云南鹤庆盆地末次盛冰期的孢粉记录与古季风

通过研究相当于末次盛冰期鹤庆古湖泊沉积物4．6－9．0m段的孢粉记录,对该区末次盛冰期阶段的植被与古季风变迁模式进行了恢复。该区末次盛冰期冷湿的气候特点与同时东部干旱的草原植被、青藏、高原的荒漠植被和黄土高原区风尘堆积存在明显差异,而与滇池的气候记录有较好的一致性。冰期内部的气候波动与深海氧同位素记录有较好的可比性。冰期冷锋强度的增加,与北方冬季风的经常入侵和冰期青藏高原的冷源效应有关。     

末次盛冰期以来云南异龙湖的环境演变——来自地球化学沉积记录的证据

通过对云南异龙湖4.56 m沉积岩芯进行X射线荧光光谱分析(XRF),结合13个AMS14C测年结果,获得了高分辨率元素地球化学序列。异龙湖岩芯中元素的因子分析显示,F1因子揭示了沉积地球化学元素的来源,其正载荷代表了流域外源物质输入加强,而负载荷则指示了湖泊自生碳酸盐沉淀的增加,F2因子指示了湖泊氧化还原状态,F3因子可能与人类活动有关。在此基础上结合磁化率、矿物组成及有机质含量等指标,对异龙湖沉积环境演化过程进行探讨。结果表明,在末次盛冰期期间(26000—17000 cal. yr. BP),区域气候特征是气温低、降水少;在17000—14500 cal. yr. BP期间,异龙湖经历了显著的干旱气候,可能与亚洲夏季风突然减弱有关; 14500—9000 cal. yr. BP,异龙湖经历了显著的高湖面阶段,与滇池高水位时期基本一致,表明流域降水丰沛,外源物质输入增加; 9000—6000 cal. yr. BP期间,区域温度增加导致流域干旱化加剧,此阶段与西南地区全新世大暖期(全新世适宜期)相对应; 6000 cal. yr. BP以后外援物质输入锐减可能指示了区域降水的降低。异龙湖地球化学沉积记录揭示的环境演变过程与区域气候环境变化具有一致性,也具有明显的特殊性。     

小叶栎分布格局对末次盛冰期以来气候变化的响应

小叶栎(Quercus chenii)是华东植物区系的代表树种, 具有很高的生态、经济价值。为重建冰期以来小叶栎地理分布格局的变迁历史、了解环境因子对潜在地理分布的制约机制, 为小叶栎种质资源保护和管理提供科学依据, 该研究基于55条分布记录和8个环境变量, 利用MaxEnt模型模拟小叶栎在末次盛冰期、全新世中期、现代和2070年(温室气体排放情景为典型浓度目标8.5)的潜在分布区, 利用多元环境相似度面和最不相似变量分析探讨气候变迁过程中环境异常区域和引起潜在地理分布改变的关键因素, 综合应用贡献率及置换重要值比较、Jackknife检验评估制约现代地理分布的主要因子, 采用响应曲线确定环境变量的适宜区间。研究结果表明: MaxEnt模型的预测准确度极高, 受试者工作特征曲线下的面积(AUC值)达0.9869 ± 0.0045; 现代高度适宜区在安徽南部、浙江西部、江西东北部和湖北东部; 影响小叶栎地理分布的主要气候因子为气温和降水量, 气温更重要; 最干季平均气温可能是制约小叶栎向北分布的关键因素; 末次盛冰期时, 小叶栎高度适宜区位于东海大陆架内; 全新世中期适宜分布区轮廓已与现代近似; 2070年适宜分布区向北移, 高度适宜区面积增大, 与末次盛冰期、全新世中期和现代相比, 这一时期的气候异常程度最高。气温季节变化和降水季节变化可能是引起地理分布变迁的重要气候因素。     

多星韭分布格局对末次盛冰期以来气候的响应

该研究以分布区主要在横断山脉的多星韭为对象,基于最大熵模型(MaxEnt)和地理信息系统(ArcGIS)模拟了多星韭在末次盛冰期、全新世中期、当前以及未来的分布格局,以探讨多星韭对末次盛冰期以来气候变化的响应。结果显示:(1)多星韭当前的分布区主要受到最暖季度降水量、年均温变化范围和温度季节性变化标准差3个气候因子的影响;海拔对多星韭的当前分布也有着较大的影响。(2)最大熵模型的模拟精度较高(AUC=0.98)。(3)根据多星韭各个时期分布面积的变化得出多星韭与部分高山植物相似,相比当前的分布,多星韭末次盛冰期的分布区发生了较为明显的扩张。研究推测,未来多星韭的分布区将向西移动。     

末次盛冰期以来观光木的潜在地理分布变迁

观光木(Tsoongiodendron odorum)是木兰科的古老残遗物种, 目前正面临严峻的生存威胁, 属于极小种群濒危植物。通过生态位模型(ENM)能够重建观光木地理分布格局的历史变迁, 探究气候变化对该物种分布的影响, 并了解其地理分布与气候需求间的关系, 从而为全球变暖背景下观光木的保护提供理论基础。该文基于96条现代分布记录和8个环境变量, 采用最大熵(MaxEnt)模型模拟观光木在末次盛冰期、全新世中期、现代和未来(2061-2080年, RCP 8.5)的潜在分布区, 利用SDM toolbox分析观光木的地理空间变化, 并综合贡献率、置换重要值和Jackknife检验来评估气候因子的重要性。研究结果表明: (1)观光木的高度适生区在南岭地区, 末次盛冰期时没有大尺度向南退缩, 很可能在山区避难所原地存活; (2)在全新世中期和未来两个增温的气候情境下, 观光木的分布区均表现为缩减, 其中未来分布的减幅更大, 表明气候变暖对观光木的生长有一定的负面影响; (3)总体上看, 观光木各个时期的地理分布范围相对稳定, 说明观光木对气候变化有一定的适应能力, 人为活动或自身繁育问题可能是致濒的重要原因, 并建议对广东和广西群体进行优先保护。     

中国中全新世（6Ka BP）和末次盛冰期（18Ka BP）生物群区的重建

利用中国第四纪孢粉数据库提供的 116个 6kaBP (± 5 0 0年 )和 39个 18kaBP (± 2ka)的花粉数据 ,根据生物群区化方法 (biomization)重建了中国中全新世 (6kaBP)和未次盛冰期 (18kaBP)两个关键时段的生物群区。结果表明 ,中全新世东部森林系统地向北推进 ,温带落叶阔叶林向北推进约 4个纬度。大部分森林明显向草原区推进 ,青藏高原的冻原大面积退缩 ,在西南地区局部和热带地区气候较今略为冷湿 ,热带季雨林转变为热带雨林。末次盛冰期 ,草原大面积向南扩张 ,抵达现代的常绿阔叶林区的北缘 ,热带森林消失 ,常绿阔叶林退缩到现代热带区域边缘。     

末次冰期以来湛江湖光岩玛珥湖孢粉记录及古环境变化

通过对湛江湖光岩玛珥湖钻孔孢粉记录的研究认为,末次冰期以来,该区植被类型从早期的南亚热带季风常绿阔叶林依次演替为,中亚热带常绿、落叶阔叶林→南亚热带季风常绿阔叶林→中亚热带常绿—落叶阔叶—针叶混交林(湖边草地)→热带季雨林→半常绿季雨林。气候最寒冷的时期温度比目前至少降低了4—6℃以上。全新世早期相对于旱。     

甘肃苏苗塬头地点石制品特征与古环境分析

苏苗塬头地点位于甘肃省平凉市庄浪县东北部, 埋藏于章麻河二级阶地的典型马兰黄土中。经剖面清理和地表采集, 2002和2004年在该地点共获得石制品2318件, 本文以集中分布区出土(2166件)和地表采集(48件)共2214件石制品为主要研究对象。该批石制品以石片、碎片和碎屑为主, 有少量石核和工具。剥片技术以砸击法为主, 锤击法为辅, 鲜见第二步加工。石制品原料主要为来自现代河床或阶地底部砾石层的脉石英。炭屑加速器质谱(AMS 14C)年代测试和多环境代用指标分析显示, 苏苗塬头为一处旧石器时代晚期文化地点, 人类活动主要发生于气候干冷的末次盛冰期(约距今2.4—1.8万年), 反映了古人类较强的环境适应能力。     

孑遗灌木长柄扁桃的历史分布格局及其环境驱动力

为了解历史气候变化背景下分布于中国西北干旱沙漠、半干旱沙地和山地地区的孑遗灌木植物长柄扁桃(Amygdalus pedunculata)的分布与演化, 该研究利用长柄扁桃60个自然分布点和8个环境因子, 整合GIS空间分析和最大熵模型(MaxEnt), 分析珍稀濒危保护物种长柄扁桃末次间冰期(LIG)、末次盛冰期(LGM)和当前的历史地理分布格局变化及其环境驱动力。基于各时期长柄扁桃的分布模型模拟数据及自然种群的叶绿体基因测序数据, 利用最小成本路径方法, 模拟LIG时期以来长柄扁桃可能的扩散路径。利用R语言“ggbiplot”程序包对各时期长柄扁桃适生区的历史环境变量进行主成分分析(PCA), 分析影响长柄扁桃历史分布格局变化的关键气候因子。结果表明: (1) LIG时期以来, 长柄扁桃的历史分布经历了显著收缩和末次盛冰期后的扩张, LIG至LGM时期, 分布于库布齐沙漠东部、毛乌素沙地北部、陕西北部、阴山北部、乌兰察布高原南部、浑善达克沙地的适宜分布区明显收缩; LGM时期至今, 长柄扁桃在库布齐沙漠东部、毛乌素沙地中部沿北部阴山向东, 以及浑善达克沙地西部均发生了显著扩张。3个时期长柄扁桃均在内蒙古高原中西部存在高度适宜性分布区, 包括毛乌素沙地北缘、库布齐沙漠东缘以及大青山, 这些地区很可能是长柄扁桃的冰期避难所。北部阴山和毛乌素沙地边缘是长柄扁桃种群迁移过程中重要的扩散廊道; (2) LIG至LGM时期, 气温因子: 最冷月最低气温、平均气温日较差和最热月最高气温均呈显著下降的趋势, 冷干气候对长柄扁桃的冰期分布存在较大限制, 适生区显著收缩。而LGM时期至今, 降水因子最湿月降水量和降水量季节性均显著上升, 长柄扁桃在库布齐沙漠东部、毛乌素沙地中部、阴山以及浑善达克沙地西部发生显著扩张, 降水因子也是影响当前适宜分布区的关键限制性因子。     

Satsurblia: New Insights of Human Response and Survival across the Last Glacial Maximum in the Southern Caucasus

The region of western Georgia (Imereti) has been a major geographic corridor for human migrations during the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic (MP/UP). Knowledge of the MP and UP in this region, however, stems mostly from a small number of recent excavations at the sites of Ortvale Klde, Dzudzuana, Bondi, and Kotias Klde. These provide an absolute chronology for the Late MP and MP–UP transition, but only a partial perspective on the nature and timing of UP occupations, and limited data on how human groups in this region responded to the harsh climatic oscillations between 37,000–11,500 years before present. Here we report new UP archaeological sequences from fieldwork in Satsurblia cavein the same region. A series of living surfaces with combustion features, faunal remains, stone and bone tools, and ornaments provide new information about human occupations in this region (a) prior to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) at 25.5–24.4 ka cal. BP and (b) after the LGM at 17.9–16.2 ka cal. BP. The latter provides new evidence in the southern Caucasus for human occupation immediately after the LGM. The results of the campaigns in Satsurblia and Dzudzuana suggest that at present the most plausible scenario is one of a hiatus in the occupation of this region during the LGM (between 24.4–17.9 ka cal. BP). Analysis of the living surfaces at Satsurblia offers information about human activities such as the production and utilisation of lithics and bone tools, butchering, cooking and consumption of meat and wild cereals, the utilisation of fibers, and the use of certain woods. Microfaunal and palynological analyses point to fluctuations in the climate with consequent shifts in vegetation and the faunal spectrum not only before and after the LGM, but also during the two millennia following the end of the LGM.     

The biogeography of aquatic macrophytes in North America since the Last Glacial Maximum

Aim To document the post‐glacial migration of the major aquatic macrophytes of North America. Location North America north of Mexico. Methods Aquatic macrophyte pollen were extracted from the North American Pollen Database. The modern pollen distribution was mapped and related to the climate to document the geographical and climatic constraints on these taxa. The fossil pollen were mapped at 2‐ka intervals for the past 21 ka. Results Numerous genera were present in ice‐free Alaska during the Last Glacial Maximum, and south of the Laurentide Ice Sheet in the southeast. Those taxa with the widest modern climatic ranges migrated rapidly into ice‐marginal areas, first in the west and then in the east of North America. Subsequent changes in the range and abundance were smaller. Main conclusions There were four migration routes of aquatic macrophytes during the late‐glacial and post‐glacial periods: a southward migration from Alaska between 14–13 and ka, a northern migration in the west at the same time into the ice‐free Cordilleran region, and movements east and west of Appalachia as early as 19 ka for some taxa into the lower Mississippi and into the upper Mississippi and Great Lakes by 11 ka. As the Laurentide ice sheet wasted, aquatic taxa with the broadest contemporary temperature tolerances rapidly occupied ice‐marginal environments.     

After Last Glacial Maximum: The third migration

A critical analysis of “Real World” data concerning the genetic origins of people, archaeology and palaeoclimatic conditions, demonstrates possibilities of population migration for third time in ancient history, from East to West after Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), which gave the foundations of modern human civilization.     

Simulated effects of low atmospheric CO2 on structure and composition of North American vegetation at the Last Glacial Maximum

1. Physiological experiments have indicated that the lower CO₂ levels of the last glaciation (200 μmol mol^?1) probably reduced plant water-use efficiency (WUE) and that they combined with increased aridity and colder temperatures to alter vegetation structure and composition at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). 2. The effects of low CO₂ on vegetation structure were investigated using BIOME3 simulations of leaf area index (LAI), and a two-by-two factorial experimental design (modern/LGM CO₂, modern/LGM climate).3. Using BIOME3, and a combination of lowered CO₂ and simulated LGM climate (from the NCAR-CCM1 model), results in the introduction of additional xeric vegetation types between open woodland and closed-canopy forest along a latitudinal gradient in eastern North America.4. The simulated LAI of LGM vegetation was 25–60% lower in many regions of central and eastern United States relative to modern climate, indicating that glacial vegetation was much more open than today.5. Comparison of factorial simulations show that low atmospheric CO₂ has the potential to alter vegetation structure (LAI) to a greater extent than LGM climate.6. If the magnitude of LAI reductions simulated for glacial North America were global, then low atmospheric CO₂ may have promoted atmospheric warming and increased aridity, through alteration of rates of water and heat exchange with the atmosphere.     

Population Dynamics Following the Last Glacial Maximum in Two Sympatric Lizards in Northern China

Phylogeographic studies of Eremias lizards （Lacertidae） in East Asia have been limited, and the impact of major climatic events on their population dynamics remains poorly known. This study aimed to investigate population histories and refugia during the Last Glacial Maximum of two sympatric Eremias lizards （E. argus and E. brenchleyi） inhabiting northern China. We sequenced partial mitochondrial DNA from the ND4 gene for 128 individuals of E. argus from nine localities, and 46 individuals of E. brenchleyi from five localities. Forty-four ND4 haplotypes were determined from E. argus samples, and 33 from E. brenchleyi samples. Population expansion events began about 0.0044 Ma in E. argus, and 0.031 Ma in E. brenchleyi. The demographic history of E. brenchleyi indicates a long-lasting population decline since the most recent common ancestor, while that of E. argus indicates a continuous population growth. Among-population structure was significant in both species, and there were multiple refugia across their range. Intermittent gene flow occurred among expanded populations across multiple refugia during warmer phases of the glacial period, and this may explain why the effective population size has remained relatively stable in E. brenchleyi and grown in E. argus.     

