zhe-Kun Zhou1,2 1Key Laboratory of Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of

Sciences, Kunming 650204, China; [email protected], [email protected]

2Xishuangbanna Tropical Botancial Garden, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, 666303, China;

[email protected]

Based the distribution of 3, 166 species of woody dicots in the humid and semi-humid

regions of China, which was retrieved from Flora of China, herbarium specimens and Seed Plants of

China, this study established the spatial distribution of leaf physiognomy features at the county

level by the application of Geographical Information System (GIS). Relationships between leaf

physiognomy traits and climatic parameters were analyzed. Then, several transfer functions linking

leaf physiognomy and climate parameters have been established.

The spatial analysis reveals that: seven leaf physiognomy features, including lobed leaf and

ovate leaf, increase with increasing latitudes; seven leaf physiognomy features, including entire

margin and elliptic leaf, decrease with increasing latitudes; nanophyll leaf size and obtuse base

decrease from South-East to North-West; six leaf physiognomy features, including simple leaf and

obovate leaf, show no clear spatial pattern.

The correlation matrix of the 22 leaf physiognomy features and the 13 climatic parameters

reveals that there are correlations in most cases between leaf physiognomy features and climatic

parameters. Seven leaf physiognomy features, including lobed leaf, untoothed leaf margin and

microphyll leaf size, have strong correlations with 4 temperature-related parameters: mean annual

temperature (MAT), annual temperature sum (Tsum), cold month temperature (CMMT), and length

of growing season (LGS). Seven leaf physiognomy features have strong correlations with

precipitation-related parameters: mean annual precipitation (MAP), growing season precipitation

(GSP), and precipitation of the 3 driest consecutive months (P3DRY). The former correlations are

stronger than the latter ones.

We built thirteen multi-linear regression transfer functions linking climate parameters with

leaf physiognomy features. Based on MAT transfer function, we established the spatial distributions

of the predicted MAT and residual MAT, which show that the predicted MAT is more precise than

single-linear regression transfer functions. The spatial distributions of the predicted MAP and

residual MAP are also reconstructed through MAP transfer function. The residual plot of MAP

reveals an available method to predicted MAP in China. Therefore, compared with the single linear

regressions, the multi-linear regressions reflect better the complex relationships between climate

and leaf physiognomy, and should be more precise for reconstructing the palaeotemperature in

China.


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PALEOSOLS, AN UNDERESTIMATED TOOL FOR PALAEOCLIMATIC RECONSTRUCTION

IN CONTINENTAL SUCCESSIONS. APPLICATION TO THE LORANCA AND DIGNE-

VALENSOLE BASINS - EARLY TO MIDDLE MIOCENE

Thomas Gillot1, Isabelle Cojan1 and David Badia2

1MINES ParisTech, PSL-Research University, Geosciences center, 35 Rue St Honoré, Fontainebleau, France ;

[email protected], [email protected] 2Technic School of Agrarian Engineering and Environmental Sciences, University of Zaragoza, Carretera de Cuarte,

Huesca, Spain.

We propose new palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic data for Western Europe through

the study of alluvial Calcisols from the Early to Middle Miocene successions of the Loranca (Central

Spain) and the Digne –Valensole (SE France) basins. These paleosols that are well distributed in

alluvial successions, were investigated by pedological, sedimentological, mineralogical and

geochemical methods. These highlight leaching and fersiallitisation as major processes in the

formation of these profiles, and the influence of the lateral variations of parent materials on

palaeosols features.

The palaeoclimatic reconstruction is based on the palaeosol morphologic study and specific

climofunctions (Gillot, 2014). The climofunctions have been developed from the study of modern

calcisols and relate present climate [mean annual precipitation (MAP) and mean annual

temperature (MAT)] to major element concentrations in soil profiles. Their application to the

Loranca and Digne-Valensole lower to middle Miocene successions reveals a relatively hot climate

with a strong seasonal contrast in term of precipitations, similar to modern Mediterranean climate.

The duration of pedogenesis is estimated to be between 3 to a few tens of ky from palaeosol

morphologic and mineralogic features.

The reconstructed MAT values (13 to 19°C) are fairly comparable between the Loranca and

Digne-Valensole Basin and also with those obtained from the paleontological studies (floras and

mammals). The high resolution record from the Digne-Valensole Basin (60 palaeosols) indicates a

warming in the range of 2 to 4°C during the Middle Aquitanian. Conversely, the proposed MAP

values (250 to 700 mm/yr) are very similar between the two studied basins, but two times lower

than those obtained from the paleontological studies (850 to 1450 mm/yr).

These data improve our knowledge of this period that paleontological studies qualify as

more humid, and raise the question about the recording of climatic signal according to the

considered object. Indeed, if the preservation of fossils is usually linked to humid conditions, soils

form over the emerged parts of environment and record drier conditions, which justify the need to

enhance the use of palaeopedological studies in such reconstructions.




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EARLY PLEISTOCENE CLIMATES AT HEQING OF THE SOUTHEASTERN BORDER OF THE

TIBETAN PLATEAU EXTRACTED FROM A SEED AND FRUIT FOSSIL ASSEMBLAGE

Yong-Jiang Huang1, Hai Zhu 1, 2, Tao Su 3 and Zhe-Kun Zhou 1,3

1Key Laboratory for Plant Biodiversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of

Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; [email protected], [email protected] 2 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China 3Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences,

Mengla 666303, China; [email protected]

Climate and monsoon in the Neogene of the southeastern border of the Tibetan Plateau

have been understood in various investigations, but the situation thereafter has rarely been looked

at. An early Pleistocene seed and fruit assemblage from Heqing of this region was studied

taxonomically. Recognized taxa include Aralia, Corydalis, Drypetes, Eurya, Quercus, Phellodendron,

Pinus, Picea, Ranunculus, Rbus, Sambucus, Stellaria, Toddalia and Zanthoxylum. The overlap of

climate tolerance of these taxa results in an estimate of mean annual temperature (MAT) of 14.1–

18.3ºC, coldest month mean temperature (CMMT) of -1.4–12.3ºC, and warmest month mean

temperature (WMMT) of 24.4–27.9ºC, compared to 11.4ºC, 5.0ºC and 16.7ºC, respectively at

present-day. Temperature comparisons suggest that the early Pleistocene of Heqing was still warm,

at least warmer than today. Winter temperature was comparable to the modern value, but summer

temperature was significantly higher than nowadays. A pronounced summer cooling trend

presumably took place after the Pleistocene. The calculated mean annual precipitation (MAP) is

1065–1741 mm, higher than 1000 mm at present, suggesting an aridification since the early

Pleistocene. It is notable that the estimate of summer precipitation (135–262 mm) roughly

represented by precipitations during the three wettest month was much lower than the modern

584 mm, whereas the amount of winter rainfall appears unchanged. This may suggest an

intensification of summer monsoon but a generally fixed strength of winter monsoon since the

early Pleistocene.




