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The 1.5-ka varved record of Lake Montcortès (southern Pyrenees, NE Spain)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2012

Juan Pablo Corella ,
Achim Brauer ,
Clara Mangili ,
Valentí Rull ,
Teresa Vegas‐Vilarrúbia ,
Mario Morellón  and
Blas L. Valero‐Garcés
Juan Pablo Corella*
Affiliation:
Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología (IPE‐CSIC), Avda Montañana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN‐CSIC), Serrano 115bis, 28006 Madrid, Spain
Achim Brauer
Affiliation:
Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam, Sektion 5.2 Klimadynamik und Landschaftsentwicklung, D‐14473 Potsdam, Germany
Clara Mangili
Affiliation:
Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam, Sektion 5.2 Klimadynamik und Landschaftsentwicklung, D‐14473 Potsdam, Germany Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, 61 Route 9W, PO Box 1000, Palisades, NY, USA
Valentí Rull
Affiliation:
Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB‐CSIC‐ICUB), Passeig del Migdia s/n, 08038 Barcelona, Spain
Teresa Vegas‐Vilarrúbia
Affiliation:
Dept. Ecology, Fac. Biology. University of Barcelona, Avda Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Mario Morellón
Affiliation:
Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología (IPE‐CSIC), Avda Montañana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain Eawag (Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science & Technology), Überlandstrasse 133, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
Blas L. Valero‐Garcés
Affiliation:
Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología (IPE‐CSIC), Avda Montañana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain
*
⁎Corresponding author at: Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología (IPE‐CSIC), Avda Montañana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain. Fax: + 34 915640800. Email Address:pablo.corella@mncn.csic.es
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Abstract

The karstic Lake Montcortès sedimentary sequence spanning the last 1548 yr constitutes the first continuous, high-resolution, multi-proxy varved record in northern Spain. Sediments consist of biogenic varves composed of calcite, organic matter and detrital laminae and turbidite layers. Calcite layer thickness and internal sub-layering indicate changes in water temperature and seasonality whereas the frequency of detrital layers reflects rainfall variability. Higher temperatures occurred in Lake Montcortès in AD 555–738, 825–875, 1010–1322 and 1874–present. Lower temperatures and prolonged winter conditions were recorded in AD 1446–1598, 1663–1711 and 1759–1819. Extreme and multiple precipitation events dominated in AD 571–593, 848–922, 987–1086, 1168–1196, 1217–1249, 1444–1457, 1728–1741 and 1840–1875, indicating complex hydrological variability in NE Spain since AD 463. The sedimentary record of Lake Montcortès reveals a short-term relation between rainfall variability and the detrital influx, pronounced during extended periods of reduced anthropogenic influences. In pre-industrial times, during warm climate episodes, population and land use increased in the area. After the onset of the industrialization, the relationship between climate and human activities decoupled and population dynamics and landscape modifications were therefore mostly determined by socio‐economic factors.

Keywords

Biogenic varvesHuman impactClimate changesMedieval Climate AnomalyLittle Ice AgePre‐Pyrenees
Type
Articles
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 78 , Issue 2 , September 2012 , pp. 323 - 332
Copyright
University of Washington

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