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A biomass burning record from the Lingtai Loess Section during the last 370 ka and implication for climate and environment

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Chinese Science Bulletin

Abstract

The history of natural fire and its relationship with climate and vegetation are revealed from the content of elemental carbon and associated pollen data and paleoclimatic substitutive indicators for the loess of Lingtai Section in the last 370 ka BP. The study indicates that intense episodes of vegetation fires occurred during the interim especially when the climate was changing from wet to drought. The average content of elemental carbon in the interglaciers is higher than that in the glaciers, which coincides with the biomass change locally (or globally). The content of elemental carbon increases in the stage around 130 ka BP, indicating that the vegetation and climate pattem have changed, which may contribute to the variation of CO2. As a whole, the content of elemental carbon increasing with the time reflects the increasing aridity trend to some degree. In addition, the occurrence of the maximum peak and the highest average content of elemental carbon in the Holocene reflects the occurrence of a rapid climate event in 5900 a BP and more frequent fires caused by anthropic activities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    Zhou Bin, Shen Chengde, Sun Yanmin, Yang Ying & Yi Weixi

  2. Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100039, China

    Zhou Bin

  3. Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an, 710054, China

    Shen Chengde

Authors
  1. Zhou Bin
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  2. Shen Chengde
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  3. Sun Yanmin
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  4. Yang Ying
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  5. Yi Weixi
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Correspondence to Zhou Bin.

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Zhou, B., Shen, C., Sun, Y. et al. A biomass burning record from the Lingtai Loess Section during the last 370 ka and implication for climate and environment. CHINESE SCI BULL 51, 2116–2124 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-006-2065-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-006-2065-5

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