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PLANT-INSECT INTERACTIONS IN OAK FORESTS UNDER QUATERNARY CLIMATE

CHANGES

Tao Su1, Zhe-Kun Zhou1,2, Jonathan M. Adams3, Torsten Wappler4, Yong- Jiang

Huang2, Frédéric M.B. Jacques1 and Yu-Sheng (Christopher) Liu5 1Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences,

Mengla 666303, China; [email protected] 2Key Laboratory of Biodiversity and Biogeography, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming

650204, China; [email protected], [email protected] 3College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Gwanak-Gu, Seoul 151, Republic of Korea. 4Steinmann Institute for Geology, Mineralogy and Palaeontology, Division Palaeontology, University of Bonn, Nussallee

8, D-53115 Bonn, Germany 5Department of Biological Sciences and Don Sundquist Center of Excellence in Paleontology, Box 70703, East Tennessee

State University, Johnson City, Tennessee 37614-1710, U.S.A

Plant-insect interactions are vital for structuring terrestrial ecosystems. It is still unclear how

climate change in deep time might have shaped plant-insect interactions leading to modern

ecosystems. We investigated the effect of Quaternary climate change on plant-insect interactions

by observing insect herbivory on leaves of an evergreen sclerophyllous oak lineage (Quercus section

Heterobalanus, HET) from a late Pliocene flora and eight living forests in SW China. Damage

diversity is lower in the fossil flora than in modern HET populations, even in a warmer climate than

the present day. All damage types in the fossil flora, except for one distinctive gall type, can be

found in modern HET populations. These results indicate that Quaternary climate change did not

cause extensive extinction of insect herbivores in HET forests. The increase of more diversified

herbivore faunas over time supports the view of plant species as evolutionary ‘islands’ for

colonization and turnover of insect species.




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PLANT BIODIVERSITY SHAPED BY PALEOENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES IN YUNNAN,

SW CHINA

Zhe-Kun Zhou1,2, Tao Su1 and Yong-Jiang Huang2

1Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences,

Mengla 666303, China; [email protected], [email protected] 2Key Laboratory for Plant Biodiversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of

Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; [email protected]

Yunnan in Southwest China, is one of world's biodiversity ‘hotspots’: its surface only accounts

for 4% of the Chinese territory, but supports half the species of vascular plants, birds and mammals

in China, and almost all vegetation types of China exist in Yunnan. Its high biodiversity is largely

shaped by paleoenvironmental changes, which are characterized by the continuous uplift of the

Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) and the intensification of the Asian monsoon. Yunnan is located in

the SE boundary of the QTP, the continuous mountain uplift during the Neogene created many high

mountains in Yunnan, and provided complex climates and different topography for the

diversification of plants. Meanwhile, several phylogeographic studies based on molecular

sequences indicate that mountain uplift probably caused potential geographic isolation that

influenced the diversity pattern of plants, such as Terminalia franchetii and Incarvillea sinensis.

Yunnan is under the monsoonal climate at the present day, which is characterized by the dry

winter and the wet summer. Palaeoclimate reconstructions based on fossil floras revealed that,

MAT (mean annual temperature) and MAP (mean annual precipitation) were higher during the late

Miocene than today. This indicates that the climate in Yunnan during the late Miocene was

generally warmer and more humid than the present day in southwestern China. Further analyses

show that precipitation varied within a year and mainly concentrated in the summer. Monsoon

climate caused some plants into extinction. Plants need to adopt into the monsoonal climate;

otherwise, they will disappear from this region. With the abundant fossil records in Yunnan,

particularly with evidence of many Neogene floras, we could explore the diversification history of

plants.

Combined with information on Cedrus fossil records and data of seed physiology, we

concluded that the increasingly drier winter and spring in post-Pliocene may have prevented the

establishment of the seedling populations, and lead to the eventual disappearance of Cedrus in

Yunnan. Another example is Sequoia. Following by the uplift of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, the

monsoonal climate featured by dry winter and spring replaced the formerly prevailing warm and

humid climate. This great paleoclimatic change may have led to the disappearance of this

hygrophilous conifer from eastern Asia during the Neogene.

Monsoon climate not only caused the extinction of some plant taxa, but also promoted the

succession of dominant elements of evergreen broadleaved forests in Yunnan. Quercus schottkyana




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is a dominant species in evergreen broadleaved forests in central Yunnan. The Quercus delavayi

complex was widely distributed in China since the late Miocene. Leaf shape, size and venation of Q.

schottkyana and those of the Q. delayayi complex are similar but differ in trichome structure.

Quercus schottkyana has a single trichome, which forms unicellular trichome base, whereas the Q.

delavayi complex has multicellular trichome base which is usually well preserved in fossils. Many

fossil records of the Q. delavayi complex have been reported from Neogene strata in Yunnan. We

suggest that the dominant species of evergreen broadleaved forests in the Neogene was Q.

delavayi, but Q. schottkyana has become the new dominant component. This succession can be

explained by seed traits of Q. schottkyana and an increase in seasonality.


21

TRACING PRECIPITATION PATTERNS IN SW EUROPE IN THE MIOCENE – A STUDY

BASED ON DIVERSITIES OF PLANT FUNCTIONAL TYPES

Torsten Utescher1, Boglárka Erdei2, Louis François3 and Alexandra Henrot3 1Steinmann Institute, University of Bonn, Nussallee 8, 53115 Bonn, Germany; Senckenberg Research Institute /

Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (BiK-F), Frankfurt M, Germany; t.utescher @uni-bonn.de 2Botanical Department, Hungarian Natural History Museum, P.O. Box 222, H-1476, Budapest, Hungary 3Unité de Modélisation du Climat et des Cycles Biogéochimiques, Université de Liège, Bât. B5c, Allée du 6 Août 17, B-

4000 Liège, Belgium; [email protected], [email protected]

The Iberian Peninsula represents a key region for assessing past changes in circulation

patterns of ocean and atmosphere throughout the Cenozoic and their impact on the continental

climate of Western Eurasia. The Miocene is a time of significant climate change, including the Mid-

Miocene Climatic Optimum with warmest conditions since the Paleogene but under moderately

raised atmospheric CO2, and the subsequent cooling, being connected to coeval drying in some of

the regions of Eurasia. As regards the temperatures there is broad agreement that the evolution on

the Iberian Peninsula followed the global trend, with very warm, subtropical conditions prevailing

while the late Miocene experienced moderate cooling. Regarding the evolution of Miocene

precipitation patterns, various proxies studied yielded partly contradictory results. For the early and

middle Miocene, the majority of plant and mammalian proxies points to dominantly wet climate

conditions while data based on herpetological records suggest drier than present conditions during

the Langhian and Serravallian, partly supported by regional presence of steppe biomes inferred

from pollen spectra. For the late Miocene, data obtained from small mammals suggest successive

drying and landscape opening, in line with a Tortonian model scenario inferring drier than present

conditions for the study area. In contrast, herpetological data suggest a very wet climate phase in

the middle Tortonian. This coincides with high mean annual precipitation values reconstructed for

various late Miocene macro- and microfloras. On the one hand, these discrepancies may be

referred to inherent methodological uncertainties in the reconstruction methods, but on the other

hand as well to a distinct cyclicity of climate and/or considerable spatial gradients at regional and

local scale, and hence more studies are required.

Here we present study based on a total of 60 Miocene mega- and microfloras from the

Iberian Peninsula with respect to diversity of plant functional types (PFTs) that are indicative for dry

climates or seasonally dry conditions, respectively. Using the PFT approach a complementary

palaeobotany-based data set can be generated with an independent, quantitative method that can

be compared to data obtained from other proxies and approaches. For the study we use a recently

introduced classification system comprising 40 PFT classes, with publication in progress. The new

system allows for classification of the complete plant fossil record and at the same time is

compatible with classifications used in biome modelling. Based on ecoprofiles obtained for the

single sites, spatio-temporal diversity gradients can be traced for 2 xeric and 6 drought-tolerant


22

PFTs, indicative for the presence of a climate regime with a distinct dry season. Moreover, a PFT

including herbaceous aquatics and 3 PFTs combining woody wetland plants facilitate the

identification of intrazonal communities that are primarily fed by groundwater. In the analysis,

diversities obtained for the different organ types of the palaeoflora are regarded separately in

order to make allowance for their different representativeness.


