Significantly warmer Arctic surface temperatures during the Pliocene indicated by multiple independent proxies

Ballantyne, Ashley P.; Greenwood, David R.; Damsté, Jaap S. Sinninghe; Csank, A. Z.; Eberle, Jaelyn J.; Rybczynski, Natalia

doi:10.1130/g30815.1

Cited by 162 publications

(159 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(47 reference statements)

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“…DeVernal and Mudie, 1989). For the Canadian high Arctic, recent multiproxy studies suggest Pliocene MATs were approximately 19°C warmer than at present (Ballantyne et al, 2010).…”

Section: This Issue) Multiple Palaeobotanical Records Allow a Robustmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The warming was particularly accentuated at high latitudes of the northern hemisphere (e.g. Ballantyne et al, 2010;Robinson, 2009) resulting in a decreased pole to equator gradient of sea and land surface temperatures . The southern high latitude warming was probably less accentuated than in the North and the reconstruction of its magnitude is still subject of controversy (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Climate and environment of a Pliocene warm world

Salzmann

Williams

Haywood

et al. 2011

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology

147

102

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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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“…DeVernal and Mudie, 1989). For the Canadian high Arctic, recent multiproxy studies suggest Pliocene MATs were approximately 19°C warmer than at present (Ballantyne et al, 2010).…”

Section: This Issue) Multiple Palaeobotanical Records Allow a Robustmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate and environment of a Pliocene warm world

Salzmann

Williams

Haywood

et al. 2011

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology

147

102

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“…To date, only a few studies were interested in the application of the MBT and CBT proxies in peatlands (Ballantyne et al, 2010;Huguet et al, 2010b;Weijers et al, 2011b). Nevertheless, the environmental and ecological significance of peat soils is immense.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of a short-term experimental microclimate warming on the abundance and distribution of branched GDGTs in a French peatland

Huguet¹,

Fosse

Laggoun‐Défarge

et al. 2013

Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta

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To cite this version:Arnaud Huguet, Céline Fosse, Fatima Laggoun-Défarge, Frédéric Delarue, Sylvie Derenne. Effects of a short-term experimental microclimate warming on the abundance and distribution of branched GDGTs in a French peatland. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Elsevier, 2013Elsevier, , 105, pp.294-315. 10.1016Elsevier, /j.gca.2012 Effects of a short-term experimental microclimate warming on the abundance and distribution of branched GDGTs in a French peatland AbstractBranched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) are complex lipids of high molecular weight, recently discovered in soils and increasingly used as palaeoclimate proxies. Their degree of methylation, expressed in the MBT, was shown to depend on mean annual air temperature (MAAT) and to a lesser extent on soil pH, whereas the relative abundance of cyclopentyl rings of branched GDGTs, expressed in the CBT, was related to soil pH. To date, only a few studies were interested in the application of the MBT and CBT proxies in peatlands. In order to validate the applicability of branched GDGTs as temperature proxies in these environments, it is essential to investigate the effect of temperature on branched GDGT-producing bacteria and especially on the speed of adaptation of these microorganisms to temperature changes. The aim of this work was to study the effects of in situ experimental climate warming on the abundance and distribution of branched GDGTs in a Sphagnum-dominated peatland (Jura Mountains, France). Branched GDGTs either present as core lipids (CLs; presumed of fossil origin) or derived from intact polar lipids (IPLs, markers for living cells) were analysed. Air temperature was experimentally increased using a passive warming system consisting of open mini-greenhouses (open-top chamber -OTC). The effect of the OTCs was especially apparent in spring and summer, with (i) an increase in maximal air temperature of ca. 3°C during these two seasons and (ii) an increase in average air temperature of ca. 1°C in summer. Despite the short duration of the climate experiment (26 months), branched GDGT distribution was significantly affected by this temperature rise, with higher MBT values in the OTCs than in the control plots, supporting the empirical relationship between MBT and MAAT established from a large range of soils. The difference in branched GDGT-derived temperatures between control and OTC plots (2-3°C) was in the same range as the increase in maximal (daytime) temperature induced by the OTCs in spring and summer, suggesting that branched GDGT-producing bacteria might be more active during the warmest months of the year. The OTC treatment had no significant effect on the abundance of branched GDGTs, which were mainly present as "fossil" CLs (70-85% of the total branched GDGT pool). Furthermore, no significant differences in branched GDGT distribution were observed between the CLs and IPLs, which both provided higher MBT and MAAT values for the OTCs. This suggests that the fossil pool of branched GDGTs has a very fast turnove...

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“…In the terrestrial Arctic, continuous paleoenvironmental archives are widely restricted to the Holocene and, in a few cases, to the last glacial/interglacial cycle, due to repeated glaciations that led to disturbance of many of the older sediment sequences (e.g., Andreev et al, 2004Andreev et al, , 2009Andreev et al, , 2011Lozhkin et al, 2007;Lozhkin and Anderson, 2011, and references therein). Where older sediments occur, they usually are fragmented and have rather poor age control (e.g., Matthews and Telka, 1997;Ballantyne et al, 2010;Rybczynski et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene vegetation history of northeastern Russian Arctic inferred from the Lake El'gygytgyn pollen record

et al. 2014

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Abstract. The 318 m thick lacustrine sediment record from Lake El'gygytgyn, northeastern Russian Arctic cored by the international El'gygytgyn Drilling Project provides unique opportunities for the time-continuous reconstruction of the regional paleoenvironmental history for the past 3.6 Myr. Pollen studies of the lower 216 m of the lacustrine sediments demonstrate their value as an excellent archive of vegetation and climate changes during the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. About 3.5-3.35 Myr BP, the vegetation at Lake El'gygytgyn, now an area of tundra was dominated by spruce-larch-fir-hemlock forests. After ca. 3.35 Myr BP dark coniferous taxa gradually disappeared. A very pronounced environmental change took place ca. 3.31-3.28 Myr BP, corresponding to the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) M2, when treeless tundra-and steppe-like habitats became dominant in the regional vegetation. Climate conditions were similar to those of Late Pleistocene cold intervals. Numerous coprophilous fungi spores identified in the pollen samples suggest the presence of grazing animals around the lake. Following the MIS M2 event, larch-pine forests with some spruce mostly dominated the area until ca. 2.6 Myr BP, interrupted by colder and drier intervals ca. 3.043-3.025, 2.935-2.912, and 2.719-2.698 Myr BP. At the beginning of the Pleistocene, ca. 2.6 Myr BP, noticeable climatic deterioration occurred. Forested habitats changed to predominantly treeless and shrubby environments, which reflect a relatively cold and dry climate. Peaks in observed green algae colonies (Botryococcus) around 2.53, 2.45, 2.32-2.305, 2.20 and 2.16-2.15 Myr BP suggest a spread of shallow water environments. A few intervals (i.e., 2.55-2.53, ca. 2.37, and 2.35-2.32 Myr BP) with a higher presence of coniferous taxa (mostly pine and larch) document some relatively shortterm climate ameliorations during Early Pleistocene glacial periods.

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Significantly warmer Arctic surface temperatures during the Pliocene indicated by multiple independent proxies

Cited by 162 publications

References 27 publications

Climate and environment of a Pliocene warm world

Climate and environment of a Pliocene warm world

Effects of a short-term experimental microclimate warming on the abundance and distribution of branched GDGTs in a French peatland

Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene vegetation history of northeastern Russian Arctic inferred from the Lake El'gygytgyn pollen record

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