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Climate Change In The Dead Heart Of Australia, Joshua Larsen, Gerald C. Nanson, Timothy J. Cohen, Brian G. Jones, John D. Jansen, Jan-Hendrik May
Climate Change In The Dead Heart Of Australia, Joshua Larsen, Gerald C. Nanson, Timothy J. Cohen, Brian G. Jones, John D. Jansen, Jan-Hendrik May
Timothy Cohen
Despite the absence of large-scale glaciation, the Australian continent has experienced substantial environmental change throughout the Quaternary period. This is especially pronounced in central Australia, where one seventh of the continent is drained internally to the depocentre, and lowest point in Australia, Lake Eyre (Figure 1). Research has shown that at one time, large sandy braided and meandering rivers carried water through dunefields to a large freshwater lake system. Today, the rivers are hostage to the dunefield, and floodwaters might only reach Lake Eyre once every ten years or so. In order to understand the development of this arid desert …
Evidence Of Enso Mega-Drought Triggered Collapse Of Prehistory Aboriginal Society In Northwest Australia, Hamish Mcgowan, Samuel K. Marx, P Moss, Andrew Hammond
Evidence Of Enso Mega-Drought Triggered Collapse Of Prehistory Aboriginal Society In Northwest Australia, Hamish Mcgowan, Samuel K. Marx, P Moss, Andrew Hammond
Samuel K Marx
The Kimberley region of northwest Australia contains one of the World's largest collections of rock art characterised by two distinct art forms; the fine featured anthropomorphic figures of the Gwion Gwion or Bradshaw paintings, and broad stroke Wandjina figures. Luminescence dating of mud wasp nests overlying Gwion Gwion paintings has confirmed an age of at least 17,000 yrs B.P. with the most recent dates for these paintings from around the mid-Holocene (5000 to 7000 yrs B.P.). Radiocarbon dating indicates that the Wandjina rock art then emerged around 3800 to 4000 yrs B.P. following a hiatus of at least 1200 yrs. …
Evidence Of Solar And Tropical-Ocean Forcing Of Hydroclimate Cycles In Southeastern Australia For The Past 6500 Years, Hamish A. Mcgowan, Samuel K. Marx, Joshua Soderholm, John Denholm
Evidence Of Solar And Tropical-Ocean Forcing Of Hydroclimate Cycles In Southeastern Australia For The Past 6500 Years, Hamish A. Mcgowan, Samuel K. Marx, Joshua Soderholm, John Denholm
Samuel K Marx
Evidence of solar and tropical‐ocean forcing of climate cycles has been found in numerous palaeoclimate records. Numerical modelling studies show physical mechanisms by which direct and indirect solar forcing may affect climate, while there is mounting evidence of solar forcing of tropical ocean‐atmosphere teleconnections. This study has developed a 6500 year record of dust deposition, a proxy for regional hydroclimate variability for the Snowy Mountains region of Australia. Spectral analysis of the record provides evidence of statistically significant cycles in dust deposition of 35–43 years, 62–73 years, 161 years and 2200 years. These correlate with variability in solar irradiance and …
Local Knowledge And The State: The 1990 Floods In Cunnamulla, Queensland, Australia, Emily O'Gorman
Local Knowledge And The State: The 1990 Floods In Cunnamulla, Queensland, Australia, Emily O'Gorman
Emily O'Gorman
In April 1990, record-breaking floods in the Warrego River threatened the rural town of Cunnamulla, located in Queensland, Australia. The floods had already inundated the upstream town of Charleville causing significant damage to property and the mass evacuation of residents. This article explores the 1990 floods in Cunnamulla in the context of two key elements of Australian history: first, several decades of rural decline in southwestern Queensland, and second, state responses to floods that had become increasingly centralized over the preceding two decades. I first examine the wider historical contexts of colonial settlement, environmental changes, and past floods in Cunnamulla …
The Geomorphological Evolution Of A Wave-Dominated Barrier Estuary: Burrill Lake, New South Wales, Australia, Brian G. Jones, Craig R. Sloss, David M. Price, C.E. Mcclennen, John De Carli
The Geomorphological Evolution Of A Wave-Dominated Barrier Estuary: Burrill Lake, New South Wales, Australia, Brian G. Jones, Craig R. Sloss, David M. Price, C.E. Mcclennen, John De Carli
B. G. Jones