23

EARLY HOMINID EXPANSION INTO SOUTHERN EUROPE AND PALEOBOTANICAL

EVIDENCES OF POSSIBLE CLIMATIC CONSTRAINTS

Angela A. Bruch

ROCEEH Research Center “The Role of Culture on Early Expansions of Humans” of the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences

and Humanities, Senckenberg Research Institute, Frankfurt am Main, Germany; [email protected]

The earliest hominid expansions from Africa into Eurasia date to about 2 Ma based on the

Dmanisi record of Homo erectus in Georgia. In South Europe however records (notably from Spain

and Italy) are much younger and extend back to 1.2 and possibly 1.4 Ma. The scarce records may

represent a single or several out-of-Africa events, and questions remain as to what extent climate

and environmental change facilitated or hindered the occupation of Europe by early Homo, and if

this may have been constrained by climate and environmental limitations rather than physiography

or cultural factors.

Several researchers suggest that orbital cycles (especially the obliquity 41 ka cycle ) were

driving regional climate providing short time windows of favorable landscape and vegetation

conditions for hominine expansions in Europe. Early Pleistocene vegetation successions with more

and less favorable conditions for hominine occupations at the end of each glacial period (warm, but

still dry enough to enable open landscapes) have been documented from Southern Europe. Yet

vegetation successions apparently out of phase or showing a complex regional response exist as

well.

Reviewing the existing paleobotanical evidences of possible climatic constraints of early

hominid expansions into Southern Europe, the Palominas core from the Guadix-Baza Basin in SE

Spain appears to be a unique high resolution record that should shed light on the nature and

duration of favorable conditions for hominid expansions and occupation. Hominid artefacts are

known from the region dating back to 1.2-1.4 Ma showing their presence in the late Early

Pleistocene. Preliminary analyses on the core material show the exceptional potential for providing

high resolution documentation of environmental settings and the regional response of Western

Mediterranean vegetation on global climate change in times of early hominid occupation



24

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16

LAST OCCURRENCE OF SOME PALEOGENE SPECIES DURING THE LATE OLIGOCENE IN NW SPAIN

Manuel Casas-Gallego

3-5 Mostyn Avenue, flat 5, LL30 1YS Llandudno (Wales), United Kingdom; [email protected]

The palynological study of the As Pontes lignite mine sediments (NW Spain) has allowed

obtain the longest continental palynological sequence in the Iberian Peninsula until now. It

comprises more than 7 Ma of continuous deposition covering part of the Rupelian, the whole

Chattian and part of the Aquitanian. The preservation and diversity of the palynological

assemblages are exceptional, and they are therefore an ideal material to investigate the Oligocene

palaeovegetation and palaeoclimate in Western Europe. The sequence reveals significant changes

in the palaeovegetation, especially during the Chattian, in which we record the last occurrence of

species which were well established in the area since at least the Rupelian. A recent

magnetostratigraphic revision performed on the basin indicates that this extinction event took

place between 25.6 and 23.4 Ma.

Various global climatic changes have been recognised for the Oligocene from different

approaches. The extinction recorded in As Pontes coincides with the global sea surface cooling

dated on 25.3 (intra Chron C7) and the sea level fall indicated by the sequence boundary Ch3.


25

PALAEOENVIRONMENTAL INTERPRETATION OF TWO MACROFOSSIL SITES IN NORTHERN IBERIAN PENINSULA

Cristina Alcalde-Olivares

Bravo de Saravia 17, 42004 - Soria (Spain); [email protected]

Frades is an opened quartz mine located in Galicia, north-western Spain. A lot of trunks,

preserved in different degrees of charcoalification and permineralization, were found there. The

age of these fossils is probably Lower Miocene. In this site 15 silicified and 45 charcoalified woods

were collected. They belong to Cupressaceae, Mimosaceae, a Fagaceae closed to Fagus, cf. Carya,

Quercus and at least four different taxa of Pinus. Furthermore 14 strobils have been identified as

Pinus sylvestris pliocaenica Kinkelin. They are the oldest cones related to Pinus sylvestris found in

the Iberian Peninsula. It is remarkable the great diversity of Pinus. This is the first time that tertiary

woods of subgenus Strobus, that is not nowadays present in the Iberian Peninsula, have been

identified. This is also the first time that woods related to Carya are identified, but pollen and

leaves from Miocene until Middle Pleistocene have been found. Mimosoideae leaves are present

from Upper Miocene in northeastern Peninsula. These results show de presence of a non-dense

forest of deciduous broadleaves and conifers, with temperate-warm elements and less

precipitation in winter, with few palaeotropical elements. The founded flora is near to the pollen

analyses of Oligocene–Miocene basins of Galicia. The “coexistence approach” method for

palaeoclimatic reconstructions has been applied on the pollen analysis of Meirama and Boimorto,

which are the closest sites with enough taxa for the model. The mean annual temperature was a

little warmer than today (15.6 to 17.1 °C), but summer temperatures were higher (25.6 to 26.8 °C,

until 7–8 °C more than today) and winter temperatures lower (5 to 7.5 °C). Precipitation rates are

not very high, with values for MAP among 823 and 1,347 mm.

During the works of a highway enormous pieces of wood, cones and fragments of charcoal

were discovered in Caranceja (northern Iberian Peninsula). This site was dated as Lower Pleistocene

or older. 45 samples of non charcoalified wood and 243 little pieces of charcoal and wood have

been analized. It is remarkable the great diversity of conifer taxa, like taxodioid Cupressaceae

(Sequoia, Cryptomeria-Cunninghamia), Cupressus and several genus of Pinaceae, and broadleaves

like Betula, Quercus, Fagus and Ericaceae. This is the first time that woods of Betula and Ilex are

found in Lower Pleistocene in the Iberian Peninsula. It is also the first presence of Abies. This site

enhances the abundance, diversity and good preservation of 214 strobils, that have been identified

as Cupressus, as Pinus taxa both of subgenus Pinus, and subgenus Strobus, Picea and Tsuga. It is

also the first time that cones of Tsuga are found in the Pleistocene of the Iberian Peninsula. The

identification of Cupressus, both from woods and fossil cones, is the first and unique mention of

this genus at peninsular level in the whole Cenozoic. The palynological analysis completes the

floristic diversity, adding mainly Arctotertiary taxa, principally of riparian nature, like Castanea,



26

Acer, Salix, Ulmus and Alnus, among others. There is a floristic relationship between Caranceja and

the sites of French Landes. In Caranceja palaeotropical elements are missing. The site shows an

arcotertiary flora, according to an age Upper Plasencian – Gelasian. For the application of

“coexistence approach”, data from macrofossils and data from pollen analyses have been

independently considered. Regarding temperatures, macrofossil data provide narrower ranges:

MAT between 11.8 and 15.8 °C and CMT between 0.4 and 5.6 °C. Calculated intervals for

precipitation rates are higher from macrofossils than those from pollen, with MAP between 1,304

and 1,520 mm (40% lower from pollen). The founded data reveal temperatures a little bit higher

than today and moderate precipitation rates.


27

CUTICULAR STRUCTURES OF SEVERAL PALMS FROM THE PALAEOGENE IN SOUTH

CHINA AND THEIR GEOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Bainian Sun, Qiujun Wang, Fujun Ma, Junling Dong and Yi Yang

School of Earth Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China; [email protected]

Recently, several palm fossils with well-preserved cuticles were discovered from the

Palaeogene in Guangxi, South China. They are Chuniophoenix slenderifolia, Livistona roundifolia and

Trachycarpus Formosa. The palmate leaf shapes and induplicate segments support the placement

of the fossils in the Coryphoideae. With cuticular structures of palm fossils poorly known, the

characteristics described in this paper enrich our knowledge of the phylogeny and biodiversity of

fossil palms. The palm fossils belonging to three lineages indicate that palms in southern China

began to diversify no later than the Oligocene and a diversified fossil palm forest was already

present at that time in Guangxi. The presence of coryphoid palms indicates a warm-humid tropical

or subtropical paleoclimate during the Oligocene in Guangxi, southern China. The fossil palms can

provide a new insight into the plant diversity of the Guangxi flora during the Oligocene, as well as

on the paleoclimate of southern China.

