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Holecene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction from the Shark

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Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2015 Holecene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction from the Shark River Estuary, Everglades, Florida Qiang Yao Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons Recommended Citation Yao, Qiang, "Holecene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction from the Shark River Estuary, Everglades, Florida" (2015). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 1754. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/1754 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. HOLOCENE PALEOENVIRONMENTAL RECONSTRUCTION FROM THE SHARK RIVER ESTUARY, EVERGLADES, FLORIDA A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences by Qiang Yao B.S., Mahidol University International College, 2008 May 2015 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This study is supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF DDRI Grant No. BCS-1303114) and the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI #CRN2050). I am deeply grateful to my major professor Dr. Kam-biu Liu for his support and encouragement during the development of my dissertation. He spent a countless number of hours mentoring me into a palynologist and geographer. I will always remember his passion and enthusiasm for science. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. John R. White, Dr. William J. Platt, and Dr. Victor H. Rivera-Monroy for their valuable guidance and support. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Dr. Terrence McCloskey and Dr. Thomas Bianchette for their friendship, support, dedication, and valuable advice during these past years of my career. I also thank Dr. Terrence McCloskey, Dr. Thomas Bianchette, Dr. Edward Castañeda-Moya, and Florida International University, center of the FCE-LTER program for their valuable assistance during field trips and laboratory work. Special thanks to my parents Yao Minghu and Tang Guiying, and my dog Seven for their endless love and support in all my endeavors over the years. Finally, I dedicate this dissertation to my grandpa, Tang Jiguang, who passed away at October 10th. I don’t know whether or not you are at a special place, or if such place even exits. But if I have the opportunity to make a wish, I am willing to give up all my possessions to spend one more day with you and ask you if I have made you proud. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................. vi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 1 References ............................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 2. MID-HOLOCENE MANGROVE DEVELOPMENT ACROSS THE WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC: A REVIEW OF POLLEN AND ASSOCIATED PALEOECOLOGICAL RECORDS .............................................................................. 7 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 7 Regional climate and sea-level history during the Holocene .................................. 9 Climate ............................................................................................................. 9 Sea-level ......................................................................................................... 10 Mangrove ecology ................................................................................................ 11 Interpretation of the mangrove pollen records ...................................................... 12 Proxy records from the western North Atlantic .................................................... 13 The Caribbean Coast of South America ......................................................... 16 The Caribbean coast of Central America ....................................................... 18 The Greater Antilles ....................................................................................... 21 South Florida and Bermuda ........................................................................... 22 Methods ................................................................................................................. 23 Synthesis ............................................................................................................... 24 Factors controlling the expansion of Rhizophora .......................................... 24 Decline of Rhizophora between 3,000 and 1,000 cal yr BP .......................... 31 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 34 References ............................................................................................................. 35 CHAPTER 3. A SURVEY OF MODERN POLLEN AND VEGETATION ALONG THE SHARK RIVER ESTUARY IN THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES .................... 46 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 46 Study area .............................................................................................................. 47 Wet prairies .................................................................................................... 52 Cypress forests ............................................................................................... 52 Pine savannas ................................................................................................. 52 The Shark River Estuary ................................................................................ 53 Materials and methods .......................................................................................... 55 Results and discussion .......................................................................................... 59 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 66 References ............................................................................................................. 73 iii CHAPTER 4. PALYNOLOGICAL RECONSTRUCTION OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES IN COASTAL WETLANDS OF THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES SINCE THE MID-HOLOCENE .................................................................................. 77 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 77 Study area .............................................................................................................. 79 Materials and methods .......................................................................................... 81 Results ................................................................................................................... 85 Zone 1 (525-485 cm; >5,700 cal yr BP) ........................................................ 87 Zone 2 (485-450 cm; >5,700 cal yr BP) ........................................................ 87 Zone 3 (450-300 cm; 5,700 to 3,800 cal yr BP) ............................................ 88 Zone 4 (300 to 200 cm; 3800 to 2200 cal yr BP) ........................................... 89 Zone 5 (200 to 140 cm; 2,200 to 1,150 cal yr BP) ......................................... 90 Zone 6 (140 to 0 cm; 1150 cal yr BP to present) ........................................... 90 The top 10 cm ................................................................................................ 94 Discussion ............................................................................................................. 94 The early Holocene dry upland landscape (>5,700 cal yr BP) ...................... 94 Short-hydroperiod prairie (> 5,700 cal yr BP) ............................................... 95 Dynamic freshwater wetlands (~5,700 to 3,800 cal yr BP) ........................... 96 Freshwater to marine transition (~3,800 to 2,200 cal yr BP) ......................... 99 The development of mangrove scrubs (~2200 to 1150 cal yr BP) .............. 100 The establishment of coastal mangrove forests (~1,150 cal yr BP to present) ...................................................................................................................... 101 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 103 References ........................................................................................................... 106 CHAPTER 5. A PALEOECOLOGICAL RECORD OF HISTORICAL HURRICANE EVENTS FROM THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES .................................................. 115 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 115 Study area ...........................................................................................................
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