Abstract
Wild rice (Zizania spp. L.) is a North American native grain with spiritual and dietary significance to many native people. Wild rice is also an important aquatic plant that provides critical habitat to wetland and aquatic wildlife. Past distribution of wild rice in North America is poorly understood, largely because of the limited taxonomic resolution of Poaceae pollen. A novel technique for detecting diagnostic Zizania silica phytoliths allows unambiguous identification of this taxon in lake sediments. We need to better understand modern depositional patterns of phytoliths in lake sediments, however, before attempting detailed paleoreconstructions. We analyzed distributions of diagnostic Zizania and other Poaceae phytoliths in modern sediments from three lakes with variable percent cover of wild rice and a non-wild rice control lake in central Minnesota. Absolute counts of phytoliths per gram sediment were achieved using an exotic diatom marker. Non-Zizania short-cell phytoliths, i.e. phytoliths from wetland grasses Phragmites australis and Muhlenbergia glomerata, dominate the assemblages in all lakes. Most Poaceae short-cell phytoliths appear to be derived locally, with little evidence for regional inheritance from eolian or alluvial processes. Because of anatomical differences in decay of plant debris and other taphonomic issues, Zizania inflorescence rondel phytoliths were most abundant, with morphotypes from other parts rarely encountered. Even in sediments under the densest wild rice stands, Zizania phytoliths contributed a maximum of 9 % to total Poaceae phytolith abundance. Lake morphology also affects the depositional pattern of phytoliths in modern sediments, so coring locations should be considered carefully. At least 500 phytoliths should be counted to detect a sufficient number of wild rice phytolith morphotypes. Diagnostic Zizania phytoliths are a reliable tool for wild rice detection in paleolake sediments.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson H (1998) A summary of the surficial geology of Mille Lacs Kathio State Park. Department of Natural Resources Minerals Division, St. Paul
Arriagada JE (2006) Plant communities of Lake Ogechie, Mille Lacs, County, MN. Report, Saint Cloud State University Department of Biological Sciences, Saint Cloud
Battarbee RW (1973) A new method for the estimation of absolute microfossil numbers, with reference especially to diatoms. Limnol Oceanogr 18:647–653
Birks HJB (1976) Late-Wisconsinian vegetational history at Wolf Creek, central Minnesota. Ecol Monogr 46:395–429
Blais JM, Kalff J (1995) The influence of lake morphometry on sediment focusing. Limnol Oceanogr 40:582–588
Boury-Esnault N, Rützler K (1997) Thesaurus of sponge morphology. Smith Contrib Zool 596:1–55
Carter JA (2002) Phytolith analysis and paleoenvironmental reconstruction from Lake Poukawa Core, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand. Global Planet Change 33:257–267
Clayton WD, Renvoize SA (1986) Genera Graminium: grasses of the world. Her Majesty’s Stationary Office, London
Davis MB (1973) Redeposition of pollen grains in lake sediment. Limnol Oceanogr 18:44–52
Dean WE (1974) Determination of carbonate and organic matter in calcareous sediments and sedimentary rocks by loss on ignition: comparison with other methods. J Sediment Petrol 44:242–248
Dore WG (1969) Wild rice. Canada Department of Agriculture, Research Branch, Publication 1393, Information Canada, Ottawa
Downing JA, Rath LC (1988) Spatial patchiness in the lacustrine sedimentary environment. Limnol Oceanogr 33:447–458
Farnham RS, McAndrews JH, Wright HE Jr (1964) A late-Wisconsin buried soil near Aitkin, Minnesota, and its paleobotanical setting. Am J Sci 262:393–412
Fassett NC (1924) A study of the genus Zizania. Rhodora 26:153–160
Giesecke T, Fontana SL (2008) Revisiting pollen accumulation rates from Swedish lakes sediments. Holocene 18:293–305
Glew JR (1991) Miniature gravity corer for recovering short sediment cores. J Paleolimnol 5:285–287
Grass Phylogeny Working Group (2001) Phylogeny and subfamilial classification of the grasses (Poaceae). Ann Missouri Bot Gard 88:373–457
Heiri O, Lotter AE, Lemcke G (2001) Loss on ignition as a method for estimating organic and carbonate content in sediments: reproducibility and comparability of results. J Paleolimnol 25:101–110
Huber JK (1996) A postglacial pollen and nonsiliceous algae record from Gegoka Lake, Lake County, Minnesota. J Paleolimnol 16:23–35
Huber JK (2001a) Palynological investigations related to archaeological sites and the expansion of wild rice (Zizania aquatica L.) in northeast Minnesota. Ph.D. thesis, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
Huber JK (2001b) A palynological investigation in the Superior National Forest, northeast Minnesota: results of a palaeoecological study of Shannon Lake, St. Louis Co., MN: Duluth, Archaeometry Laboratory, University of Minnesota-Duluth. Report submitted to Heritage Resources, Superior National Forest, Duluth, Minnesota, Archaeometry Report Number 01–18
Huber JK (2006) Poaceae pollen grain size frequency data infers the probable presence of wild rice in northeast Minnesota during the Late-Paleoindian period. Curr Res Pleistocene 23:157–159
Janssen CR (1966) Recent pollen spectra from the deciduous and coniferous-deciduous forests of northeastern Minnesota: a study in pollen dispersal. Ecol 47:804–825
Julius ML, Curtin M, Tanaka H (2006) Stephanodiscus kusuensis, sp. nov a new Pleistocene diatom from southern Japan. Phycol Res 54:294–301
