Documenting the Response of Newfoundland Forests to The
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The Marine Record of Abrupt Climate Change at Bay of Islands, Newfoundland Simone Sandercombe Department of Geography McGill University Montreal, Quebec December, 2011 A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the requirement of the degree of Masters of Science © Simone Sandercombe 2011 i Table of Contents Abstract vi Résumé vii Acknowledgements viii List of Figures iv List of Tables v Chapter 1. Background and Literature review 1 Introduction 1 Chapter 2. Study area and Methodology 13 Study area 13 Methods 15 Core description 15 Laboratory procedure 17 Analysis 17 Chapter 3. Results 20 Palynomorph Concentrations 20 Comparaisons with other pollen and dinoflagellate cyst records in the area 20 Pollen assemblage zones 24 Dinoflagellate cyst assemblage zones 26 Reconstructions of sea surface conditions 27 Reconstructed air temperature 29 Chapter 4. Discussion 31 Younger Dryas 31 ii Preboreal Oscillation 35 8.2 ka event 37 Chapter 5. Summary and Conclusions 40 References 43 iii List of Tables Table 1.Current tree species present around Bay of Islands 51 Table 2. Radiocarbon dates for core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 52 Table 3. Summary of radiocarbon dates 53 Table 4.Summary of Pollen assemblage data for Bay of Islands, Joes Pond, Southwest Brook Lake, Robinsons Pond, Northern Baie Verte Peninsula and Compass Pond 56 Table 5.Summary of dinoflagellate cyst data for Bay of Islands, St. Anne’s Basin and Southern Labrador Sea. 57 iv List of Figures Figure 1. Location map of Bay of Islands, Newfoundland. 58 Figure 2.Core stratigraphy for core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 59 Figure 3: Concentrations of palynomorphs per gram of sediment in core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 60 Figure 4.Pollen diagram for core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 61 Figure 5.Dinoflagellate cyst diagram for core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 62 Figure 6.Reconstructions of sea surface conditions for core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 63 Figure 7. Reconstructed air temperatures for core MD99-2225, Bay of Islands 64 v Abstract This study assesses vegetational response to abrupt climatic changes that occurred between ca. 12,000 and 8,000 yr BP using a palynological record from Bay of Islands (west coast of Newfoundland). Western Newfoundland is located near the boundary of two major ecozones: the boreal forest and the tundra. This transition zone is very sensitive to climate change. Core MD99-2225 was extracted from Humber Arm at a depth of 104m, roughly 12km from the Humber River. Samples were analysed every 10cm between 10 and 25 m down-core. Pollen analysis was used to track the evolution of vegetation, and the proportions of both tundra and more thermophilous hardwood taxa were used to determine changes in ecotone. The pollen record was also used to reconstruct air temperatures. The dinoflagellate cyst record was used to reconstruct sea surface parameters, such as temperature, salinity and sea ice. Results reflect large shifts in the composition of the vegetation and of dinoflagellate cysts assemblages in response to three cold climatic events. At the onset of the Younger Dryas, air temperatures dropped by 5°C from-15°C in February and 16 °C in August , August SST dropped by 10°C from roughly 15°C, and the duration of the sea ice cover increased to 10 months yr-1. Conditions remained harsh between ca. 10,800-10,300 yr BP, Vegetation was dominated by shrubs and grasses and dinoflagellate cyst assemblages are characterized by low species diversity and dominance by arctic species, such as Brigantedinium spp. Sea surface and air temperatures improved following after the Younger Dryas. At ca. 9,000 yr BP, sea surface conditions and air temperatures decreased in the bay as a response to the Preboreal Oscillation. Shrubs and grasses re-invaded the region and dinoflagellate cyst assemblages showed a decrease in diversity and dominance by arctic species such as Brigantedinium spp. The last event to be detected in this record, the 8.2 ka cold period, had a smaller impact in the region. Sea surface temperatures as well as air temperature decreased, but for a short time. The proportion of shrub pollen increased slightly and cold water species (Brigantedinium spp., I. minutum and P. dalei) dominated the dinoflagellate cyst assemblages. Keywords : abrupt climate change, dinoflagellate cysts, vegetation change, sea surface temperatures vi Resume Cette étude évalue la réponse de la végétation aux changements climatiques abrupts survenus entre 12,000 and 8000 ans BP, en utilisant un enregistrement palynologique de Bay of Islands sur la côte ouest de Terre Neuve. Cette région est à la frontière entre deux écozones majeures: la forêt boréale et la toundra. Cette zone de transition est très sensible aux changements climatiques. La carotte MD99-2225 a été prélevée à une profondeur de 104 m à environ 12 km de la rivière Humber. Des échantillons ont été analysés à intervalles de 10cm entre 10 et 25 m de profondeur dans la carotte. L’analyse pollinique a permis de retracer l’évolution de la végétation, et les proportions de taxons caractéristiques de la toundra et celles des arbres plus thermophiles ont servis à déterminer les changements d’écotones. Les données polliniques ont aussi permis de reconstituer les températures. L’enregistrement des kystes de dinoflagellés a permis de reconstituer les paramètres des eaux de surface, tels que la température, la salinité et la durée du couvert de glace saisonnier. Les résultats montrent d’importants changements dans la composition de la végétation et dans les assemblages de kystes de dinoflagellés, en réponse à trois épisodes de refroidissement climatiques. Au début du Dryas récent, les températures de l`air qui étaient de -15°C en février et de 16°C en août ont chuté de 5°C. Les températures des eaux de surface qui étaient de 15°C ont également chuté de 10°C, et la durée saisonnière du couvert de glace marin a augmenté pour atteindre 10 mois/an. Les conditions sont demeurées très froides entre environ 10800-10300 yr BP. La végétation était dominée par des arbustes et des plantes herbacées. Les assemblages de kystes de dinoflagellés étaient caractérisés par une faible diversité spécifique et une dominance par les taxons arctiques. Les températures de l’air et des eaux de surface se sont améliorées après le Dryas récent. Autour de 9000 yr BP, une autre détérioration climatique a été enregistrée en réponse à l’oscillation PréBoréale. Les arbustes et les plantes herbacées ont de nouveau envahi la région et les assemblages de kystes de dinoflagellés ont connu une baisse de diversité et une augmentation de la proportion de taxons arctiques. Le dernier événement climatique détecté dans cet enregistrement, le refroidissement de 8.2 ka, a eu un impact moindre. Les températures de l’air et des eaux de surfaces ont connues une baisse, mais pour un lapse de temps très court. La proportion de pollen d’arbustes a augmenté légèrement, de même que celles des espèces indicatrices de conditions d’eaux de surface froides (Brigantedinium spp., I. minutum and P. dalei). Mots clés: changement climatiques abrupts, kystes de dinoflagellés, changement de végétation, températures des eaux de surface. vii Acknowledgements I am very appreciative of all the support and guidance I received while writing this thesis. First of all I would like to offer my deepest gratitude to my co supervisors Gail Chmura and Elisabeth Levac; this thesis would not have been possible without their continued encouragement, expertise and advice. To Elisabeth Levac whom I have worked with for 6 years, thank you for all the phone calls, emails, meetings and friendly support, you have been a great friend and mentor. Thank you to the lab assistants that helped process and organize all of my data, thank you to Eric Fortier, Vanessa Asselin and Thomas Neulieb. I would also like the thank the ship crew on the Marion Dufresne for extracting core MD99-2225 as well as Ali Aksu, from Memorial University, for allowing E. Levac to sample the core. I am very grateful to Matthew Peros for his ongoing help and assistance with C2 software and pollen transfer functions. A special thanks to my fellow McGill geographers, without you guys I would not have been able to make it through those stressful sleepless nights, especially to Amanda Alfonso, Camille Ouellet Dallaire and Florin Pendea for their friendship, continued reassurance and advice. Finally I owe my deepest gratitude to my family, without their continued support and encouragement to reach my goals. I would also like to acknowledge the support of the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) as well as the support from the Global and Environmental Change Center (GEC3) for funding this research. viii Chapter 1. Background and Literature Review The climate in Eastern North America over the past 14,000 years was variable, with several periods of near glacial conditions interrupting the post glacial warming trend following the retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet: the Younger Dryas, the Preboreal Oscillation (PBO) and the 8.2 ka event.Northeastern North America is an excellent location to study abrupt climatic changes because it is close to North Atlantic Ocean sites of meridional overturning, and the region`s climate should reflect changes in meridional overturning. Because vegetation is controlled by climate, it should reflect significant changes. My research examines the response of vegetation in western Newfoundland to these abrupt climatic changes. Understanding the response of vegetation to abrupt climate change will help us plan and possibly mitigate potential future impacts of climate change. To assess vegetation and sea surface condition responses to climate change, interpretations from dinoflagellate cysts and evolution shifts in vegetation in western Newfoundland were examined during the end of the deglaciation period, between ca.