An 8000-year multi-proxy peat-based palaeoclimate record from Newfoundland: Evidence of coherent changes in bog surface wetness and ocean circulation
An 8000-year multi-proxy peat-based palaeoclimate record from Newfoundland: Evidence of coherent changes in bog surface wetness and ocean circulation
Energy carried by warm tropical water, transported via the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), plays a vital role in regulating the climate of regions bordering the North Atlantic Ocean. Previous phases of elevated freshwater input to areas of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) production in the early to mid-Holocene have been linked with slow-downs in the AMOC and changes in regional climate. Newfoundland’s proximity in the North Atlantic region to the confluence of the Gulf Stream and the Labrador Current and to an area of NADW production in the Labrador Sea makes it an ideal testing ground to investigate the influence of past fluctuations in ocean circulation on terrestrial ecosystems. We use multi-proxy peat-based records from the east coast of Newfoundland to derive a proxy-climate signal for the past 8000 years, which we have compared with changes in ocean circulation. Prominent shifts towards near-surface bog water-table levels, reflecting cooler/wetter climatic conditions, are evident in the early mid-Holocene at c. 7830, 7500, 7220 and 6600 cal. BP with minor changes occurring at c. 6340 and 6110 cal. BP. These events are coherent with evidence of meltwater injections into the N. Atlantic and of reduced NADW production. More recent increases in bog surface wetness in the mid- to late Holocene at c. 4290 and c. 2610 cal. BP are also consistent with reported periods of reduced NADW production. Coherence between the bog-derived palaeoclimate record developed from Newfoundland and evidence of fluctuations in ocean current strength is apparent in the early mid-Holocene.
Holocene, hydrology, macrofossils, Newfoundland, palaeoclimate, peatland, testate amoebae
791-805
Blundell, Antony
e29b943e-9e1d-45c0-8c02-de306943e697
Hughes, Paul D.M.
14f83168-b203-4a91-a850-8c48535dc31b
Chambers, Frank M.
cac4bd74-c554-4e33-939d-4cc17ec3b444
1 May 2018
Blundell, Antony
e29b943e-9e1d-45c0-8c02-de306943e697
Hughes, Paul D.M.
14f83168-b203-4a91-a850-8c48535dc31b
Chambers, Frank M.
cac4bd74-c554-4e33-939d-4cc17ec3b444
Blundell, Antony, Hughes, Paul D.M. and Chambers, Frank M.
(2018)
An 8000-year multi-proxy peat-based palaeoclimate record from Newfoundland: Evidence of coherent changes in bog surface wetness and ocean circulation.
Holocene, 28 (5), .
(doi:10.1177/0959683617744261).
Abstract
Energy carried by warm tropical water, transported via the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), plays a vital role in regulating the climate of regions bordering the North Atlantic Ocean. Previous phases of elevated freshwater input to areas of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) production in the early to mid-Holocene have been linked with slow-downs in the AMOC and changes in regional climate. Newfoundland’s proximity in the North Atlantic region to the confluence of the Gulf Stream and the Labrador Current and to an area of NADW production in the Labrador Sea makes it an ideal testing ground to investigate the influence of past fluctuations in ocean circulation on terrestrial ecosystems. We use multi-proxy peat-based records from the east coast of Newfoundland to derive a proxy-climate signal for the past 8000 years, which we have compared with changes in ocean circulation. Prominent shifts towards near-surface bog water-table levels, reflecting cooler/wetter climatic conditions, are evident in the early mid-Holocene at c. 7830, 7500, 7220 and 6600 cal. BP with minor changes occurring at c. 6340 and 6110 cal. BP. These events are coherent with evidence of meltwater injections into the N. Atlantic and of reduced NADW production. More recent increases in bog surface wetness in the mid- to late Holocene at c. 4290 and c. 2610 cal. BP are also consistent with reported periods of reduced NADW production. Coherence between the bog-derived palaeoclimate record developed from Newfoundland and evidence of fluctuations in ocean current strength is apparent in the early mid-Holocene.
Text
BLUNDELL_ET_AL_2017
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 14 October 2017
e-pub ahead of print date: 9 January 2018
Published date: 1 May 2018
Keywords:
Holocene, hydrology, macrofossils, Newfoundland, palaeoclimate, peatland, testate amoebae
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 421246
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/421246
ISSN: 0959-6836
PURE UUID: 2b2a4236-65b8-4293-ba94-f8af223a6f8d
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 29 May 2018 16:30
Last modified: 18 Mar 2024 02:50
Export record
Altmetrics
Contributors
Author:
Antony Blundell
Author:
Frank M. Chambers
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics
