A new approach to detecting vegetation and land-use change using high-resolution lipid biomarker records in stalagmites

作者：Blyth Alison J^*; Asrat Asfawossen; Baker Andy; Gulliver Pauline; Leng Melanie J; Genty Dominique

来源：Quaternary Research, 2007, 68(3): 314-324.

DOI：10.1016/j.yqres.2007.08.002

• stalagmite
• vegetation
• land use
• agriculture
• n-alkane
• lipid
• biomarker

A hundred-year stalagmite lipid biomarker record from Mechara, southeastern Ethiopia, is presented. The record has been recovered at a 10-yr temporal resolution, marking the first time this has been achieved in stalagmite biomarker work and providing the first opportunity to investigate the relationship between stalagmite lipid records and hydrological transport lags, a vital issue in interpreting palaeoenvironmental signals. Preserved plant-derived n-alkanes and n-alkanols show clear changes in composition over time, relating to known land-use changes in the area, particularly the expansion of agriculture in the early twentieth century. The level of environmental detail provided by this technique, combined with the long-term chronological framework offered by stalagmites, holds significant promise for the investigation of early human environments and their associated climatic and anthropogenic controls.

• 出版日期2007-11
• 单位中国地震局