Climate- and Human-Induced Vegetation Changes in Northwestern Turkey and the Southern Levant since the Last Glacial Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades (Dr. rer. nat.) der Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Rheinischen Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn vorgelegt von Andrea Miebach aus Bergisch Gladbach Bonn, 2016 Angefertigt mit Genehmigung der Mathematisch Naturwissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Rheinischen Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn 1. Gutachter: Prof. Dr. Thomas Litt 2. Gutachter: Prof. Dr. Dietmar Quandt Tag der Promotion: 27.01.2017 Erscheinungsjahr: 2017 Contents 5 Contents Summary ................................................................................................................................................ 8 1 General Introduction 1.1 Background ....................................................................................................................... 10 1.2 Current state of knowledge ............................................................................................... 12 1.3 Aim and structure of this thesis ........................................................................................ 16 1.4 References ......................................................................................................................... 19 2 Impacts of climate and humans on the vegetation in northwestern Turkey: palynological insights from Lake Iznik since the Last Glacial 2.1 Abstract ............................................................................................................................. 27 2.2 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 27 2.3 Study area ......................................................................................................................... 28 2.3.1 Regional setting ...................................................................................................... 28 2.3.2 Current climate ....................................................................................................... 29 2.3.3 Current vegetation .................................................................................................. 30 2.4 Material and methods ........................................................................................................ 32 2.4.1 Core setting, composite profile, and age-depth model ........................................... 32 2.4.2 Palynological analyses ............................................................................................ 33 2.5 Results and discussion ...................................................................................................... 34 2.5.1 MIS 3-2 transition: ca. 31.1–28.4 ka cal BP (LPAZ 8) .......................................... 34 2.5.2 Pre-LGM and LGM: ca. 28.4–18.4 ka cal BP (LPAZ 7) ....................................... 38 2.5.3 Post-LGM: ca. 18.4–15 ka cal BP (LPAZ 6).......................................................... 40 2.5.4 Lateglacial: ca. 15–12.1 ka cal BP (LPAZ 5) ......................................................... 41 2.5.5 Early Holocene: ca. 12.1–9 ka cal BP (LPAZ 4) .................................................... 43 2.5.6 Mid-Holocene: ca. 9–3.5 ka cal BP (LPAZ 3) ....................................................... 44 2.5.7 Late Bronze Age to Classical Period: ca. 3.5–2.2 ka cal BP (LPAZ 2) ................. 48 2.5.8 Hellenistic Period to Byzantine Period: ca. 2.2–0.6 ka cal BP (LPAZ 1) .............. 49 2.6 Conclusions ....................................................................................................................... 49 2.7 Data availability ................................................................................................................ 50 2.8 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................... 50 2.9 References ......................................................................................................................... 51 2.10 Supplementary material .................................................................................................... 58 6 Contents 3 Vegetation and climate during the Last Glacial high stand (ca. 28–22 ka BP) of the Sea of Galilee, northern Israel 3.1 Abstract ............................................................................................................................. 61 3.2 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 61 3.3 Regional setting ................................................................................................................ 63 3.4 Material and methods ........................................................................................................ 65 3.4.1 Coring campaign .................................................................................................... 65 3.4.2 Radiocarbon dating and age-depth model .............................................................. 65 3.4.3 Palynological analyses ............................................................................................ 65 3.5 Results and discussion ...................................................................................................... 67 3.5.1 Chronology ............................................................................................................. 67 3.5.2 Vegetation and climate ........................................................................................... 68 3.6 Conclusions ....................................................................................................................... 74 3.7 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................... 74 3.8 References ......................................................................................................................... 74 4 Last Glacial and early Holocene vegetation, climate, and fire history of the Dead Sea region inferred from palynological analyses 4.1 Abstract ............................................................................................................................. 80 4.2 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 80 4.3 Study area ......................................................................................................................... 82 4.3.1 Dead Sea ................................................................................................................. 82 4.3.2 Climate and vegetation ........................................................................................... 84 4.4 Material and methods ........................................................................................................ 85 4.5 Results and discussion ...................................................................................................... 87 4.5.1 Pollen zonation and pollen concentration ............................................................... 87 4.5.2 Vegetation history .................................................................................................. 90 4.5.3 Vegetation gradient during MIS 2 .......................................................................... 97 4.5.4 Fire history .............................................................................................................. 98 4.5.5 Freshwater and erosion indicators ........................................................................ 101 4.6 Conclusions and future perspectives ............................................................................... 101 4.7 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... 103 4.8 References ....................................................................................................................... 104 Contents 7 5 Synthesis 5.1 Kind and magnitude of long-term environmental changes in northwestern Turkey and the southern Levant since the Last Glacial............................................................... 112 5.2 Detection of rapid vegetation and climate changes in northwestern Turkey and the southern Levant during the Last Glacial and Holocene .................................................. 115 5.3 Vegetation and climate gradients in the southern Levant during MIS 2 ......................... 118 5.4 Detection and timing of human influences on the vegetation in northwestern Turkey and the southern Levant during the Holocene ................................................................ 119 5.5 Future perspectives ......................................................................................................... 120 5.6 References ....................................................................................................................... 122 List of figures ..................................................................................................................................... 128 List of tables ....................................................................................................................................... 131 Acknowledgments .............................................................................................................................