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Invertebrate Fossils (Insecta: Trichoptera, Diptera, Coleoptera) from the Pleistocene Scarborough Formation at Toronto, Ontario, and their paleoenvironmental Significance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Nancy E. Williams ,
John A. Westgate ,
D. Dudley Williams ,
Anne Morgan  and
Alan V. Morgan
Nancy E. Williams
Affiliation:
Life Sciences, Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario, MIC 1A4, and Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1A1, Canada
John A. Westgate
Affiliation:
Physical Sciences Division, Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario, MIC 1A4, and Department of Geology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1A1, Canada
D. Dudley Williams
Affiliation:
Life Sciences, Scarborough College, University of Toronto, West Hill, Ontario, MIC 1A4, and Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1A1, Canada
Anne Morgan
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada
Alan V. Morgan
Affiliation:
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada
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Abstract

Larval caddisfly, chironomid, and beetle remains have been recovered from the Pleistocene Scarborough Formation in the Toronto region of southern Ontario. Three stratigraphic levels were sampled at the northeastern end of the Scarborough Bluffs; the youngest horizon yielded 16 chironomid taxa, 33 caddisfly taxa, and 28 beetle taxa, whereas the two older levels yielded somewhat less diverse assemblages. Only one taxon in each of the caddisfly and chironomid groups was identified from the presumed correlative beds at Woodbridge, Ontario, but numerous beetle fragments were recovered, several of which have been specifically identified and match species found previously in the upper part of the Scarborough Formation. The youngest sampled assemblage in the Scarborough Formation at the northeastern end of the Scarborough Bluffs is interpreted as indicating cool climatic conditions in a boreal forest environment, given the present-day distributions and feeding habits of these river, lake, and terrestrial taxa. The mean July temperature at this time was probably about 15°C, as compared to the present-day value of 20.5°C. The forest was poorer in deciduous species during deposition of the older part of the formation as preserved here. These results agree well with previous interpretations based on plant remains. We suggest that both aquatic and terrestrial insects are good indicators of macroclimate.

Type
Original Articles
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 16 , Issue 2 , September 1981 , pp. 146 - 166
Copyright
University of Washington

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