Forest-Tundra Neighbouring the North Pole: Plant and Insect Remains from the Plio-Pleistocene Kap København Formation, North Greenland

Bennike, Ole; Böcher, Jens

doi:10.14430/arctic1629

Cited by 76 publications

(113 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Prime candidates are Oxyria digyna and Koenigia islandica, both of which are morphologically very distinct, very widespread and belong to monotypic genera (Murray 1995). Late Tertiary macrofossils of Saxifraga oppositifolia from the Canadian Arctic and north Greenland as well as cpDNA variation suggest that this species was among the first plants to colonise the Arctic approximately 3 million years ago (Bennike and Böcher 1990;Matthews and Ovenden 1990;Abbott and Comes 2004;Abbott et al 2000). Several other arctic plant species, such as Salix reticulata, Empetrum nigrum, Vaccinium uliginosum, Cassiope tetragona and Dryas octopetala, have also been recorded as late Tertiary fossils in Greenland (Bennike and Böcher 1990) or Arctic Canada (Matthews and Ovenden 1990).…”

Section: Recent and Rapid Speciationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…tetragona; Eidesen et al 2007b) and Rubus chamaemorus (Ehrich et al 2008), gave surprisingly different results. Also these species have been found as early macrofossils in northern Greenland (2.5-2.0 million years old; Bennike and Böcher 1990). In contrast to Saxifraga oppositifolia, however, no cpDNA variation at all was found on the circumpolar scale in Cassiope tetragona ssp.…”

Section: Repeatedly Out Of Beringia To Embrace the Arcticmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Arctic – an evolutionary freezer?

Brochmann

Brysting

2008

Plant Ecology & Diversity

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Traditionally, the Arctic has been viewed as an 'evolutionary freezer' with low evolutionary rates caused by extreme environmental constraints and depauperated by repeated glaciations. This view has been modified in recent years. Here we summarise recent studies demonstrating a very high diversity relative to the age of the arctic ecosystem (2-3 million years). Arctic species' diversity is underestimated in the sense that most arctic plants are polyploids, combining the genomes of several ancestral species and that they may contain considerable hidden diversity as cryptic species. There are now many examples of arctic species that originated in the Pleistocene, via divergent evolution or successively higher-level polyploidizations, following hybridization. Apart from genetic diversity associated with polyploid origin, many arctic plants show considerable variation both within and among populations. Genetic diversity varies with breeding system, frequency of inter-and intraspecific hybridization, and history in terms of refugial isolation and range shifts. Many cold-adapted species probably proliferated in vast tundra populations during most of the Pleistocene, followed by broad-fronted postglacial recolonisation resulting in little loss of genetic diversity. Migration at the beginning and end of warm and cold periods is likely to be an important driver of diversification. Molecular data have now provided ample evidence for extreme long-distant colonisation ability of many arctic plants. Local variants may thus spread over vast distances and create multiple hotspots for evolutionary novelty, and it is possible that even small differences in immigration history may have a considerable effect on the evolutionary emergence of diversity.

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Section: Recent and Rapid Speciationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Repeatedly Out Of Beringia To Embrace the Arcticmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Arctic – an evolutionary freezer?

Brochmann

Brysting

2008

Plant Ecology & Diversity

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“…2). In north-east Greenland elements of taiga forest reached 82°N during the Piacenzian (Bennike and Boecher, 1990), whilst the Greenland ice sheet was reduced by at least 30% (Dolan et al, …”

Section: Polar and Sub-polar Vegetation Zonesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate and environment of a Pliocene warm world

