Middle to Late Pleistocene palaeoecological reconstructions and palaeotemperature estimates for cold/cool stage deposits at Whittlesey, eastern England

Abstract

Fossiliferous beds in a complex sequence of late Middle to Late Pleistocene deposits at Whittlesey, eastern England, provided a rare opportunity for a multidisciplinary study of the palaeoecology of cool/cold stage deposits from different glacial stages. The fossiliferous sediments investigated form part of the River Nene 1st Terrace. Three of the four fossil assemblages investigated pre-date the last interglacial stage (Ipswichian/Eemian/marine oxygen isotope stage (MIS) 5e), whereas the other dates to part of the MIS 3 interstadial complex (Middle Devensian/Weichselian). Pollen, plant macrofossil, molluscan, coleopteran, ostracod, foraminifera and vertebrate data are available to a greater or lesser extent for each cool/cold stage assemblage, and they broadly present the same ecological picture for each one: a continuum from lowenergy permanent to non-permanent aquatic habitats through marshland with associated waterside taxa, together with flood influxes of fluvial, riparian and ruderal taxa. Although each fossil assemblage records cool/cold climatic conditions, to a greater or lesser extent, these conditions are more apparent in the insect and ostracod faunas. In comparision with results published for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) stadial in The Netherlands, palaeotemperature estimates based on ranges of mutual agreement between independent coleopteran and ostracod methods for the three preIpswichian/Eemian assemblages indicate minimum mean July air temperatures that are from +1° to +3°C warmer, but January values that embrace the −8°C estimate for the LGM. There is, however, a disparity between the coleopteran and ostracod palaeotemperature estimates for the Middle Devensian/Weichselian fossil assemblage, which are based on two different sample stratigraphic levels; the lower, coleopteran assemblage is indicative of very cool, continental climates, whereas the stratigraphically slightly higher ostracod assemblage suggests a climatic amelioration. Lack of numerical age-estimates prevents a robust stratigraphical interpretation, but the youngest pre-Ipswichian/Eemian fossil assemblage could date to the marine oxygen isotope stage 7-6 transition, at a time when cooling possibly preceded glacially driven sea-level fall. It is apparent from the rich coleopteran data that some continental cold-indicator taxa also appeared in pre-Ipswichian/Eemian cold stages and therefore assignment of continental cold-indicator taxa to particular Devensian/Weichselian intervals should be undertaken with care.

Evidence for late Middle Pleistocene glaciation of the British margin of the southern North Sea

“…Notwithstanding the above, it has long been clear that in restricted areas of Midland England there is evidence that cannot be explained other than in terms of an additional late Middle Pleistocene glaciation. Five areas, in particular, have provided such evidence: Greater Birmingham, where unequivocal evidence for post‐Anglian–pre‐Devensian glaciation occurs at Quinton and Nechells (Duigan and Godwin, ; Kelly, ; Horton, ; Maddy, ; Thomas, ); Lincolnshire, where Straw (1963, 1983, 2000, 2005, 2011) has long promoted glaciation during multiple stages; the East Midlands, particularly the sedimentary archives preserved in the Trent and Witham valleys, newly reinterpreted as a result of the TVPP (White et al ., ; Bridgland et al ., ; Westaway et al ., ); the Fen Basin, where evidence for post‐Anglian–pre‐Devensian glaciation has been described from the valleys of the Nar (Gibbard et al ., , , ; Lewis and Rose, ) and the Welland/Nene (Langford, ; Langford et al ., ); northern East Anglia, where the evidence for post‐Anglian–pre‐Devensian glaciation has been much debated (Straw, , , ,b; Hamblin et al ., , ; Westaway, ; Lee et al ., , ; Westaway et al ., ). …”

Drainage network reorganization affecting the Nene and Welland catchments of eastern England as a result of a late Middle Pleistocene glacial advance

“…At Whittlesey a fossiliferous, fully temperate channel fill (channel B) crops out in West Face and Bradley Fen quarries and is robustly dated by AAR analysis of 34 Bithynia tentaculata opercula to the penultimate interglacial (MIS 7; Penkman, ; Langford et al., ; Langford, Boreham, Coope, Fletcher, et al., ; Penkman et al., ). Channel B overlies three gravel facies deposited by streams flowing to the north to east quadrant, that is, towards The Wash, each with evidence for aggradation under cool/cold conditions (Langford et al., ; Langford, Boreham, Coope, Fletcher, et al., ; Langford, Boreham, Coope, Horne, et al., ). A minimum age of MIS 8 is therefore suggested for these three gravel facies.…”

“…Indirectly, a MIS 8 age for the above sequence of events is indicated by AAR and OSL data from Middle Pleistocene deposits at Whittlesey in the lower Nene catchment (Langford, 1999;Langford, Boreham, Coope, Fletcher, et al, 2014;Langford, Boreham, Coope, Horne, et al, 2014;Langford et al, 2017). In addition, the sedimentary succession at Sutton Cross downstream of the alluvuial fan and 15 km upstream of Whittlesey, records aggradation during at least three glacial stages, which implies a minimum age of MIS 8 for the earliest cold-stage deposits (Langford, 1999(Langford, , 2012aLangford, Keen, et al, 2004).…”

“…The oldest gravel aggradation is rich in flint (Figure 13c), suggesting erosion of Anglian chalk-rich diamicton to the west (Figure 13d). This gravel crops out in West Face Quarry and contains organic muds with a fossil assemblage indicative of accumulation under a cold climate (Langford, Boreham, Coope, Horne, et al, 2014). The presence of flint implies a maximum age of MIS 12, as the first significant introduction of Cretaceous material to the Peterborough area is considered to be associated with the Anglian cold stage (Horton, 1989;Langford, 1999Langford, , 2004bLangford, ,c, 2011; the presence of flint at the base of the Woodston Beds confirms a minimum MIS 12 age for this introduction (Horton et al, 1992;Penkman et al, 2011).…”

“…Detailed sedimentology of the deposits at Uffington and Elton is presented and aspects of the sedimentology discussed before considering the palaeogeographical implications by relating the sedimentology to associated landscape elements. Age of the palaeogeographical reconstruction is then considered utilizing age determinations, biostratigraphy and stratigraphical relations from late Middle Pleistocene sites at Sutton Cross and Whittlesey (Figure a; Langford, ; Langford et al., , ; Langford, Boreham, Coope, Fletcher, et al., ; Langford, Boreham, Coope, Horne, et al., ). The findings of this study are then discussed with regard to MIS 8 and 6 ice margins.…”