This research was financially supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (973

Program) (No. 2012CB822003) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.

41172022).


28

EARLY MIOCENE NELUMBO FROM BERANE BASIN IN MONTENEGRO. FOSSILIZED LEAVES, ROOTS AND RHIZOMES

Desa Đorđević-Milutinović1, Branka Stevanović 2 and Goran Ćulafić3

1Natural History Museum, Njegoševa 51, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia; [email protected] 2Botanical Garden Jevremovac, Takovska 43, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia; [email protected] 3Natural History Museum, Trg Vojvode Bećir Bega Osmanagića 16, 81000 Podgorica, Montenegro; [email protected]

Fossilized remains of leaves, roots and rhizomes of Nelumbo were collected in the area of Berane in Montenegro, immediately above the main coal layer. During the 1950’s in the main coal leyer were collected remains of Indricotherium sensu lato, while the layer overlaying Nelumbo included very rich Early Miocene dendroflora with a greater number of taxa.

Leaves of Nelumbo are orbicular, with diameter of at least 14 cm. The venation is typical peltate and the petiole is situated in center of leaf. The veins show dichotomous branching at the ends. Other preserved parts included rhizomes with root-bearing nodes and leaf or flower petals with characteristic longitudinal lines. One specimen bears visible areoles. No tubers or reproductive organs were recorded.

Berane Basin is known as a very rich site for Neogene flora, so far including records of Early Miocene, Middle Miocene and Mio-Pliocene floras. The specimens of Nelumbo inhabited the area of a large lake that probably lasted in this area during the whole Miocene. According to the Early Miocene macroflora recorded in the wider area of Berane, including a greater ratio of deciduous than evergreen genera of dendroflora, it may be concluded that climate was characterized by warmer and colder annual seasons.





29

CLIMATE AND VEGETATION DYNAMICS FROM THE HIGH ARCTIC TO THE CASPIAN

REGION DURING

THE CENOZOIC – A STUDY BASED ON FOSSIL MACRO- AND MICROFLORAS

Svetlana Popova1, Torsten Utescher2, 3, Dimitry V. Gromyko1 and Angela A. Bruch4 1Komarov Botanical Institute, Lab. of Paleobotany, 2 Prof. Popova Street, 197376 St. Petersburg, Russia;

[email protected] 2Steinmann Institute, Bonn University, Nussallee 8, 53115 Bonn, Germany; t.utescher @uni-bonn.de 3Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum, Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre,

Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany 4Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Research Center ‘The Role of Culture in Early Expansions of Humans’

at Senckenberg Research Institute, Senckenberganlage 25, Frankfurt am Main, Germany; [email protected]

Today, Central Eurasia has extreme climatic gradients that are mirrored in the biosphere,

with biomes ranging from steppe over Taiga forest to Arctic tundra. The study of these gradients

and patterns in past time slices can significantly contribute to the understanding of climate and

vegetation evolution in this crucial area. Here we present first results obtained from 37 well-dated

mega- (fruits and seeds, leaves) and microfloras (pollen and spores) compiled from palaeobotanical

literature. The selected floras originate from the Caspian region, Kazakhstan, Western Siberia, and

the High Arctic and allow for a first analysis of latitudinal vegetation and climate gradients in three

Cenozoic time slices (early Oligocene, early Miocene, early Pleistocene). In order to minimize

taphonomic effects we reconstruct vegetation at the level of plant functional types (PFTs) using a

system with 26 herbaceous to arboreal pfts. For quantitative palaeoclimate reconstruction we use

the Coexistence Approach providing results for various temperature and precipitation variables.

The PFT diversity spectra show patterns that are interpretable in terms of zonal vegetation. For the

early Oligocene and early Miocene our data suggest the presence of warm temperate mixed

mesophytic forests in the mid-latitudes of Central Asia (from ca. 40 – 55°N), followed by temperate

broadleaved-conifer mixed forest towards the North (at ~70°N), in the area of present-day Arctic

tundra. Our early Pliocene PFT spectra point to the existence of more open biomes at the latitude

of ca. 50 °N, with openness and diversities of drought-tolerant PFTs increasing from West to East.

The early Pleistocene forest vegetation at the latitude of ca. 60°N, presently covered by taiga, had a

considerable diversity in broadleaved deciduous arboreals and shrubs. Beyound that, PFT data

reconstructed in this pilot study provides insight into representativeness of PFT spectra obtained

from different organ types and their incompleteness, respectively. Palaeoclimate data obtained

from the floras consistently document the evolution of the latitudinal temperature gradient in the

study area throughout the time-span considered. It is shown that a very shallow MAT gradient

existed in the early Oligocene and early Miocene (ca. 0.3°C / °lat) while in the early Pleistocene the

gradient was steeper (ca. 0.5°C / °lat) but still clearly smaller when compared to the modern one



30

(ca. 0.88°C/°lat). Work is in progress to set up a project in order to include more localities and time

slices and thus to improve the resolution of the reconstructions presented here.


31

MIOCENE FLORA AND CLIMATE OF WENSHAN, SW CHINA AND THEIR ECOLOGICAL

IMPLICATIONS

Jian Huang1,2 and Zhe-Kun Zhou1

1Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences,

Menglun, Yunnan 666303, PR China; [email protected], [email protected] 2 University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China

The Miocene Wenshan flora is located in Wenshan Basin, southeast Yunnan Province, which is

situated in the karstic region of south China. This site is special for palaeoenvironment study

because of the age of it is 15-16.6 Ma (Miocene Climatic Optimum) based on palaeomagnetic data,

whereas other Miocene sites in Yunnan are almost from late Miocene. So far, 50 taxa were

identified including fern, conifers and angiosperms. The species composition shows/reveals that the

flora is a subtropical evergreen broadleaved forest dominated by Castanopsis, Cyclobalanopsis,

Lithocarpus, Machilus, Engelhardtia and etc. In addition, common taxa in evergreen broadleaved

forest such as Cinammomum, Holboellia, Eurya, Photinia, Itea, and Pittosporum were also

identified. Various deciduous taxa like Quercus, Zelkova, Carpinus and Fraxinus reveal a cool climate

in the winter that time. A lot of calciphilous taxa such as Eriobotrya, Dalbergia, Bauhinia, Ficus cf.

erecta, Burritodendron and Tirpitzia indicate that the karstic environment influenced the species

composition. Meanwhile, Coriaria and Mallotus, reflecting an open environment, and the riparian

Salix and Syzygium show the differentiated habitat in Wenshan flora. The rich diversity of

subtropical Hamamelidaceae and Altingiaceae -- Exbucklandia, Mytilaria, Rhodoleia, Sycopsis,

Altingia and Liquidambar and suggests it was a biodiversity center for Hamamelidaceae s. l. during

that period. In this locality, Pinus massoniana was found, demonstrating that this flora displays

close affinity with the East China Flora. Extinct genus Chaneya (Juglandaceae) and extirpated

Sequoia were also found in the flora, they might have gone extinct because of the intensification of

the seasonality.

The preliminary palaeoclimate was reconstructed based on the Coexistence Approach (CA). The

Mean Annual Temperature (MAT) was calculated to be 5.6–21.9 °C, indicating a similar

temperature to today (17.9 °C). But it was warmer during the warmest month (MWMT, 25.0–28.1

°C, 23.2 °C today). The seasonality in temperature is more pronounced (MWMT = 27.3–27.8 °C

compared to MCMT = 10.6–13.4 °C). The Mean Annual Precipitation (MAP) was calculated to be

1096–1597 mm, indicating a wetter climate than today (1069 mm). The driest month precipitation

(MPDRY) represents 8.8 to 10.6% of the wettest month precipitation (MPWET), indicating that

seasonality was present, but not as strong as today.



