Reconstruction

No abstract

Pollen, charcoal and geochemical investigations were carried out on annually laminated sediments of Lake _ Zabińskie (54°07 0 54.5 00 N; 21°59 0 01.1 00 E) and the results were combined with historical and climate data to better understand the mechanism behind plant cover transformations. A millennium-long record of environmental history at 6-years time resolution permitted an assessment of vegetation responses to past human impact and climate fluctuations. Our results show that the history of the region with repeated periods of warfare, epidemics, famine and crop failures is well reflected by environmental proxies. Before the Teutonic Order crusade (AD 1230-1283), agricultural activities of the Prussian tribes were conducted at a distance from the studied lake and caused slight disturbances of local forests. A stronger human impact was registered after ca AD 1460. We confirm that co-domination of pine forests with spruce and oakhornbeam forests on drier habitats as well as the presence of birch and alder woods on wet surfaces near the lake lasted until AD 1610. We identified a transition period of 20 years between AD 1590 and 1610, when forest cover was significantly reduced and the area was partly transformed into open land used for farming activities. The comparison of our data with other pollen datasets from the region confirms significant spatio-temporal differences in the initiation of large-scale woodland clearings in the Great Masurian Lake District. A strong increase in local cultivation was noted after AD 1750 and became even stronger in the period AD 1810-1940. The last 60 years experienced a succession from arable fields and open grasslands to more tree-covered habitats overgrown by birch and alder.

No abstract

Varved lake sediments from Lake Żabińskie (northeastern Poland) provide a highresolution calendar-year chronology which allows validation of 14 C dating results. Microscopic analysis of the varve microfacies revealed that laminations found in Lake Żabińskie were biogenic (calcite) varves. Three independent counts indicated a good preservation quality of laminae in the 348 cm long sediment profile which contained 1000 +12 / -24 varves. The varve chronology was validated with the 137 Cs activity peaks, the tephra horizon from the Askja eruption at AD 1875 and with the timing of major land-use changes of known age inferred from pollen analysis. 32 AMS 14 C dates of terrestrial macrofossils distributed along the profile were compared with the varve chronology. After identification of outliers, the free-shape model performed with 21 14 C dates provided the best possible fit with the varve chronology. We observed almost ideal consistency between both chronologies from the present until AD 1250 while in the lower part (AD 1000-1250) the difference increases to ca. 25 years. We demonstrate that this offset can be explained by too old radiocarbon ages of plant remains transported to the lake by the inflowing creek. Results of this study highlight that careful interpretation of radiocarbon age-depth models is necessary, especially in lakes where no annual laminations are observed and no independent method are used for cross-validation.