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A MIS 3 charcoal and pollen record and quantitative precipitation inferences from the Jingerwa section of the Nihewan Basin, north-central China

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Abstract

Pollen and charcoal data from the Jingerwa section of the Nihewan Basin, north-central China, were used to reconstruct vegetation and climate changes during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3. Mean annual precipitation changes were quantified by applying pollen-climate transfer functions. Sparse vegetation cover dominated by herbs indicates relatively dry climate between 51 and 43 cal ka BP. Between 43 and 35 cal ka BP, a Pinus-dominated forest reached its maximum extent, implying that climate was wetter than today. Severe fire episodes during that period suggest warm temperatures. Between 35 and 32 cal ka BP, forest retreat and the expansion of dryland vegetation are indicative of drier climates. Slightly wetter conditions prevailed between 32 and 29 cal ka BP, as indicated by the expansion of ferns. Our results suggest that the climate conditions in the Nihewan Basin during middle and late MIS 3 were probably wetter than today. This may have been caused by intensification of Asian monsoon circulation in response to greater insolation in June at 30°N. However, increases in summer temperatures and evaporation, triggered by peak summer insolation levels, may have led to a reduction in humidity around 35 cal ka BP.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Katy Wilson from University College London for help improving the writing. We are grateful to two anonymous reviewers, and editor Mark Brenner and Steffen Mischke for their valuable comments, which significantly improved the quality of the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41172150) and by the Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (Grant No. 1212011087116).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Environmental Resources and Tourism, Capital Normal University, 105 Xisanhuan North, Beijing, 100048, People’s Republic of China

    Xingqi Liu

  2. State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China

    Xingqi Liu

  3. Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China

    Zhenqing Chi & Yong Wang

  4. Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Research Unit Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany

    Ulrike Herzschuh & Jian Ni

  5. College of Resources and Environment Science, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, People’s Republic of China

    Qinghai Xu

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  1. Xingqi Liu
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Correspondence to Xingqi Liu.

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Liu, X., Chi, Z., Herzschuh, U. et al. A MIS 3 charcoal and pollen record and quantitative precipitation inferences from the Jingerwa section of the Nihewan Basin, north-central China. J Paleolimnol 51, 211–221 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-013-9716-8

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