The geomorphological evolution of the Holocene wave-dominated barrier estuary at Burrill Lake on the New South Wales coast, Australia, has been delineated using a combination of seismic stratigraphy and the lithostratigraphic analysis of vibracores collected from the back-barrier estuarine environment. A combination of radiocarbon and aspartic acid racemisation-derived ages obtained on Holocene fossil molluscs, and the thermoluminescent signal in remnant Last Interglacial barrier sediments provides the chronological framework for this investigation. Results from this paper show that the barrier estuary occupies a relatively narrow (<1.5 km wide) and shallow (<40 m deep) incised bedrock valley formed during sea-level …
Gpr Surveys Of Vegetated Linear Dune Stratigraphy In Central Australia: Evidence For Linear Dune Extension With Vertical And Lateral Accretion, Gerald Nanson, Brian Jones, David Price, C Bristow, Cameron Hollands, Maria Coleman
Gpr Surveys Of Vegetated Linear Dune Stratigraphy In Central Australia: Evidence For Linear Dune Extension With Vertical And Lateral Accretion, Gerald Nanson, Brian Jones, David Price, C Bristow, Cameron Hollands, Maria Coleman
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Holocene Sea-Level Change On The Southeast Coast Of Australia: A Review, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss
Holocene Sea-Level Change On The Southeast Coast Of Australia: A Review, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Cyclicity In The Nearshore Marine To Coastal, Lower Permian, Pebbley Beach Formation, Southern Sydney Basin, Australia: A Record Of Relative Sea-Level Fluctuations At The Close Of The Late Palaeozoic Gondwanan Ice Age, Brian G. Jones, Stuart C. Tye, James A. Maceachern, Kerrie L. Bann, Christopher R. Fielding
Cyclicity In The Nearshore Marine To Coastal, Lower Permian, Pebbley Beach Formation, Southern Sydney Basin, Australia: A Record Of Relative Sea-Level Fluctuations At The Close Of The Late Palaeozoic Gondwanan Ice Age, Brian G. Jones, Stuart C. Tye, James A. Maceachern, Kerrie L. Bann, Christopher R. Fielding
B. G. Jones
The Lower Permian (Artinskian to Sakmarian) Pebbley Beach Formation of the southernmost Sydney Basin in New South Wales, Australia, records sediment accumulation in shallow marine to coastal environments at the close of the Late Palaeozoic Gondwanan ice age. This paper presents a sequence stratigraphic re-evaluation of the upper half of the unit based on the integration of sedimentology and ichnology. Ten facies are recognized, separated into two facies associations. Facies Association A (7 facies) comprises variably bioturbated siltstones and sandstones with marine body fossils, interpreted to record sediment accumulation in open marine environments ranging from lower offshore to middle shoreface …
Late Quaternary Mega-Lakes Fed By The Northern And Southern River Systems Of Central Australia: Varying Moisture Sources And Increased Continental Aridity, T Cohen, G Nanson, John Jansen, B Jones, Z Jacobs, J Larsen, J.-H May, P Treble, D Price, A Smith
Late Quaternary Mega-Lakes Fed By The Northern And Southern River Systems Of Central Australia: Varying Moisture Sources And Increased Continental Aridity, T Cohen, G Nanson, John Jansen, B Jones, Z Jacobs, J Larsen, J.-H May, P Treble, D Price, A Smith
B. G. Jones
Optically stimulated and thermoluminescence ages from relict shorelines, along with accelerator mass spectrometer 14C ages from freshwater molluscs reveal a record of variable moisture sources supplied by northern and southern river systems to Lake Mega-Frome in southern central Australia during the late Quaternary. Additional lacustrine, palynological and terrestrial proxies are used to reconstruct a record that extends back to 105 ka, confirming that Lakes Mega-Frome and Mega-Eyre were joined to create the largest system of palaeolakes on the Australian continent as recently as 50-47 ka. The palaeohydrological record indicates a progressive shift to more arid conditions, with marked drying after …
Use Of 210pb And 137cs To Simultaneously Constrain Ages And Sources Of Post-Dam Sediments In The Cordeaux Reservoir, Sydney, Australia, Ava Simms, Colin Woodroffe, Brian Jones, H Heijnis, Rob Mann, J. Harrison
Use Of 210pb And 137cs To Simultaneously Constrain Ages And Sources Of Post-Dam Sediments In The Cordeaux Reservoir, Sydney, Australia, Ava Simms, Colin Woodroffe, Brian Jones, H Heijnis, Rob Mann, J. Harrison
B. G. Jones
Environmental radionuclides can be employed as tracers of sediment movement and delivery to water bodies such as lakes and reservoirs. The chronologies of sediments that have accumulated in the Cordeaux reservoir in Sydney, Australia, were determined by the rate of change of 210Pbex with depth and indicate slow accretion in the reservoir. The ratio of enrichment of radionuclides in sediment cores to 210Pbex and 137Cs concentrations in a reference soil sample within the Cordeaux catchment indicates that the dominant source of sediment in the Cordeaux reservoir is surface erosion (detachment and removal of sediment at depths less than 30 cm). …
On The Possible Origins Of An Unusual (Mid To Late Holocene) Coastal Deposit, Old Punt Bay, South-East Australia, Brian Jones, Adam Switzer, S Haslett, Dale Dominey-Howes, D Everett, C Courtney, B Mamo, L Strotz
On The Possible Origins Of An Unusual (Mid To Late Holocene) Coastal Deposit, Old Punt Bay, South-East Australia, Brian Jones, Adam Switzer, S Haslett, Dale Dominey-Howes, D Everett, C Courtney, B Mamo, L Strotz
B. G. Jones
An unusual coarse, shelly sedimentary unit is found elevated above present mean sea level in a sheltered pocket embayment at Old Punt Bay in south-eastern Australia. The coarse sediments, diverse microfauna, and large shelly macrofauna of mixed affinity suggest that the deposit is the result of high-energy deposition. The deposit was previously thought to have been deposited 1000-1300 cal bp based on one shell dated using 14C and amino acid racemisation. However, additional 14C dating indicates a likely age of ~2500 cal bp. Regardless of age constraints, the presence of rock-encrusting oyster shells and large articulated bivalves, suggests that the …
Aeolian-Fluvial Interaction: Evidence For Late Quaternary Channel Change And Wind-Rift Linear Dune Formation In The Northwestern Simpson Desert, Australia, Gerald C. Nanson, Brian G. Jones, David M. Price, Tim Pietsch, C Bristow, Cameron B. Hollands
Aeolian-Fluvial Interaction: Evidence For Late Quaternary Channel Change And Wind-Rift Linear Dune Formation In The Northwestern Simpson Desert, Australia, Gerald C. Nanson, Brian G. Jones, David M. Price, Tim Pietsch, C Bristow, Cameron B. Hollands
B. G. Jones
In central Australia the most easterly extent of the MacDonnell Ranges borders the northwestern Simpson Desert where widely spaced strike ridges intercept the regional linear dunefield. Topographic basins have disrupted regional drainage lines and isolated dune sets from the main dunefield. In the western part of Camel Flat basin large, red coloured linear dunes of fine sand, ~ 74 ka and older, are oriented almost due north. Through gaps in the ranges the Todd River traversed the eastern part of the basin until ~25 ka when it apparently avulsed ~25 km eastwards to its present position. Subsequently, linear dunes, smaller, …
Patterns And Rates Of Sedimentary Infill In The Minnamurra River Estuary, South-Eastern Australia, K Panayotou, Colin Woodroffe, Brian Jones, Bryan Chenhall, Errol Mclean, H Heijnis
Patterns And Rates Of Sedimentary Infill In The Minnamurra River Estuary, South-Eastern Australia, K Panayotou, Colin Woodroffe, Brian Jones, Bryan Chenhall, Errol Mclean, H Heijnis
B. G. Jones
This paper presents a revised process-based model that explores aspects of estuarine geomorphology and the rates and patterns of sedimentary infill based upon the Minnamurra River estuary, a mature barrier estuary in south-eastern Australia. The Minnamurra River is located on the south coast of New South Wales and is characterised by three main facies: a marine flood tide delta/barrier, a central lagoon/estuary and a fluvial delta. The sedimentary record in this system was examined in detail to quantify the rate of estuarine infill. This predominantly infilled mature barrier estuary is now largely dominated by river influence. In the early stages …
Mobility Of Sediment Grain Size Distributions On A Wave Dominated Continental Shelf, Southeastern Australia, Brian Jones, Jonathan Griffin, Mark Hemer
Mobility Of Sediment Grain Size Distributions On A Wave Dominated Continental Shelf, Southeastern Australia, Brian Jones, Jonathan Griffin, Mark Hemer
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Contrasting Sedimentation Rates In Lake Illawarra And St Georges Basin, Two Large Barrier Estuaries On The Southeast Coast Of Australia, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss, H Heijnis, B Brooke
Contrasting Sedimentation Rates In Lake Illawarra And St Georges Basin, Two Large Barrier Estuaries On The Southeast Coast Of Australia, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss, H Heijnis, B Brooke
B. G. Jones
Sedimentation rates over the last 100 years within two lagoons on the southeast coast of Australia, Lake Illawarra and St Georges Basin, have been quantified to determine the effects of catchment land use change and native vegetation clearance on infill rates, and spatial variations in the rate at which the estuaries have filled. Both catchments have similar lake and catchment area but have experience different degrees of modification due to land clearing for agriculture practices, urbanisation and industrialisation. Results indicate that in the heavily modified catchment of Lake Illawarra sedimentation rates close to fluvial deltas can be in excess of …
Reconstructing Recent Sedimentation In Two Urbanised Coastal Lagoons (Nsw, Australia) Using Radioisotopes And Geochemistry, Brian Jones, H Heijnis, J. Harrison, Suzanne Hollins, S Hankin, Atun Zawadzki
Reconstructing Recent Sedimentation In Two Urbanised Coastal Lagoons (Nsw, Australia) Using Radioisotopes And Geochemistry, Brian Jones, H Heijnis, J. Harrison, Suzanne Hollins, S Hankin, Atun Zawadzki
B. G. Jones
In this study, we combined grain size and geochemical analyses with radioisotope analysis of lead-210 (210Pb), caesium-137 (137Cs) and radiocarbon (14C) ages to reconstruct the sedimentation history of two urbanised coastal lagoons in south-east Australia. Towradgi and Fairy Lagoons were both found to exhibit slow initial sedimentation of less than 1 mm year-1 prior to anthropogenic influences. Land clearing in the catchments increased runoff and erosion in the creeks feeding into the estuaries, and has resulted in progradation of fluvial material into the estuarine systems with a marked increase in sedimentation to between 2 and 7 mm year-1. The upper …
Sea Level, Storm, Or Tsunami: Engimatic Sand Sheet Deposits In A Sheltered Coastal Embayment From Southeastern New South Wales, Australia, Edward Bryant, Brian Jones, Kevin Pucillo, Rabea Haredy, Adam Switzer
Sea Level, Storm, Or Tsunami: Engimatic Sand Sheet Deposits In A Sheltered Coastal Embayment From Southeastern New South Wales, Australia, Edward Bryant, Brian Jones, Kevin Pucillo, Rabea Haredy, Adam Switzer
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
The Sedimentary Record Of Palaeoenvironments And Sea-Level Change In The Gulf Of Carpentaria, Australia, Through The Last Glacial Cycle, Jessica Reeves, Allan Chivas, Adriana Garcia, Sabine Holt, Martine Couapel, Brian Jones, Dionisio Cendon, David Fink
The Sedimentary Record Of Palaeoenvironments And Sea-Level Change In The Gulf Of Carpentaria, Australia, Through The Last Glacial Cycle, Jessica Reeves, Allan Chivas, Adriana Garcia, Sabine Holt, Martine Couapel, Brian Jones, Dionisio Cendon, David Fink
B. G. Jones
Environmental evolution of the Gulf of Carpentaria region, the world's largest tropical epicontinental seaway, through the last glacial cycle has been determined from a series of six sediment cores. These cores form the focus of a multi-disciplinary study to elucidate sea level, climate and environmental change in the region. The sedimentary record reveals a series of facies including open shallow marine, marginal marine, estuarine, lacustrine and subaerial exposure, throughout the extent of the basin during this period. The partial or complete closure of the central basin from marine waters results from sea level falling below the height of one or …
Climate Change In The Dead Heart Of Australia, Joshua Larsen, Gerald C. Nanson, Timothy J. Cohen, Brian G. Jones, John D. Jansen, Jan-Hendrik May
Climate Change In The Dead Heart Of Australia, Joshua Larsen, Gerald C. Nanson, Timothy J. Cohen, Brian G. Jones, John D. Jansen, Jan-Hendrik May
B. G. Jones
Despite the absence of large-scale glaciation, the Australian continent has experienced substantial environmental change throughout the Quaternary period. This is especially pronounced in central Australia, where one seventh of the continent is drained internally to the depocentre, and lowest point in Australia, Lake Eyre (Figure 1). Research has shown that at one time, large sandy braided and meandering rivers carried water through dunefields to a large freshwater lake system. Today, the rivers are hostage to the dunefield, and floodwaters might only reach Lake Eyre once every ten years or so. In order to understand the development of this arid desert …
Holocene Sea Level Fluctuations And The Sedimentary Evolution Of A Barrier Estuary: Lake Illawarra, New South Wales, Australia, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss, C.E. Mcclennen
Holocene Sea Level Fluctuations And The Sedimentary Evolution Of A Barrier Estuary: Lake Illawarra, New South Wales, Australia, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss, C.E. Mcclennen
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Setup, Deposition And Sedimentary Characteristics Of Two Storm Overwash Deposits, Abrahams Bosom Beach, Southeastern Australia, Brian Jones, Adam Switzer
Setup, Deposition And Sedimentary Characteristics Of Two Storm Overwash Deposits, Abrahams Bosom Beach, Southeastern Australia, Brian Jones, Adam Switzer
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Ichnological And Sedimentologic Signatures Of Mixed Wave- And Storm-Dominated Deltaic Deposits: Examples From The Early Permian Sydney Basin, Australia, Brian Jones, Stuart Tye, James Maceachern, Kerrie Bann, Christopher Fielding
Ichnological And Sedimentologic Signatures Of Mixed Wave- And Storm-Dominated Deltaic Deposits: Examples From The Early Permian Sydney Basin, Australia, Brian Jones, Stuart Tye, James Maceachern, Kerrie Bann, Christopher Fielding
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Aminostratigraphy Of Two Holocene Wave-Dominated Barrier Estuaries In Southeastern Australia, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss
Aminostratigraphy Of Two Holocene Wave-Dominated Barrier Estuaries In Southeastern Australia, Colin Murray-Wallace, Brian Jones, Craig Sloss
B. G. Jones
No abstract provided.
Continental Aridification And The Vanishing Of Australia's Megalakes, Timothy J. Cohen, Gerald C. Nanson, John D. Jansen, B. G. Jones, Zenobia Jacobs, P Treble, David M. Price, Jan-Hendrik May, A Smith, Linda K. Ayliffe, John C. Hellstrom
Continental Aridification And The Vanishing Of Australia's Megalakes, Timothy J. Cohen, Gerald C. Nanson, John D. Jansen, B. G. Jones, Zenobia Jacobs, P Treble, David M. Price, Jan-Hendrik May, A Smith, Linda K. Ayliffe, John C. Hellstrom
B. G. Jones
The nature of the Australian climate at about the time of rapid megafaunal extinctions and humans arriving in Australia is poorly understood and is an important element in the contentious debate as to whether humans or climate caused the extinctions. Here we present a new paleoshoreline chronology that extends over the past 100 k.y. for Lake Mega-Frome, the coalescence of Lakes Frome, Blanche, Callabonna and Gregory, in the southern latitudes of central Australia. We show that Lake Mega-Frome was connected for the last time to adjacent Lake Eyre at 50-47 ka, forming the largest remaining interconnected system of paleolakes on …
Alluvial Evidence For Major Climate And Flow Regime Changes During The Middle And Late Quaternary For Eastern Central Australia, Gerald C. Nanson, David M. Price, B. G. Jones, Jerry C. Maroulis, Maria Coleman, Hugo Bowman, Timothy J. Cohen, Tim Pietsch, Joshua R. Larsen
Alluvial Evidence For Major Climate And Flow Regime Changes During The Middle And Late Quaternary For Eastern Central Australia, Gerald C. Nanson, David M. Price, B. G. Jones, Jerry C. Maroulis, Maria Coleman, Hugo Bowman, Timothy J. Cohen, Tim Pietsch, Joshua R. Larsen
B. G. Jones
As a low-gradient arid region spanning the tropics to the temperate zone, the Lake Eyre basin has undergone gentle late Cenozoic crustal warping leading to substantial alluvial deposition, thereby forming repositories of evidence for palaeoclimatic and palaeohydrological changes from the Late Tertiary to the Holocene. Auger holes and bank exposures at five locations along the lower 500 km of Cooper Creek, a major contributor to Lake Eyre in the eastern part of the basin, yielded 85 luminescence dates (TL and OSL) that, combined wit a further 142 luminescence dates from northeastern Australia, have established a chronology of multiple episodes of …
Late Quaternary Aeolian And Fluvial Interactions On The Cooper Creek Fan And The Association Between Linear And Source-Bordering Dunes, Strzelecki Desert, Australia, Timothy Cohen, Gerald Nanson, Joshua Larsen, B. Jones, David Price, Maria Coleman, Tim Pietsch
