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Vegetation and climate change on the Bolivian Altiplano between 108,000 and 18,000 yr ago

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Alex Chepstow-Lusty ,
Mark B. Bush ,
Michael R. Frogley ,
Paul A. Baker ,
Sherilyn C. Fritz  and
James Aronson
Alex Chepstow-Lusty*
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, 150 West University Boulevard Melbourne, FL 32901, USA Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution, Université Montpellier II, (UMR CNRS 5554), Paléoenvironnements, Montpellier Cedex 05, France
Mark B. Bush
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, 150 West University Boulevard Melbourne, FL 32901, USA
Michael R. Frogley
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, Centre for Environmental Research, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK
Paul A. Baker
Affiliation:
Division of Earth and Ocean Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0227, USA Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0227, USA
Sherilyn C. Fritz
Affiliation:
Department of Geosciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0340, USA School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0340, USA
James Aronson
Affiliation:
CEFE/CNRS (U.P.R. 9056), 34293 Montpellier Cedex 05, France
*
*Corresponding author. Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution, Université Montpellier II, (UMR CNRS 5554), Paléoenvironnements, Case 61, Pl. E. Bataillon, 34095 Montpellier Cedex 05, France.E-mail address:ajc14@cus.cam.ac.uk (A. Chepstow-Lusty).
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Abstract

A 90,000-yr record of environmental change before 18,000 cal yr B.P. has been constructed using pollen analyses from a sediment core obtained from Salar de Uyuni (3653 m above sea level) on the Bolivian Altiplano. The sequence consists of alternating mud and salt, which reflect shifts between wet and dry periods. Low abundances of aquatic species between 108,000 and 50,000 yr ago (such as Myriophyllum and Isoëtes) and marked fluctuations in Pediastrum suggest generally dry conditions dominated by saltpans. Between 50,000 yr ago and 36,000 cal yr B.P., lacustrine sediments become increasingly dominant. The transition to the formation of paleolake “Minchin” begins with marked rises in Isoëtes and Myriophyllum, suggesting a lake of moderate depth. Similarly, between 36,000 and 26,000 cal yr B.P., the transition to paleolake Tauca is also initiated by rises in Isoëtes and Myriophyllum; the sustained presence of Isoëtes indicates the development of flooded littoral communities associated with a lake maintained at a higher water level. Polylepis tarapacana-dominated communities were probably an important component of the Altiplano terrestrial vegetation during much of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and previous wet phases.

Keywords

QuaternaryPollenPolylepis tarapacanaSalar de UyuniAndesPaleohydrologyMyriophyllumIsoëtesPediastrum
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 63 , Issue 1 , January 2005 , pp. 90 - 98
Copyright
University of Washington

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