TY - JOUR
T1 - Early Miocene pollen and spores from western Jylland, Denmark - environmental and climatic implications
AU - Larsson, Linda M.
AU - Vajda, Vivi
AU - Rasmussen, Erik S.
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgements. – Professors Else Marie-Friis is gratefully acknowledged for carefully reviewing and improving this paper with her comments and suggestions. Karen Dybkjaer and Stefan Piasecki [Geological Survey of Greenland and Denmark (GEUS)] are thanked for providing the samples and for sharing their expertise on the Danish Miocene. Steve McLoughlin is acknowledged for sharing his botanical knowledge and for improving an earlier version of the manuscript together with Johan Lindgren and Anita Löfgren. This project was partly supported by the Royal Physiographic Society and Lunds Geologiska Fältklubb (L.L) and by the Swedish Research Council (V.V.).
PY - 2006
Y1 - 2006
N2 - A palynological analysis of a Lower Miocene cored section from Sønder Vium in western Jylland, Denmark, provides new data regarding the vegetation and climate during the earliest Neogene. Most samples yielded well-preserved palynomorphs. Terrestrial pollen and spores dominate, with lesser proportions of dinoflagellates. A fluvial input into the marine setting is corroborated by the presence of freshwater algae, indicating an inner-neritic setting. A level containing comparatively abundant dinoflagellate cysts probably represents a transgressional event. The late Aquitanian age of the sequence as suggested by previous studies is supported by the composition of the palynoflora, e.g., by the presence of Ephedripites, Platycarya, and the relatively frequent occurrence of Engelhardtia. The pollen record is dominated by Taxodiaceae-Cupressaceae suggesting that swamp forests dominated the onshore region, which is consistent with previous results from central and northern Europe. Besides Taxodium, the swamp forest also contained angiosperm taxa such as Myricaceae, Nyssa, Betula, and Alnus. Elevated or better drained hinterland areas hosted a diverse mesophytic forest, with a ground cover of reeds, sedges and pteridophytes. Abundant pollen taxa derived from mesophytic forests indicates the presence of evergreen conifers, such as Pinus, Sequoia and Sciadopitys, and deciduous angiosperms, including Fagus and Quercus. A decrease in relative abundances of thermophilous elements such as Arecaceae (palms), Ilex, Mastixiaceae and Engelhardtia, in the middle part of the studied succession indicates a possible correlation to the late Aquitanian climatic deterioration. The composition of the palynological assemblages including widely distributed Taxodium swamps, suggests a warm, frost-free temperate climate during the Aquitanian in Denmark.
AB - A palynological analysis of a Lower Miocene cored section from Sønder Vium in western Jylland, Denmark, provides new data regarding the vegetation and climate during the earliest Neogene. Most samples yielded well-preserved palynomorphs. Terrestrial pollen and spores dominate, with lesser proportions of dinoflagellates. A fluvial input into the marine setting is corroborated by the presence of freshwater algae, indicating an inner-neritic setting. A level containing comparatively abundant dinoflagellate cysts probably represents a transgressional event. The late Aquitanian age of the sequence as suggested by previous studies is supported by the composition of the palynoflora, e.g., by the presence of Ephedripites, Platycarya, and the relatively frequent occurrence of Engelhardtia. The pollen record is dominated by Taxodiaceae-Cupressaceae suggesting that swamp forests dominated the onshore region, which is consistent with previous results from central and northern Europe. Besides Taxodium, the swamp forest also contained angiosperm taxa such as Myricaceae, Nyssa, Betula, and Alnus. Elevated or better drained hinterland areas hosted a diverse mesophytic forest, with a ground cover of reeds, sedges and pteridophytes. Abundant pollen taxa derived from mesophytic forests indicates the presence of evergreen conifers, such as Pinus, Sequoia and Sciadopitys, and deciduous angiosperms, including Fagus and Quercus. A decrease in relative abundances of thermophilous elements such as Arecaceae (palms), Ilex, Mastixiaceae and Engelhardtia, in the middle part of the studied succession indicates a possible correlation to the late Aquitanian climatic deterioration. The composition of the palynological assemblages including widely distributed Taxodium swamps, suggests a warm, frost-free temperate climate during the Aquitanian in Denmark.
KW - Cupressaceae
KW - Denmark
KW - Miocene
KW - Paleoclimate
KW - Palynology
KW - Swamp forest
KW - Sønder vium
KW - Taxodiaceae
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=33750539324&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/11035890601283261
DO - 10.1080/11035890601283261
M3 - Article
SN - 1103-5897
VL - 128
SP - 261
EP - 272
JO - GFF
JF - GFF
IS - 3
ER -