Interglacial biotas from the North Atlantic islands

Interglacial deposits have been reported from the Faroe Islands, Iceland and Greenland. In the Faroe Islands only a single deposit is known; it is dated to the last interglacial. In Iceland five occurrences with remains of non-marine plants and animals have been recorded. The Icelandic occurrences cover a time span from the early Quaternary to the last interglacial. Most plant remains are preserved as leaf impressions, but the youngest occurrence contains seeds and fruits, as well as chitinous remains of arthropods. In Greenland interglacial deposits with remains of non-marine organisms are referred to the early Quaternary and the last interglacial, but some evidence about biotas during other interglacials are available from marine cores and ice cores. The richest floras and faunas come from the early Quaternary Kap København Formation in North Greenland and from last interglacial deposits in Jameson Land in East Greenland. We also briefly discuss biotas from the early and middle part of the present interglacial, the Holocene, and the question about survival or immigration.