32

PALAEOENVIRONMENTAL AND PALAEOCLIMATIC ASPECTS FROM PALYNOLOGICAL

DATA OF TWO ATHALASSIC SALINE MIOCENE LACUSTRINE SYSTEMS OF THE

IBERIAN PENINSULA

Eduardo Barrón1, Pere Anadón2, María Teresa Martín-Rubio3, Julio Rodríguez-Lázaro4,

Rosa Utrilla2 and Antonio Vázquez2

1Instituto Geológico y Minero de España (IGME), Ríos Rosas 23, 28003 Madrid, Spain; [email protected] 2Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra Jaume Almera (ICTJA) - CSIC, Lluis Solé i Sabarís s/n, 08028 Barcelona, Spain;

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected] 3Dept. Ingeniería Minera y Metalúrgica y Ciencia de los Materiales, Escuela Universitaria de Ingeniería Técnica de Minas

y Obras Públicas, Rafael Moreno 'Pitxitxi' 2, 48013 Bilbao (Bizkaia), Spain; [email protected] 4Dept. Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología, Universidad del País Vaso/Euskal Herriko

Unibertsitatea UPV/EHU, Apartado 644, 48080 Bilbao, Spain; [email protected]

Miocene palaeobotanical data of the center of the Iberian Peninsula are scarce. For this reason,

most environmental reconstructions were made from the study of vertebrate micro and

macrofaunas which occur frequently in the Cenozoic Iberian basins. There are a few information

about the palaeovegetation of the Miocene of the Ebro Basin. The study of the sediments of an

athalassic saline Middle Miocene lake in the mentioned Basin (the Moneva section, Zaragoza

province, 13 m thick) allowed us to infer an interesting palynoflora which shows two palynological

intervals:

The lower Interval I shows similar percentages of AP and NAP. At this interval, Pinus is the

predominant taxon. Other arboreal pollens exhibit conspicuous percentages as the values of

Cathaya, Fraxinus, Myrica, evergreen Quercus and Hamamelidaceae indicate. Pteridophyta and

hydrophytic angiosperms such as Sparganium, Cyperaceae and Alismataceae, are also well-

represented in this interval.

The upper Interval II which is stratigraphically located above the Interval I, is characterized

by the predominance of NAP. Poaceae and Amaranthaceae increase, whereas arboreal pollen

markedly decreases. However, the occurrence of AP is low but constant. Considering NAP, a

marked change of dominance can be regarded at the top of the succession because of the increase

of Amaranthaceae opposite to Poaceae.

The calculated coexistence interval based on the fossil spore and pollen assemblages

suggests an interval of MAT of 16.5–18.8 ºC for the studied period. This is clearly higher than the

current of 13.4ºC reported for the area by the Instituto Nacional de Meteorología (The Spanish

Meteorological Institute). The MTC interval calculated was wide 6.1–12.3 ºC, being lower the

current MTC (around 4.9 ºC). The MTW of Moneva was between 27.3 and 27.7ºC, much higher

than that of present times (around 22.5ºC). Considering the selected taxa, two intervals of MAP

have been inferred. The first obtained was between 800 and 932 mm and is determined by






33

Cycadaceae and Ephedra. The second one has been calculated from the presence of Lygeum at

241–373 mm. This interval is more similar to the current value which is around 372 mm.

The palynological results of Moneva can be compared to those from the Middle? Miocene

athalassic saline sequence of Arcas del Villar gypsum quarry (Tagus Basin) where a landscape

characterized by prairies with some forested riparian areas near lakes and swamps has been

inferred.

This work is a contribution of the research Project LACATALAS (Environmental

characterization of Miocene lacustrine systems with marine-like faunas from the Duero and Ebro

basins: geochemistry of biogenic carbonates and palynology, CGL2011-23438/BTE”).


34

FOSSIL INSECTS AND PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY

Enrique Peñalver

Instituto Geológico y Minero de España (IGME), Ríos Rosas, 23, 28003 Madrid, Spain; [email protected]

In the geological history of the insects we can trace the most historical factors as climate

change, continental drift, extinction, and the like. Some insect groups are today very sensitive to

climate and climate change. However, the use of the insects as palaeoclimatic indicators for pre-

Pliocene localities has been poorly considered up to now.

This communication addresses the potential use of fossil insects as palaeoclimatic indicators

in continental environments. Main fossil insect deposits are related to ancient continental water

bodies (compressions in laminated rocks) and resiniferous forests (bioinclusions in amber). If we

found fossil insects in these deposits, generally the following circumstances occur: 1) the fossil

insects are well-preserved, allowing suitable taxonomic classifications; 2) the fossil insects are

abundant and taxonomically diverse at order- to species- levels; 3) they are in association to

abundant micro- to mesoremains of fossil plants (in the same laminated surfaces or in the amber

bearing rocks). Because plants generally are good palaeoclimatic indicators, they can offer a test to

confront palaeoclimatic inferences obtained from the fossil insect assemblages.

The inference of palaeoclimatic data from fossil insect taxa is based on their nearest living

relatives (actualism). If the fossil taxa to compare, for example families or genera, are extinct, or

their living relatives are phylogenetically distant, then the palaeoclimatic data that can be deducted

are strongly dubious. For these reasons, this type of potential use of fossil insects is more suitable

for younger paleontological localities. At this respect, there is a relevant research done on

Quaternary deposits, but not on older deposits. Other problems must be considered: 1) presence of

aloctonous taxa, for example grasshoppers that arrived to the palaeoenvironment in swarms, and

2) possible taphonomic biases against some taxa that can provide palaeoclimatic data.

The family Bibionidae (march flies) was used in 2008 to estimate the temperature changes

between the Late Eocene and the Late Miocene in Western Europe. The research concluded that

the living genus Plecia is a good indicator of the warm Cenozoic palaeoclimates, because it is very

sensitive to temperature changes and is restricted today to warm–hot climates. Bibionids are

abundant in lacustrine compression localities, but very scarce as bioinclusions in amber.

Two Spanish palaeoentomofaunas as examples to discuss some of the above aspects are

described in the present communication: 1) bioinclusions in Spanish Cretaceous amber

(Peñacerrada, El Soplao and San Just localities: Upper Albian), and 2) compression fossils in

lacustrine oil shales (Ribesalbes and Rubielos de Mora localities: Lower Miocene).

The potential use of other insect groups, apart from Bibionidae, as palaeoclimatic indicators

must be investigated. As a main conclusion, the rich fossil insect assemblages of the Cenozoic (pre-



35

Pliocene), and in a minor manner the Mesozoic ones, can be used to obtain qualitative

palaeoclimatic inferences to be confronted to the palaeoclimatic data provided by the fossil plants

in the same localities.


36

LATE MIOCENE CLIMATE IN THE NORTHEASTERN IBERIAN PENINSULA:

NEW DATA FOR THE LA CERDANYA BASIN

José María Postigo-Mijarra1 and Eduardo Barrón2

1Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. Escuela de Ingeniería de Montes, Forestal y del Medio Natural. Departamento de

Sistemas y Recursos Naturales, 28040 Madrid, Spain; [email protected] 2Museo Geominero, Instituto Geológico y Minero de España (IGME), Ríos Rosas, 23, 28003 Madrid, Spain;

[email protected]

There are few Miocene sites on the Iberian Peninsula in which comprehensive studies on its

macro- and palynoflora have been carried out. One of these scarce sites is the La Cerdanya basin, a

small Tortonian–early Messinian basin located in the Eastern Pyrenees (Catalonia, Spain). From 19th

century to date, many palaeobotanists have been focused on the study of this basin and,

consequently, due to the detailed knowledge about its megaflora and palynoflora, the La Cerdanya

basin is an ideal site to determine also palaeoclimates.