Lee GA, Davis AM, Smith DG, McAndrews JH (2004) Identifying fossil wild rice (Zizania) pollen from Cootes Paradise, Ontario: a new approach using scanning electron microscopy. J Archaeol Sci 31:411–412
Lentfer CJ, Boyd WE (2003) Particle settling times for gravity sedimentation and centrifugation: a practical guide for palynologists. J Archaeol Sci 30:149–168
Lentfer CJ, Cotter MM, Boyd WE (1999) An assessment of techniques for the deflocculation and removal of clays from sediments used in phytolith analysis. J Archaeol Sci 26:31–44
Lu HY, Wu NQ, Yang XD, Jiang H, Liu KB, Liu TS (2006) Phytoliths as quantitative indicators for the reconstruction of past environmental conditions in China I: phytolith-based transfer functions. Quat Sci Rev 25:945–959
Maki JB (1970) A survey of certain limnological aspects of the rum river. MA thesis, Saint Cloud State College, MN
McAndrews JH (1969) Paleobotany of a wild rice lake in Minnesota. Can J Bot 47:1671–1679
McAndrews JH (2000) Wild rice and upland vegetation history near Lake Mille Lacs, Minnesota. In: Mather D, Abel E (eds) The Lake Onamia—trunk highway 169 data recovery project, Mille Lacs County, Minnesota. Loucks and Associates, Inc, Maple Grove
Orson RA, Simpson RL, Good RE (1992) The paleoecological development of a late Holocene, tidal freshwater marsh of the Upper Delaware River Estuary. Estuaries 15(2):130–146
Pastor J, Walker R (2006) Delays in nutrient cycling and plant population oscillations. Oikos 112:698–705
Pearsall DM (2000) Paleoethnobotany: a handbook of procedures. Academic Press, San Diego
Piperno DR (2006) Phytoliths: a comprehensive guide for archaeologists and paleoecologists. AltaMira Press, Lanham
Piperno DR, Pearsall DM (1998) The silica bodies of tropical American grasses: morphology, taxonomy, and implications for grass systematics and fossil phytolith identification. smithsonian contributions to botany 85. Smithsonian Inst Press, Washington, DC
Prychid CJ, Rudall PJ, Gregory M (2004) Systematics and biology of silica bodies in Monocotyledons. Bot Rev 69(4):377–440
Rogosin A (1954) An ecological history of wild rice. University of Minnesota Department of Botany Research Report, reproduced by Minnesota Department of Conservation, Division of Game and Fish, St. Paul
Rothaus RM (2000) The Ogechie Dam in Mille Lacs Kathio State Park. Report, Saint Cloud State University, Saint Cloud
Rothaus RM (2008) Wild rice restoration feasibility study, Lake Ogechie, Minnesota: environmental and cultural issues. Trefoil Cultural and Environmental Heritage and St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, MN. Report prepared for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Onamia
Stover EL (1928) The roots of wild rice, Zizania aquatica. Ohio J Sci 28:43–49
Strömberg CAE (2009) Methodological concerns for analysis of phytolith assemblages: does count size matter? Quatern Int 193:124–140
Terrell EE, Peterson PM, Reveal JL, Duvall MR (1997) Taxonomy of North American species of Zizania (Poaceae). SIDA Contrib Bot 17:533–549
Uriz MJ, Turon X, Becerro M, Agell G (2003) Siliceous spicules and skeleton frameworks in sponges: origin, diversity, ultrastructural patters and biological functions. Microsc Res Tech 62:279–299
Vennum T Jr (1998) Wild rice and the Ojibway people. Minnesota Historical Society Press, St. Paul
Watson L, Dallwitz MJ (1992) The grass genera of the world. CAB International, Wallingford
White BM (2000) The regional context of the removal order of 1850. In: McClurken JM (ed) Fish in the lakes, wild rice, and game in abundance. Mich State Univ Press, East Lansing, pp 282–289
Wright HE Jr (1990) An improved Hongve sampler for surface sediments. J Paleolimnol 4:91–92
Xu X, Walters C, Antolin MF, Alexander ML, Lutz S, Ge S, Wen J (2010) Phylogeny and biogeography of the eastern Asian-North American disjunct wild-rice genus (Zizania L., Poaceae). Mol Phylogenet Evol 55:1008–1017
Yost C (2007) Phytolith evidence for the presence and abundance of wild rice (Zizania palustris) from Central Minnesota Lake sediments. MS Thesis, Saint Cloud State University, Saint Cloud
Yost C, Blinnikov MS (2011) Locally diagnostic phytoliths of wild rice (Zizania palustris L.) from Minnesota, USA: comparison to other wetland grasses and usefulness for archaeobotany and paleoecological reconstructions. J Archaeol Sci 38:1977–1991
Yourd WJ (1988) The antiquity and distribution of wild rice in Lake Marquette, north-central Minnesota: implications for regional archaeology and the natural history of wild rice. MS thesis, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
Zhao Z, Pearsall DM (1998) Experiments for improving phytolith extraction from soils. J Archaeol Sci 25:587–598
Acknowledgments
We acknowledge support of R. Rothaus (SCSU, Trefoil Cultural and Environmental) who assisted with project planning and helped secure research funding for C. Yost. We also acknowledge Mille Lacs Kathio State Park for research permits and access to the study sites, and J. Huber for providing insights into collecting lake sediments. This project was supported by NSF grant GRS 618135 to M. Blinnikov and an SCSU graduate student assistantship and research grants to C. Yost, as well as a Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Tribe research grant to SCSU and C. Yost.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Yost, C.L., Blinnikov, M.S. & Julius, M.L. Detecting ancient wild rice (Zizania spp. L.) using phytoliths: a taphonomic study of modern wild rice in Minnesota (USA) lake sediments. J Paleolimnol 49, 221–236 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-012-9670-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-012-9670-x