Salzmann

Williams

Haywood

et al. 2011

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology

158

105

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The Pliocene Epoch, 5.33 -2.58 million years ago (Ma), was a generally warmer and wetter interval with atmospheric CO 2 -concentrations at or slightly above modern levels. This paper provides an overview of Pliocene vegetation, sea surface temperatures and climate modelling outcomes.. Most prominent changes in Pliocene biome distribution compared to today include a northwards shift of temperate and boreal vegetation zones in response to a warmer and wetter climate as well as an expansion of tropical savannas and forests at the expense of deserts. Modelling experiments using the Hadley Centre climate model identified significantly higher Pliocene sea surface temperatures at the high-latitudes with only minor warming predicted in the tropics. Global mean annual surface temperatures (MAT) are estimated to have been 2 to 3ºC higher during the Piacenzian (3.6-2.58 Ma) than today with a reduced equator to pole gradient. The marine realm during the Pliocene was characterised by a reconfiguration of ocean gateways, particularly the narrowing of the Indonesian Seaway and closure of the Central American Isthmus, which produced essentially a modern pattern of ocean circulation. In the Southern Ocean a warm early Pliocene gave way to late Piacenzian cooling. Proxy data indicate a reduced east to west sea surface temperature gradient in the tropical Pacific during the Pliocene warmth. The Pliocene is one of the most intensively studied geological intervals of the pre-Quaternary. No other warm period in the geological past yields such a unique combination of near modern atmospheric CO 2 -concentrations, palaeogeography and palaeobiology. However, this paper also identifies data gaps and shortcomings in the reconstruction of Pliocene environments using proxy data and climate models on which future research should focus.

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“…The Arctic Ocean -Greenland Sea may have been relatively warm (nearshore sea bottom temperatures 4-9 0 C) during early (first?) glaciation(s) of northeast Greenland 2.4-2.6 Ma ago, as recorded in the Kap Kobenhavn and Lodin EIv formations (Penny, 1993), or they may have returned to warm conditions in the Late Pliocene (about 2 or 1.8 Ma ago; Funder, 1989;Bennike and Bôcher, 1990;Repenning and Brouwers, 1992) depending on the age assigned to these formations. The Kap Kobenhavn Formation contains the boreal mollusc Macoma balthica (Funder, 1989).…”

Section: Background To Molluscan Distributionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine Molluscs as Indicators of Environmental Change in Glaciated North America and Greenland During the Last 18 000 Years

Dyke¹,

Dale²,

McNeely³

2007

gpq

116

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ABSTRACTDated mollusc collections are classified in assemblages to map paleo-faunistic zones. Hiatella arctica and Mya truncata account for almost half the records and comprise a restricted arctic assemblage. Arctic assemblages comprise 70% and arctic-dominated assemblages 80% of the database. Fifteen species dominate but 170 taxa are recorded. At last glacial maximum, the arctic zone extended from the Arctic Ocean to the Grand Banks. The boreal zone in the western Atlantic was compressed. The subarctic zone, which today dominates eastern Canada, was small. The boreal zone was extensive in the eastern Pacific where subarctic and arctic zones were compressed. Zones shifted northward during deglaciation and the arctic zone diversified when Bering Strait submerged 10.5-10.3 ka BP. Western Arctic molluscs during Younger Dryas time indicate shallow waters warmer than present. Major North Atlantic currents were established 9.5-9.0 ka BP. The subarctic zone extended to the head of Baffin Bay and a boreal zone became established in West Greenland 9-8 ka BP, with intensive changes about 8.5 ka BP. We relate the latter to the reduction of Mackenzie River discharge and in sea ice export to the North Atlantic as Laurentide ice withdrew from Mackenzie headwaters. The extended subarctic zone in Baffin Bay persisted until 3 ka BP and then retreated about 1000 km on the Canadian side. Boreal-subarctic molluscs in the Gulf of St. Lawrence before 9.5 ka BP derived from the glacial refugium. High boreal-subarctic molluscs farther north probably migrated from Europe. We postulate that the Labrador Current acts as a one-way valve for mollusc migrations at glacial-interglacial scales.

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Forest-Tundra Neighbouring the North Pole: Plant and Insect Remains from the Plio-Pleistocene Kap København Formation, North Greenland

Cited by 76 publications

References 24 publications

The Arctic – an evolutionary freezer?

The Arctic – an evolutionary freezer?

Climate and environment of a Pliocene warm world

Marine Molluscs as Indicators of Environmental Change in Glaciated North America and Greenland During the Last 18 000 Years

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