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Vegetation and Climate Variations at Taibai, Qinling Mountains in Central China for the Last 3 500 cal BP
Author(s) -
LI XiaoQiang,
DODSON John,
ZHOU Jie,
WANG SuMin,
SUN QianLi
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal of integrative plant biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.734
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1744-7909
pISSN - 1672-9072
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7909.2005.00133.x
Subject(s) - vegetation (pathology) , physical geography , altitude (triangle) , tundra , pollen , geography , environmental science , climatology , geology , ecology , ecosystem , biology , pathology , geometry , mathematics , medicine
Pollen records of two swamp sections, located at Taibai Mountain, the highest peak in the Qinling Mountains of central China, show variations of vegetation and climate for the last 3 500 cal BP. The pollen assemblage at the Foyechi and Sanqingchi sections and the surface soil pollen allowed us to reconstruct a high‐altitude vegetation history at Taibai Mountain for the first time. The data indicated that there was a cold‐dry climate interval between 3 500 and 3 080 cal BP and a relatively warm and wet period compared with the present from 3 080 to 1 860 cal BP. The warmest period in the late Holocene on Taibai Mountain was from 1430 to 730 cal BP, with an approximate 2 °C increase in mean annual temperature compared with today. There was a relatively cool‐dry climate interval from 730 to 310 cal BP. After 310 cal BP, a mountain tundra vegetation developed again and the position of the modern tree line was established. (Managing editor: Ya‐Qin HAN)