As regards macroflora, sixty three taxa from the Tortonian sites of Coll de Saig, Balltarga,

Torrent de Vilella, Beders, Barranc de Salanca and Pedró, have been considered for palaeoclimate

analysis using the CA method. The coexistence intervals calculated are: MAT (11.7–16.2 °C), CMM

(0.4–3.8 °C), WMM (25.1–26.1 °C), MAP (1,098–1,355 mm), MPwet (148–194 mm), MPdry (25–38

mm) and MPwarm (79–116 mm). Regarding the palynoflora, three new palynological set of

Tortonian data, in total 58 samples from the Sanavastre, Sansor and Lago sites, have been also

analysed by the CA method. The most common intervals inferred are: MAT (13.3–14.5 (17.2) °C),

CMM (0.7–4.4 °C), WMM (24.9–25.3 °C), MAP ((740) 996–1,262 mm), MPwet (117–153 mm),

MPdry ((26) 43–54 mm) and MPwarm (81–84 mm). The data calculated, from seven parameters

plus MARP and MART, show a humid, warm temperate climate for the Tortonian, with marked

seasonality regarding the temperature parameters. Thus, the mean annual range of temperature

(MART), 22.6 °C and 23.5 °C respectively for micro- and macroflora, displays a clear seasonality in

the calculated past climate. Likewise, values of MPwarm (>79mm) suggest the absence of a dry

summer. Comparing both Tortonian and present-day climate, we can conclude that Tortonian

climate was clearly warmer, ca. 5.7 up to ca. 10-11 °C for MAT values and ca. 4.3 to 5.5 °C for WMM

values. However, a less marked annual seasonality than present-day is suggested since present-day

values of MART reach in the La Cerdanya basin up to 25.9 °C. Previous studies using Climate

Amplitude Method in the La Cerdanya basin match relatively well with our calculated values by CA

analysis. Comparing the results obtained by CA analysis, the La Cerdanya basin shows similar

climatic values than other Early Tortonian sites in the Iberian Peninsula (e.g. Burgos, Povoa and

Lisbon sites). Perhaps, values of MAT and CMM are slightly lower in the la Cerdanya site than other

sites, which could be related with the position of this basin into the possible climatic latitudinal

gradient described for the Iberian Peninsula. Likewise, the coexistence intervals obtained from La

Cerdanya basin are in consonance with previous data from Europe for the Tortonian period. Thus,



37

most Tortonian precipitation data from Central Europe show MAP values between ca. 1,000 and

1,300 mm which match well with the coexistence intervals calculated for the La Cerdanya basin.

Finally, three palynological levels of an early Messinian age from Lago site have been

analysed, showing coexistence intervals of ca. MAT (13.3–14.5 °C), CMT (0.4–1.1 °C), WMT (22.2–

25.3 °C), MAP (740–1,281 mm), MPwet (96–153 mm), MPdry (26–47 mm) and MPwet (55–84 mm).

These results are in consonance with the Tortonian values and do not indicate a significant climate

change. The palaeoclimate data calculated by Climatic Amplitude Analysis for the Can Vilella site

show a similar range in precipitation. Besides, their most likely values for temperature (TA=17ºC

and TW=24.6 °C) match relatively well with the La Cerdanya one. The coeval sites of Venta del

Moro, Gibraleón and Carmona, display higher values in temperature than the La Cerdanya basin,

which might be influenced by regional factors (e.g. local conditions) or by their latitudinal location

on the Iberian Peninsula.


38

A RECONSTRUCTION OF PALAEO-MACARONESIA, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO

THE LONG-TERM BIOGEOGRAPHY OF THE ATLANTIC ISLAND LAUREL FORESTS

José María Fernández-Palacios1, Lea de Nascimento1 and Robert J. Whittaker2 1 Island Ecology and Biogeography Research Group, Instituto Universitario de Enfermedades Tropicales y Salud Pública

de Canarias, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna, 38206, Tenerife, Spain; [email protected], [email protected] 2 Biodiversity Research Group, School of Geography and the Environment, Oxford University Centre for the

Environment, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, United Kingdom;

Macaronesia is a biogeographical region comprising five Atlantic Oceanic Archipelagos with

strong floristic affinities with the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula and the north-western

fringes of Africa. Here we re-evaluate the biogeographical history and relationships of Macaronesia

in the light of geological evidence, which suggests that large and high islands may have been

continuously available in the region for very much longer than is indicated by the maximum surface

area of the oldest current island (27 Ma) – possibly for as long as 60 million years. We review this

literature, attempting a sequential reconstruction of Palaeo-Macaronesia from 60 Ma to the

present. We consider the implications of these geological dynamics for our understanding of the

history of colonization of the present islands of Macaronesia.

We also evaluate the role of these archipelagos as stepping stones and as repositories of

palaeo-endemic forms. Our principal focus is on the laurel forest communities, long considered

impoverished relicts of the Palaeotropical Tethyan flora. This account is therefore contextualized by

reference to the long-term climatic and biogeographical history of Southern Europe and North

Africa and by consideration of the implications of changes in land–sea configuration, climate and

ocean circulation for Macaronesian biogeography.



39

LATE PLIOCENE CLIMATIC FLUCTUATIONS IN THE SOUTHERN UKRAINE AND THEIR

DISPLAY IN BIOTA COMPOSITION

Olena Sirenko1, Tetiana Stefanska2 and Olesya Bondar2

1Institute of Geological Sciences, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev; [email protected] 2Oles Honchar Dnipropetrovsk National University, Ukraine, Dnipropetrovsk; [email protected],

[email protected]

In the southern regions of the Ukraine continental and marine lagoon Kuyalnik (Akchagylian)

deposits of the Upper Pliocene are extended. Detailed palynological studies of these heterofacial

sediments made it possible to reconstruct the climatic changes in the Late Pliocene. The analysis of

the Late Pliocene vegetation cover of the Southern Ukraine indicates numerous paleoclimatic

fluctuations during the Late Pliocene. Two cooling episodes and three episodes of warming are

established. The first most intensive cooling dated to the turn of 3.5 Ma. This milestone is

responsible from the start of Early Kuyalnik time (for areas of marine deposits) and Kizylyar time

(for the area of continental deposits). The second maximum corresponds to the cold level of 2.58

Ma (respectively Middle Kuyalnik top and Early Siver time). The first warming event was registered

in the Early Kuyalnik (for areas adjacent to the saltwater pool) and the Early Bogdanov time (for

areas of continental deposits). The second warming took place in the Late Kuyalnik time (for areas

adjacent to the saltwater pool) and Beregov time (for areas of continental deposits). Short warming

episode was timed to mid Middle Kuyalnik (Akchagylian) and the Middle Siver time.

Climatic changes had a significant impact on the living conditions of terrestrial and marine

biota, as well as the peculiarities of sedimentation in the Kuyalnik Basin. The most of the studied

sections are characterized by lithologic diversity. There is often alternation of light, greenish-gray,

blue-gray clays and sands with dark gray and black clays. The last of them either have no

paleontological remains or contain fossils (Abra, Hydrobia, Nonion, Protelphidium, Ammonia), that

indicate a deficit of oxygen and shortness of gas exchange. The fauna of the marine and freshwater

mollusks, foraminifera and ostracods is generally uneven vertical distribution. In the lower and

middle parts of Kuyalnik sediments fauna is more diverse and paleocenoses have brackish

character; besides fauna here there are the remains of the aquatic plants – gyrogonits of Characea.