Late Quaternary Aeolian And Fluvial Interactions On The Cooper Creek Fan And The Association Between Linear And Source-Bordering Dunes, Strzelecki Desert, Australia, Timothy Cohen, Gerald Nanson, Joshua Larsen, B. Jones, David Price, Maria Coleman, Tim Pietsch
B. G. Jones
The Innamincka Dome and associated low-gradient fan in the Strzelecki Desert is the product of Cenozoic crustal warping that has aided formation of an extensive array of palaeochannels, source-bordering transverse dunes and superimposed linear dunes. These dunes have impeded the course of Cooper Creek and provided a repository of evidence for Quaternary climate change as well as the interactive processes between transverse and linear dune formation. At Turra, Gidgealpa and sites nearby are extensive fluvial and aeolian sand bodies that date from marine isotope stages (MIS) 8-3 and the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and are now surrounded or buried by …
Sediment Mixing At Nonda Rock: Investigations Of Stratigraphic Integrity At An Early Archaeological Site In Northern Australia And Implications For The Human Colonisation Of The Continent, Richard Roberts, C White, L K Fifield, Christian Turney, M Bird, John Tibby, Bruno David, John Magee, Jerome Mialanes
Sediment Mixing At Nonda Rock: Investigations Of Stratigraphic Integrity At An Early Archaeological Site In Northern Australia And Implications For The Human Colonisation Of The Continent, Richard Roberts, C White, L K Fifield, Christian Turney, M Bird, John Tibby, Bruno David, John Magee, Jerome Mialanes
Richard G Roberts
No abstract provided.
Mammalian Responses To Pleistocene Climate Change In Southeastern Australia, Richard Roberts, Jonathon Olley, John Hellstrom, Dirk Megirian, Gavin Prideaux, Kira Westaway
Mammalian Responses To Pleistocene Climate Change In Southeastern Australia, Richard Roberts, Jonathon Olley, John Hellstrom, Dirk Megirian, Gavin Prideaux, Kira Westaway
Richard G Roberts
No abstract provided.
Late-Surviving Megafauna In Tasmania Australia, Implicate Human Involvement In Their Extinction, Christian Turney, T Flannery, Richard Roberts, Craig Reid, Keith Fifield, T Higham, Zenobia Jacobs, Noel Kemp, Eric Colhoun, R.M. Kalin
Late-Surviving Megafauna In Tasmania Australia, Implicate Human Involvement In Their Extinction, Christian Turney, T Flannery, Richard Roberts, Craig Reid, Keith Fifield, T Higham, Zenobia Jacobs, Noel Kemp, Eric Colhoun, R.M. Kalin
Richard G Roberts
Establishing the cause of past extinctions is critical if we are to understand better what might trigger future occurrences and how to prevent them. The mechanisms of continental late Pleistocene megafaunal extinction, however, are still fiercely contested. Potential factors contributing to their demise include climatic change, human impact, or some combination. On the Australian mainland, 90% of the megafauna became extinct by ≈46 thousand years (ka) ago, soon after the first archaeological evidence for human colonization of the continent. Yet, on the neighboring island of Tasmania (which was connected to the mainland when sea levels were lower), megafaunal extinction appears …
A High-Resolution Record Of Vegetation And Climate Through The Last Glacial Cycle From Caledonia Fen, Southeastern Highlands Of Australia, A Kershaw, G Mckenzie, N Porch, Richard Roberts, J Browne, H Heijnis, M Orr, Geraldine Jacobsen, P Newall
A High-Resolution Record Of Vegetation And Climate Through The Last Glacial Cycle From Caledonia Fen, Southeastern Highlands Of Australia, A Kershaw, G Mckenzie, N Porch, Richard Roberts, J Browne, H Heijnis, M Orr, Geraldine Jacobsen, P Newall
Richard G Roberts
A blocked tributary has provided a rare site of long-term sediment accumulation in montane southeastern Australia. This site has yielded a continuous, detailed pollen record through the last ca. 140 000 years and revealed marked vegetation and environmental changes at orbital to sub-millennial scales. Radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL, or optical) ages provide some chronological control for the last ca. 70 000 years. Most of the sediment is inorganic but with well preserved pollen that accumulated under unproductive and probably largely ice-covered lake conditions. The lake was surrounded by low-growing plants with an alpine character. Exceptions include three discrete …