Minimum count sums for charcoal concentration estimates in pollen slides:                 accuracy and potential errors

Finsinger, Walter; Tinner, Willy

doi:10.1191/0959683605hl808rr

Cited by 216 publications

(128 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Microscopic charcoal was counted in the pollen slides with a light microscope at 250× magnification following Tinner and Hu (2003) and Finsinger and Tinner (2005); charcoal concentration (#/cm 3 ) is calculated in proportion to the Lycopodium grains added to the samples. Influx values (#/cm 2 /yr) derive from sedimentation accumulation rates (SAR) estimated with the age-depth model.…”

Section: Charcoal Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate versus human-driven fire regimes in Mediterranean landscapes: the Holocene record of Lago dell’Accesa (Tuscany, Italy)

Vannière

Colombaroli

Chapron

et al. 2008

Quaternary Science Reviews

216

169

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A high-resolution sedimentary charcoal record from Lago dell'Accesa in southern Tuscany reveals numerous changes in fire regime over the last 11.6 kyr cal. BP and provides one of the longest gap-free series from Italy and the Mediterranean region. Charcoal analyses are coupled with gamma density measurements, organic-content analyses, and pollen counts to provide data about sedimentation and vegetation history. A comparison between fire frequency and lake-level reconstructions from the same site is used to address the centennial variability of fire regimes and its linkage to hydrological processes. Our data reveal strong relationships among climate, fire, vegetation, and land-use and attest to the paramount importance of fire in Mediterranean ecosystems. The mean fire interval (MFI) for the entire Holocene was estimated to be 150 yr, with a minimum around 80 yr and a maximum around 450 yr. Between 11.6 and 3.6 kyr cal. BP, up to eight high-frequency fire phases lasting 300-500 yr generally occurred during shifts towards low lake-level stands (ca 11,300, 10,700, 9500, 8700, 7600, 6200, 5300, 3400, 1800 and 1350 cal. yr BP). Therefore, we assume that most of these shifts were triggered by drier climatic conditions and especially a dry summer season that promoted ignition and biomass burning. At the beginning of the Holocene, high climate seasonality favoured fire expansion in this region, as in many other ecosystems of the northern and southern hemispheres. Human impact affected fire regimes and especially fire frequencies since the Neolithic (ca 8000-4000 cal. yr BP). Burning as a consequence of anthropogenic activities became more frequent after the onset of the Bronze Age (ca 3800-3600 cal. yr BP) and appear to be synchronous with the development of settlements in the region, slash-and-burn agriculture, animal husbandry, and mineral exploitation. The anthropogenic phases with maximum fire activity corresponded to greater sensitivity of the vegetation and triggered significant changes in vegetational communities (e.g. temporal declines of Quercus ilex forests and expansion of shrublands and macchia). The link between fire and climate persisted during the mid-and late Holocene, when human impact on vegetation and the fire regime was high. This finding suggests that climatic conditions were important for fire occurrence even under strongly humanised ecosystem conditions.

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Section: Charcoal Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate versus human-driven fire regimes in Mediterranean landscapes: the Holocene record of Lago dell’Accesa (Tuscany, Italy)

Vannière

Colombaroli

Chapron

et al. 2008

Quaternary Science Reviews

216

169

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…One numerically determined, but statistically not significant zone limit was retained, because it was judged ecologically meaningful. Microscopic charcoal particles[10 lm were counted on the pollen slides following Tinner and Hu (2003) and Finsinger and Tinner (2005). Concentrations (particles cm -3 ) and influx (particles cm -2 per year) were estimated using the same approach as for pollen.…”

Section: Pollen and Charcoal Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Mid- and late-Holocene vegetation and fire history at Biviere di Gela, a coastal lake in southern Sicily, Italy

Noti

Leeuwen

Colombaroli

et al. 2009

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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122

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“…Charcoal particles longer than 10 mm were identified in the pollen slides with a light microscope at ×250 magnification. Charcoal was identified as black, completely opaque, angular fragments and at least 200 objects were counted for each sample (Tinner and Hu 2003;Finsinger and Tinner 2005). Rarefaction analysis using the program RAREPOLL (Birks and Line 1992) was carried out using the raw count to estimate the palynological richness, the lowest pollen count (410 grains) was used as the reference sum.…”

Section: Pollen and Microscopic Charcoal Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Human impact during the Bronze Age on the vegetation at Lago Lucone (northern Italy)

Valsecchi

Tinner

Finsinger

et al. 2005

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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Lake-sediment records were used to reconstruct human impact on the landscape around Lago Lucone (45 • 33 N, 10 • 29 E, 249 m a.s.l.), a former lake in the western amphitheatre system of the Lago di Garda. Presence of prehistoric human populations is attested by pile-dwelling settlements from the Early-Middle Bronze Age, with one settlement at a distance of only 100 m from the coring site. Pollen, plant-macrofossil and microscopic charcoal analyses were applied to a 250 cm sediment core with four dates providing the time control. A mixed oak forest that was important during the Early-Middle Holocene was cleared and replaced by open vegetation during the Bronze Age (∼2000-1100 b.c.) when open lands were estimated to have covered more than 60% of the total relevant pollen-source area. During a phase of high human impact, independent climatic proxies suggest warm and dry climatic conditions. Later, ca. 1100 b.c., palaeobotanical evidence indicates a sharp decrease in human pressure in the Lago Lucone area. The comparison with other sedimentary palaeocultural records shows that the period 1300-1100 b.c. was characterised by general declines of agricultural activities both south and north of the Alps. These declines have been previously attributed to a change towards wetter and colder climatic conditions in and around the Alps. However, the decline in human impact around Lago Lucone cannot be exclusively attributed to climatic variation. Therefore other V. Valsecchi ( ) · W. Tinner · W. Finsinger · B. Ammann

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Minimum count sums for charcoal concentration estimates in pollen slides: accuracy and potential errors

Cited by 216 publications

References 22 publications

Climate versus human-driven fire regimes in Mediterranean landscapes: the Holocene record of Lago dell’Accesa (Tuscany, Italy)

Climate versus human-driven fire regimes in Mediterranean landscapes: the Holocene record of Lago dell’Accesa (Tuscany, Italy)

Mid- and late-Holocene vegetation and fire history at Biviere di Gela, a coastal lake in southern Sicily, Italy

Human impact during the Bronze Age on the vegetation at Lago Lucone (northern Italy)

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