n-alkanol ratios as proxies of paleovegetation and paleoclimate in a peat-lacustrine core in southern China since the last deglaciation

  • Yanhong Zheng
  • Shucheng Xie
  • Xiaomin Liu
  • Weijian Zhou
  • Philip A. Meyers
Research Article
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

High resolution records of long chain n-alkanol biomarkers were obtained from a peat-lacustrine core from the Dingnan profile in southern China. The n-alkanol distributions are characterized by the predominance of even-over-odd carbon number and maximize at C24 or C26. On the basis of the reported n-alkanol records in the literature and the n-alkane record in our samples, we concluded that the n-alkanol ratio of C26/C30 varying from 1.25 to 6.48, together with the n-alkanol ratio C22/C24 less than unity, is indicative of the presence of a dominant forest paleovegetation. A 2000-year cycling in the variation of the n-alkanol ratio C26/C30 is identifiable in our profile, and probably results from the change in the abundance of the grass relative to trees induced by a cyclic paleoclimate. The n-alkanol ratio C24/C26 appears to be more sensitive to change in precipitation than in temperature, and may be a potential indicator of precipitation/humidity, with increased values being associated with relatively dry conditions. The paleovegetation and the paleoclimate reconstructed on the basis of the n-alkanol records for the recent 18000 cal a BP in general accord with the pollen data and other lipid evidence recorded in the Dingnan region in southern China. In particular, both the n-alkanol records and the pollen data infer the different paleoclimate conditions for the two peat sequences, with a cool and wet climate dominating in the lower peat deposition formed during the latest Pleistocene and a change to a drier and cooler climate occurring in the upper peat sequence in mid-Holocene.

Keywords

southern China n-alkanols lipids paleovegetation and paleoclimate geobiology 
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Copyright information

© Higher Education Press and Springer Berlin Heidelberg 2009

Authors and Affiliations

  • Yanhong Zheng
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
  • Shucheng Xie
    • 2
  • Xiaomin Liu
    • 1
  • Weijian Zhou
    • 3
  • Philip A. Meyers
    • 4
  1. 1.State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of GeologyNorthwest UniversityXi’anChina
  2. 2.Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology of Ministry of EducationChina University of GeosciencesWuhanChina
  3. 3.State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth EnvironmentChinese Academy of SciencesXi’anChina
  4. 4.Department of Geological SciencesThe University of MichiganAnn ArborUSA

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