Terrestrial vegetation and lake aquatic community diversity under climate change during the mid–late Holocene in the Altai Mountains

authored by

S. Karachurina, N. Rudaya, L. Frolova, O. Kuzmina, X. Cao, V. Chepinoga, K. Stoof-Leichsenring, B. Biskaborn, U. Herzschuh, N. Nigmatullin, Y. Vnukovskaya, I. Grekov, L. Pestryakova

Abstract

Using pollen analysis and metabarcoding of plant sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNa), we infer the floristic diversity in the vicinity of Lake Balyktukel, Ulagan Plateau, the Altai Mountains, over the last 7 kyr. The SedaDNA method identified 200% more taxa than found by morphological pollen analysis. In particular, it revealed that the dominant tree for the last 7 kyr was Larix rather than Pinus, which was less frequent in the vicinity of Lake Balyktukel. About 7 ka, larch forest mixed with dwarf birch was widespread on the Ulagan Plateau. The period between 5.3 and 3.4 kyr BP was characterized by the maximal spread of larch forest with an understorey cover of Vaccinium vitis-idaea. Pollen-based annual precipitation reconstruction indicates the most humid phase was between 6.95 and 4.3 ka, and generally coincides with maximal phytodiversity. The most bioproductive period of the lake was from 7 to 6 ka. After that, the trophicity of the lake decreased until 4.5 ka. The appearance of Hippuris vulgaris and increase in Ranunculus subgen. Batrachium at about 5.3–5 ka may indicate the extension of shallow-water ecotopes. Between 3.7 and 3.5 ka, the cyanobacterium Anabaena – an indicator of increased organic matter and algal blooms – was widespread. A planktic thermophilic cladoceran Bosmina longirostris appeared after 1.8 ka and colonized the lake, suggesting an increase in lake trophicity. The last 100 years have been characterized by dramatic changes in the cladoceran community reflecting significant warming of climate.

External Organisation(s)

Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS (IAET SB RAS)
Tomsk State University
Kazan Volga Region Federal University
Trofimuk Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics SB RAS (IPGG SB RAS)
Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Herzen Russian State Pedagogical University
North-Eastern Federal University

Type

Article

Journal

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology

Volume

623

ISSN

0031-0182

Publication date

01.08.2023

Publication status

Published

Peer reviewed

Yes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Oceanography, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Earth-Surface Processes, Palaeontology

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being, SDG 13 - Climate Action, SDG 15 - Life on Land

Electronic version(s)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2023.111623 (Access: Open)