The freshwater organisms dominate at the top of the sections but only single ostracods are the

most found. Throughout the sections there are interlayers without fauna. Such distribution of fossil

remains represents the faunal successions and clearly indicates an environmental instability,

particularly Late Pliocene climatic fluctuations.




40

WEST AMAZON – PALAEOCLIMATIC INTERPRETATIONS THROUGH PALAEOFLORA

Nelsa Cardoso1, Nei Ahrens Haag2, Camile Urban3 and Karen Adami Rodrigues3 1Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul - PUCRS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; [email protected] 2Universidade Federal do Acre - UFAC, Cruzeiro do Sul, AC, Brazil - [email protected] 3Universidade Federal de Pelotas - UFPEL, Pelotas, RS, Brazil - [email protected], [email protected]

The big area today occupied by the Amazon rainforest Biome in South America is

characterized by a high biodiversity and different types of vegetation, and its subsequent

physiognomy depends on the climatic and soil factors, where the weather determining the

distribution of vegetables. The known hypothesis "Refuge Theory" helps to understand how relate

geoclimatic events past tenses to explain such biodiversity in that region, which assumes that

during the Pleistocene, the Amazon forest was fragmented, sharing space with Cerrado vegetation

in lower rainfall areas during the current time. The fossil flora of the state of Acre, Brazil, is in a

discovery stage, being objective of this study to identify it and raise taphonomic and

paleoecological parameters to assist in the understanding of their evolutionary relationship to

current Amazon flora. In August 2014 the UFAC, through financial support of MCTI, organized an

expedition along the River Juruá, aiming georeference the outcrops from Brazilian side to the

border with Peru in the village of Foz do Breu. Were 34 outcrops located, of which three (PRJ 2C,

PRJ 23 & 06 PRJ) had plant macrofossils. This material consists of mummified leaf fragments,

showing interactions with insects, i.e. herbivory and oviposition, the latter is indicated by the

presence of galls, as are perceptible marks made by fungal attack. Such tags allow

paleoenvironmental inferences and the presence of stomata in the leaf surface emphasizes

preserving the leaf cuticle, which shows an anoxic condition during the fossildiagenetic process. The

age of the material shall be kept with radiocarbon method 14. Environmental interpretation refers

to a flood plain where there is presence of facies with laminate pelites and sandstone, indicating a

depositional environment with increased energy, which would be similar to the current

environment known as lowland forest, a typical forest formation of the Amazon region, seasonally

flooded. The spatial relationship of deposits allows inferring stability in paleoenvironmental and

remained the meandering fluvial system with active channels, as geological data on floodplain.

Phytofossils have found similar ways to present vegetables leaves, predominantly mesophilic

elements, which induces the interpretation of a flora of hot/humid environment in tropical lowland

rainforest. Inferences about current vegetation patterns are commonly used in the possibility that

these have been repeated in floras preterit. Vegetables megafossils recorded in these outcrops are

important source of data for refinement Paleoecological and taphonomic studies, which should be

used in future studies of paleoclimate reconstruction and paleoenvironmental of the southwestern

Amazon.






41

This work is part of the Project: "Biochronostratigraphy and Paleoecologia Based on Potential Fossil

of Cretaceous - Neogene of Acre Basin, Jurua Valley, South Western Amazon". Process:

01200.001631 / 2010-32 - MCTI / UFAC / PALEONTOLOGY area - UFAC - FOREST CAMPUS


42

POSTER SESSION

DYNAMICS OF BIODIVERSITY IN THE BULGARIAN CENOZOIC FLORA BASED ON

MACROPALAEOBOTANICAL DATA

Vladimir Bozukov1 and Torsten Utescher2

1Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 23, BG-

1113 Sofia, Bulgaria; [email protected] 2Senckenberg Research Institute/BiK F (Loewe), Frankfurt am Main; Steinmann Institute, University of Bonn, Nussallee

8, 53115 Bonn, Germany; [email protected]

The composition of the Bulgarian Cenozoic macroflora includes 862 taxa determined to

species or genus level. They belong to a total of 369 genera and 147 families. Here we present a

study on biodiversity of extinct genera in the Cenozoic macroflora of Bulgaria. Our results represent

percentages of extinct genera in relevant macrofloras as follows: early Eocene – 14.3 %; late Eocene

– 23.3 %; early Oligocene – 17.20 %; late Oligocene – 12.50 %; middle Miocene – 9.50 %; late

Miocene – 6.20 %; early Pliocene – 5.50 %; late Pliocene – 0 %. Data on the early Miocene and

Pleistocene are not available because respective macrofloras have not been established in Bulgaria.

When comparing these data it is shown that the diversity percentages of extinct genera varied

throughout the Paleogene reaching highest value in the late Eocene, while percentages

continuously decreased during Neogene times. Similar dynamics can be observed from the diversity

of families of the Bulgarian Cenozoic flora, whose representatives are not found in Western Eurasia

today. During the Paleogene, these percentages ranged from 14.29 % to 21. 43 %, while during

Neogene the percentage of allochthonous families marks a peak of 24.75 % in middle Miocene.

Thereafter, the diversity of allochthonous families continuously declined to 12 % in the Pliocene,

the lowest value recorded for the Cenozoic stages of Bulgaria. The high diversity of these elements

in the middle Miocene can be explained by favourable climatic conditions existing during the Mid-

Miocene Climatic Optimum promoting the immigration of allochthonous species from Asia and

Africa. The fact that the territory of Bulgaria is known as refuge area for European Paleogene plant

species in the middle Miocene also contributed to the high level of biodiversity in this time period.




43

A REVISION OF PAST CLIMATE OF THE MACARONESIAN ARCHIPELAGOS DURING

THE LAST GLACIATION CYCLE

Lea de Nascimento1, Sérgio P. Ávila2, Ana Cabero3, Rachid Cheddadi4, Simon E.

Connor5, Constantino Criado6, Pedro Dorta6, Dominik Faust7, Silvia Fernández-Lugo1,

Tom Hengl8, Henry Hooghiemstra9, Francisca MartínezRuíz10, Sandra Nogué11, Sietze

Norder12, Kenneth F. Rijsdijk12, Juan Manuel Rubiales13, Hans von Suchodoletz7, Robert

J. Whittaker14, Kathy J. Willis11, Yurena Yanes15 and José María FernándezPalacios1 1Island Ecology and Biogeography Research Group, (IUETSPC), University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain;

[email protected], [email protected] 2Departamento de Biología, Universidade dos Açores, Ponta Delgada, Açores, Portugal. 3Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Madrid, Spain 4Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution (ISEM), CNRS UMR 5554, Université de Montpellier II, Montpellier, France.

5School of Geography and the Environment, Monash University, Monash, Victoria, Australia. 6Departamento of Geografía, Facultad de Geografía e Historia, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain. 7Institute of Geography, University of Technology Dresden, Dresden, Germany. 8Global Soil Information Facilities ISRIC, Wageningen, The Netherlands. 9Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 10Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra (CSIC-UGR), Armilla, Granada, Spain. 11Long-term Ecology Laboratory, Biodiversity Institute, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. 12Computation GeoEcology Group IBED, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 13Escuela de Ingeniería Forestal y del Medio Natural, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. 14School of Geography and Environment, Oxford University, Oxford, UK. 15Department of Geology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.

At the First Macaronesian Palaeoclimate Workshop researchers from different disciplines

(biogeography, botany, ecology, geography, geomorphology, palaeoecology, palaeontology,

zoology) put together evidence on past climate obtained from different proxies (fossil pollen,

palaeosoils, palaeodunes, fossil marine and terrestrial gastropod assemblages, plant macrofossils,

marine sediments, etc.) and discuss on the knowledge available to reconstruct the climate of the

Last Glaciation cycle (from the Eemian interglacial to present) in the Macaronesian archipelagos. A

main conclusion of the workshop was the large agreement in the existence of a general gap of

knowledge, especially the farther back in time (Eemian) and the farther southwards (Cape Verde).

