Past climate and vegetation in Southeast Bulgaria — a study based on the late Miocene pollen record from the Tundzha Basin

Abstract

The results of palynological studies on the late Miocene freshwater deposits of the Tundzha Basin (Southeast Bulgaria, SE Europe) are presented. The basin is relatively well known in terms of geology and palaeogeography. The age of sediments in the Tundzha Basin ranges between the late Miocene to the Pliocene, based on mammal and diatom fossils. We carried out a palynological analysis of clayey sediments interlayered with coal beds from four cores and from one outcrop, aiming to obtain information about the composition and the structure of fossil vegetation. The ratios between the main floristic elements and the composition of the fossil flora are analysed and discussed from a palaeoecological point of view. Several main vegetation palaeocommunities were recorded: swamp forests, mixed mesophytic, communities of aquatic plants, and herbaceous palaeocoenoses. The changes in vegetation and in plant diversity are identified. The palaeoclimate analysis indicates a warm temperature climate with high rainfall and mild winter temperatures, without seasonal drier conditions. The early Pontian climate was about 3-4°C warmer than today, with rainfalls per year at least 300 mm higher than today. The results of palaeoecological analysis of the flora and of the quantitative palaeoclimate data show that the climate in the Southeast Bulgaria indicates a climate change towards slight cooling and some drying. This event is consistent with the period of accumulation of the upper, undivided part of the Elhovo Formation.

Mineralogical Characterization of Early Bronze Age Pottery from the Svilengrad-Brantiite Site, Southeastern Bulgaria

“…The basement rocks and the metamorphic rock cover near the site include muscovite, quartz, plagioclase, microcline, alkali feldspar, biotite, epidote, titanite, bluish-green amphibole, chlorite, opaque minerals, garnet, staurolite, zircon, and apatite [18,[21][22][23]. The basement rocks, granitoids, and metamorphic rocks are overlain by Tertiary sediments (Eocene sedimentary rocks and upper Miocene to partially lowermost Pleistocene sediments [16,18,24,25]). The upper Miocene to Pleistocene sediments underlie and extend a few kilometers around the study site.…”

Fascination of Plants Day (FoPD) – reality and tradition in Bulgaria

“…The method was recently applied for palaeoclimate reconstructions in Europe and Asia (e.g. Pross et al 1998;Utescher et al 2000;Uhl et al 2003;Ivanov et al 2002Ivanov et al , 2011Biltekin et al 2015;Durak & Akkiraz 2016;Ivanov & Worobiec 2017;Kayseri-Özer 2017;Kayseri-Özer et al 2017;Yavuz et al 2017;Ivanov & Lazarova 2019). For a given fossil flora, the CA method determines the nearest living relatives of fossil taxa and their climatic tolerances and calculates the coexistence intervals (minimum and maximum values) for various climate parameters (for details see Utescher 1997 andUtescher et al 2014) within which all living relatives of fossil species can coexist.…”

“…The following climate parameters were considered as presenting the main climate characteristics: MAT -mean annual temperature (°C), TCM -mean temperature of the coldest month (°C), TWM -mean temperature of the warmest month (°C), MAP -mean annual precipitation (mm). In addition, a brief description of fossil vegetation is also presented based on autecological analysis (Ivanov 2015;Ivanov & Worobiec 2017;Ivanov & Lazarova 2019).…”

A multidisciplinary study and palaeoenvironmental interpretation of middle Miocene Keles lignite (Harmancık Basin, NW Turkey), with emphasis on syngenetic zeolite formation

“…4). Taxonomic identifications of the fossil spores and pollen were based on published atlases and sporomorph keys (Akgün et al 2007;Biltekin et al 2015;Bouchal et al 2017;Bruch and Gabrialyan, 2002;Bruch et al , 2004Bruch et al , 2006Güner et al 2017;Ivanov and Lazarova, 2005;Ivanov and Lazarova, 2019;Ivanov et al 2002Ivanov et al , 2007aIvanov et al , 2007bIvanov et al, 2010;Kayseri and Akgün 2008;Kayseri-Özer et al, 2014b, a;Kayseri-Özer 2014Kayseri-Özer , 2017Mosbrugger and Utescher 1997;Uhl et al 2003;Utescher et al, 2007aUtescher et al, , b, 2009aUtescher et al, , 2009bUtescher et al, , 2014Yavuz et al, 2017). The studied samples were prepared based on the standard technique (hydrochloric acid (HCl), hydrofluoric acid (HF), potassium hydroxide (KOH), and heavy liquid separation (ZnCl 2 ) and were stored in glycerin) for disintegrating Neogene sediments (Erdtman 1966).…”

“…According to the palynological records of the Turkish and European Neogene Basins, the Miocene palynoflora has a unique palynofloral content (e.g. Bertini 2006;Biltekin et al 2015;Fauquette et al 2007; Ivanov 2015; Ivanov and Lazarova 2019;Ivanov and Worobiec 2017;Ivanov et al 2007aIvanov et al , 2011Jiménez-Moreno and Suc 2007;Karayigit et al 1999;Kayseri and Akgün 2008;Jiménez-Moreno, 2006;Kayseri-Özer et al, 2014a, b;Popova et al 2017;Uhl et al 2007aUhl et al , 2007bUtescher et al, 2009aUtescher et al, , 2009bUtescher et al, , 2011aUtescher et al, , 2011bUtescher et al, , 2013Utescher et al, , 2015Yavuz et al 2017). The existence and abundance of some spore species (e.g.…”