This paper is a compilation of up to date, best available quantitative and semi-quantitative records of past climate and biotic response from CEE covering this period. It first presents the proxy and archive used. Speleothems and loess mainly provide the evidences available for the 60-20 ka BP interval, whereas pollen records provide the main source of information for the Lateglacial and Holocene. It then examines the temporal and spatial patterns of climate variability inferred from different proxies, the temporal and spatial magnitude of the vegetation responses inferred from pollen records and highlights differences and similarities between proxies and sub-regions and the possible mechanisms behind this variability. Finally, it identifies weakness in the proxies and archives and their geographical distribution. This exercise also provides an opportunity to reflect on the status of research in the area and to identify future critical areas and subjects of research. The compilation should also serve as a reference point for the use in the modelling community working towards the INTIMATE project goals, and in data-model inter-comparison studies.
COBISS.SI-ID: 37388333
The origin of organic matter in recent anoxic sediments of the alpine Lake Bled (NW Slovenia) was determined by analyzing the carbon isotope composition of lipid biomarkers, i.e. alkanes, alcohols, sterols and fatty acids, busing compound specific, carbon isotope analysis. The results indicate that, although biomarker analysis indicated mostly plankton and terrestrial sources for lipids, an important part of sedimentary lipids, especially sterols, are autochthonous, of anaerobic microbial (methanotrophic) origin. These results indicate that even some compounds found in both particulate organic matter and sediments are the same in terms of chemical structures, their sources can be different and thus, isotopic composition should be used as a complementary tool for source identification. The same approach will be used to identify the sources of organic matter at Mali plac.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3158607
The research focused on the biogeographical patterns along the Balkans and central Europe gradient. Changeable width of ecological niche and changing role of generalists turning into specialists was investigated on a large database. A hypotheses that many weed species (Caucalidion association), which are originally generalists in the southern Europe, at the edge of their areal in central Europe, become specialists, was tested. This research helps us to understand the growth conditions of present-day weeds, and under what conditions they could have occurred in the archaeological fields.
COBISS.SI-ID: 36572973