Ploidy race distributions since the Last Glacial Maximum in the North American desert shrub, Larrea tridentata

• 1 A classic biogeographic pattern is the alignment of diploid, tetraploid and hexaploid races of creosote bush (Larrea tridentata) across the Chihuahuan, Sonoran and Mohave Deserts of western North America. We used statistically robust differences in guard cell size of modern plants and fossil leaves from packrat middens to map current and past distributions of these ploidy races since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM).
• 2 Glacial/early Holocene (26–10 ¹⁴C kyr bp or thousands of radiocarbon years before present) populations included diploids along the lower Rio Grande of west Texas, 650 km removed from sympatric diploids and tetraploids in the lower Colorado River Basin of south‐eastern California/south‐western Arizona. Diploids migrated slowly from lower Rio Grande refugia with expansion into the northern Chihuahuan Desert sites forestalled until after ~4.0 ¹⁴C kyr bp . Tetraploids expanded from the lower Colorado River Basin into the northern limits of the Sonoran Desert in central Arizona by 6.4 ¹⁴C kyr bp . Hexaploids appeared by 8.5 ¹⁴C kyr bp in the lower Colorado River Basin, reaching their northernmost limits (~37°N) in the Mohave Desert between 5.6 and 3.9 ¹⁴C kyr bp .
• 3 Modern diploid isolates may have resulted from both vicariant and dispersal events. In central Baja California and the lower Colorado River Basin, modern diploids probably originated from relict populations near glacial refugia. Founder events in the middle and late Holocene established diploid outposts on isolated limestone outcrops in areas of central and southern Arizona dominated by tetraploid populations.
• 4 Geographic alignment of the three ploidy races along the modern gradient of increasingly drier and hotter summers is clearly a postglacial phenomenon, but evolution of both higher ploidy races must have happened before the Holocene. The exact timing and mechanism of polyploidy evolution in creosote bush remains a matter of conjecture.

     

A Matrilineal Genetic Legacy from the Last Glacial Maximum Confers Susceptibility to Schizophrenia in Han Chinese

Mitochondrial dysfunction has been widely reported in schizophrenia patients. To dissect the matrilineal structure of Han Chinese with or without schizophrenia and to decipher the maternal influence and evolutionary history of schizophrenia, a total of 1212 schizophrenia patients and 1005 matched healthy controls, all of Han Chinese origin, were recruited in Hunan Province, China. We classified haplogroup for each individual based on mitochondrial DNA （mtDNA） sequence variations and compared the haplogroup distribution pattern between cases and controls. Haplogroup B5a presented a higher frequency in cases than in controls （P = 0.02, OR = 1.67, 95% CI = [1.09, 2.56]）, and this result could be confirmed by permutation analysis. Age estimation of haplogroup B5a in cases revealed a much younger age than that of controls, which was coincident with the Northern Hemisphere deglaciation at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum. Analysis of complete mtDNA in five patients belonging to haplogroup B5a showed that this background effect might be caused by haplogroup- defining variants m.8584G〉A and m.10398A〉G. Our results showed that matrilineal risk factor for schizophrenia had an ancient origin and might acquire a predisposing effect on schizophrenia due to the environment change and/or orchestration with other nuclear genetic factors appeared recently in human evolutionary history.     

Human migration through bottlenecks from Southeast Asia into East Asia during Last Glacial Maximum revealed by Y chromosomes

Molecular anthropological studies of the populations in and around East Asia have resulted in the discovery that most of the Y-chromosome lineages of East Asians came from Southeast Asia. However, very few Southeast Asian populations had been investigated, and therefore, little was known about the purported migrations from Southeast Asia into East Asia and their roles in shaping the genetic structure of East Asian populations. Here, we present the Y-chromosome data from 1,652 individuals belonging to 47 Mon-Khmer (MK) and Hmong-Mien (HM) speaking populations that are distributed primarily across Southeast Asia and extend into East Asia. Haplogroup O3a3b-M7, which appears mainly in MK and HM, indicates a strong tie between the two groups. The short tandem repeat network of O3a3b-M7 displayed a hierarchical expansion structure (annual ring shape), with MK haplotypes being located at the original point, and the HM and the Tibeto-Burman haplotypes distributed further away from core of the network. Moreover, the East Asian dominant haplogroup O3a3c1-M117 shows a network structure similar to that of O3a3b-M7. These patterns indicate an early unidirectional diffusion from Southeast Asia into East Asia, which might have resulted from the genetic drift of East Asian ancestors carrying these two haplogroups through many small bottle-necks formed by the complicated landscape between Southeast Asia and East Asia. The ages of O3a3b-M7 and O3a3c1-M117 were estimated to be approximately 19 thousand years, followed by the emergence of the ancestors of HM lineages out of MK and the unidirectional northward migrations into East Asia.