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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

A Palynostratigraphic Investigation Of Holocene Coastal Texas Bays: Implications For Future Coastal Change, Shannon Marie Ferguson Jan 2017

A Palynostratigraphic Investigation Of Holocene Coastal Texas Bays: Implications For Future Coastal Change, Shannon Marie Ferguson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although the Gulf of Mexico is one of the most studied basins in the world, a majority of the focus has been driven by petroleum exploration and/or on seismic and sedimentological facies models. Rarely has the intent of previous studies been to characterize the Holocene climatic record of coastal Texas. Of those studies that discuss Holocene vegetation change, the majority focus on the Mississippi River Delta, the Edwards Plateau or central Florida, leaving an absence of insight to western Gulf of Mexico climate changes. The Texas coastline stretches 595 km across almost 4° of latitude and the strong northwestern precipitation …


Holecene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction From The Shark River Estuary, Everglades, Florida, Qiang Yao Jan 2015

Holecene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction From The Shark River Estuary, Everglades, Florida, Qiang Yao

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the paleoecological records from the Shark River Estuary in the southwestern part of the Everglades National Park (ENP), Florida, with primary goal of reconstructing the Holocene history of the coastal mangrove ecosystem in the Florida Coastal Everglades. Roughly 15 meters of sediments were collected from 4 study sites and subjected to loss-on ignition, palynological, and X-ray fluorescence analyses. According to the literature, the earliest communities of Rhizophora mangle (red mangrove) occurred prior to 8,000 cal yr BP in the south-central area of the Belize Barrier Reef Platform. Between 7,000 and 5,000 cal yr BP, Rhizophora was established …


Holocene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction From Mexico's Pacific Coast-A Paleotempestological Investigation, Thomas Bianchette Jan 2014

Holocene Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction From Mexico's Pacific Coast-A Paleotempestological Investigation, Thomas Bianchette

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the paleoenvironments of four lagoons from Mexico’s Pacific coast, with the aim of retrieving sediment deposition from storm surge events to determine long-term tropical cyclone (TC) records. Lagoons Agua Dulce, Boquita, Mitla, and Nuxco are located along a 700 km stretch in states Jalisco and Guerrero. Roughly 70 meters of sediment were collected and subjected to multiple proxies, including loss-on ignition, a microfossil survey, and geochemical analysis. Nuxco’s dynamism is caused by intense and prolonged rainfall (largely from TCs), responsible for increasing water level, opening the tidal inlet, and draining the site (termed “blowouts”). High amounts of …


Changes In Climate And Moisture Availability In The Antarctic Eocene, Oligocene, And Miocene: Evidence From Palynological And Stable Isotope Geochemical Analyses Of The Shaldril And Andrill Cores, Kathryn Whitney Griener Jan 2014

Changes In Climate And Moisture Availability In The Antarctic Eocene, Oligocene, And Miocene: Evidence From Palynological And Stable Isotope Geochemical Analyses Of The Shaldril And Andrill Cores, Kathryn Whitney Griener

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Prior to the Late Eocene, the Antarctic continent experienced lush vegetation under temperate conditions. Just before the Eocene/Oligocene Boundary, the climate of the southernmost continent began to deteriorate dramatically. This cooling trend largely continued until most Antarctic vegetation disappeared, ~13.85-12.8 Ma. Classifying the nature and cause of Antarctica’s drastic climate change is essential for furthering our knowledge of Earth’s history, and also for grasping the potential effects of current and future climate shifts. Here, I present evidence from three new palynomorph-centric studies that deepen our understanding of Antarctic earth science, climate change, and of climate proxies. The first study involved …


A Multi-Proxy Approach To Investigating The Latest Holocene (~4,500 Yrs. Bp) Vegetational History Of Catahoula Lake, Louisiana, Rebecca Ann Tedford Jan 2009

A Multi-Proxy Approach To Investigating The Latest Holocene (~4,500 Yrs. Bp) Vegetational History Of Catahoula Lake, Louisiana, Rebecca Ann Tedford

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A multi-proxy investigation of sediments examined from Catahoula Lake, Louisiana has provided a record of late-Holocene vegetational changes, related to both hydrology and climate. This study integrates data from phytoliths, pollen, stable isotopes, magnetic susceptibility, and core sediment analysis. A modern phytolith analog assessed the phytoliths production in local plants and their modern soil sample distribution within the established lake vegetation zones. Fifty of the 76 species produced both distinctive and redundant phytoliths. The modern soil sample database indicates that phytoliths produced from both monocotyledon and dicotlyledon plant groups prove useful in distinguishing between forest and grassland communities and identifying …