Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Diatom Community Response To Climate Variability Over The Past 37,000 Years In The Sub-Tropics Of The Southern Hemisphere, Sarah Hembrow, Kathryn Taffs, Pia Atahan, Jeffrey Parr, Atun Zawadzki, Henk Heijnis

Jeffrey Parr

Climate change is impacting global surface water resources, increasing the need for a deeper understanding of the interaction between climate and biological diversity. This is particularly the case in the Southern Hemisphere sub-tropics, where little information exists on the aquatic biota response to climate variations. Palaeolimnological techniques, in particular the use of diatoms, are well established and can significantly contribute to the understanding of climatic variability and the impacts that change in climate have on aquatic ecosystems. A sediment core from Lake McKenzie, Fraser Island (Australia), was used to investigate interactions between climate influences and aquatic ecosystems. This study utilises …