LGM–last deglaciation was highlighted as the period of greatest impact on island geographical,

climatic and biotic conditions due to the effects of sea level rise. Several topics were stressed as

priority for research programs including which where the prevailing marine and wind regimes in the

past, and the need of high-resolution bottom topography around the islands to improve the

reconstruction of island’s area, elevation isolation and configuration changes due to climate-driven

sea-level oscillations.




44

QUANTIFICATION OF COMPONENT DIVERSITIES WITHIN CIRCUMALPINE

CARBONATES ACROSS THE PALEOGENE/NEOGENE TRANSITION

James H. Nebelsick1, Davide Bassi2, Florian Nitsch1 and Tobias B. Grun1 1Department of Geosciences, University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstraße 12, D-72074 Tübingen, Germany; nebelsick@uni-

tuebingen.de, [email protected], [email protected] 2Dipartimento di Fisica e Scienze della Terra, Università di Ferrara, via Saragat 1, I-44122 Ferrara, Italy; [email protected]

Variations in component and facies distributions within shallow-water marine carbonates

directly reflect changing paleoclimate and paleogeography. In this study, environmental and

paleogeographic gradients are analyzed within and between Paleogene (Oligocene) to Neogene

(Lower Miocene) carbonates of the circumalpine area. The data originates from standardized

component quantification of thin sections. The taxonomic rank to which components can be

identified depends on the presence and preservation (microtaphofacies) of diagnostic

morphological features. Statistical methods used include bivariate analysis (Spearman´s rank

coefficients) of component relationships in order to explore ecological requirements as well as

substrate relationships. Multivariate analysis, including MDS (multi-dimensional scaling) and cluster

analysis are used to distinguish microfacies types based on component distributions. Diversity

gradients can also be followed with respect to specific components.

The thin sections are derived from detailed stratigraphic sections of carbonates originating

from three time slices (Early Oligocene, Late Oligocene and Early Miocene) from localities north

(Southern Germany, Austria) and south (Northern Italy, Slovenia) of the Alps. These time slices

show strong variations in: 1) local environmental factors such as terrigenous influx, 2) regional

paleogeography (within the Mediterranean Tethys and Paratethys), as well as 3) factors related to

global climatic change. Lower Oligocene sediments are generally mud rich deposits dominated by

coralline algae, larger foraminifera, smaller benthic foraminifera and corals. Upper Oligocene

sediments are show diverse coralline algal floras and larger foraminiferal faunas. Lower Miocene

sediments are dominated by bryozoans, balanid barnacles, coralline algae, various foraminifera,

echinoderms and bivalves.

Spearman´s rank coefficient show positive correlation between encrusting communities

including corals, coralline algae and encrusting foraminifers. Positive correlations are also present

between bryomol assemblages including bryozoans, brachiopods, serpulids and echinoderms.

Negative correlations are present between these latter components and corals, larger benthic

foraminifera and coralline algae. MDS show that coralline algae are ubiquitous, setting them apart

from all other biotic components. Q-mode analysis shows clear distinction between the different

time slices which are greater than between geographic areas within time slices, a result also

reflected in the cluster analysis. The results are discussed with respect to local, regions and global



45

changes of ambient environmental parameters controlling component distributions within shallow

water carbonates.


46

MIOCENE VEGETATION AND CLIMATE IN THE CENTRE OF THE DUERO BASIN (SPAIN)

FROM PALYNOLOGICAL DATA

Mª Rosario Rivas-Carballo and María Valle-Hernández

Dpto. Geología, Área de Plaeontología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Salamanca, Plaza de la Merced, 37008

Salamanca, Spain; [email protected], [email protected]

A palaeoclimatic study using 29 palynological samples from 7 stratigraphic sections has carried out

in the province of Valladolid (central sector of the Duero Basin, Spain). These sections are arranged

in a WE transect and cover a time range from the Middle Aragonian (MN-5-MN8) to the base of

Vallesian (MN9).

The results indicate a uniform, next to current and prone to a slight increase in temperatures.

However, precipitations show high variation. Both MAP and HMP are more or less similar in all

samples and much higher than the current ones. LMP and WMP vary more between samples, but

are still higher than the current and this trend increases towards the Vallesian.



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SHAPE INDEX – A NEW PARAMETER FOR HEAT TRANSFER CAPACITY OF LEAVES

Anita Roth-Nebelsick1, Christopher Traiser1 and Wilfried Konrad2

1State Museum of Natural History, Stuttgart, Rosenstein 1, D-70191 Stuttgart; Germany; anita.rotnebelsick@smns-

bw.de 2University of Tübingen, Hölderlinstr. 12, D-72074 Tübingen, Germany; [email protected]

Due to their distinct correlation with environmental parameters, various leaf traits are an

essential tool in palaeoclimate and palaeoecological research. In many cases, however, a clear

identification of adaptive values of leaf traits is missing. Most straightforward aspects of adaptation

of leaf traits concern gas exchange (including photosynthesis) and heat transfer. Leaves which are

directly exposed to sun light may overheat when transpiration and therefore evaporational cooling

is restricted. Leaf size thus tends to be positively correlated with humidity. In hot environments

with limited water supply, small leaves are common since these leaves show a high degree of heat

dissipation without the need for transpiration.

The total area of a leaf is, however, not crucial for capacity of heat dissipation. Far more

important is the “edginess” of a leaf. With a given area, a circular shape has the lowest heat

dissipation capacity since its edge/area ratio is minimum. When the same area is arranged in the

form of a narrow rectangular, the heat dissipation capacity of the object is strongly enhanced. To

characterize heat transfer capacity of a leaf, the characteristic dimension is usually applied. This

parameter describes the path length that is encountered by an air stream flowing over the object.

For more circular or quadratic leaves, the characteristic dimension is given by their diameter, and

for rectangular leaves, the small axis is considered to show the characteristic dimension. For more

complex leaf shapes, however, such as lobed and deeply dissected leaves, it is quite difficult to

provide the characteristic dimension. Additionally, application of the characteristic dimension

always refers to the direction of the wind relatively to the leaf.

Here, we suggest an easy parameter for indicating heat transfer capacity of leaves

independent of wind direction, the shape index. It is derived from the circularity which provides the

degree of deviation of the object shape from that of a circle. Comparisons of the shape index of

various forms with heat transfer rates of these objects under different wind directions demonstrate

the suitability of the method. The shape index can be easily obtained from digitalized images with

suitable and affordable image processing software.





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GUIDED VISIT TO THE ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDEN

OCTOBER 17, 10:00 H (2 Murillo Square)

The Royal Botanical Garden is located in the center of Madrid besides the Prado Museum

from the Seventeen Century. It was designed by the architects Francisco Sabatini and Juan de

Villanueva which organized the garden into three terraces, arranging the plants according the

method of Linnaeus.

This garden has an area of 8-hectare and exhibits about 90,000 plants and 1,500 trees. Five

greenhouses are included between its installations. The oldests is the Graells greenhouse which

dates from the eighteen Century. The most relevant trees of this garden are these of the family

Ulmaceae. So important specimens of Zelkova carpinifolia and Ulmus minor live in the garden

together big honeyberries (Celtis australis).

Nowadays the Royal Botanical Garden is also an important research center depending of the

Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). Its scientific mission is to discover the diversity of plants

and fungi that exists, to understand how this diversity has arisen, and to promote its conservation.

It housed an important herbarium which was established in 1846, and now contains about a million

specimens from around the world. It is the largest herbarium in Spain and one of the most

representative in Europe.

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