英国英格兰西北部和威尔士北部岩溶地区钙华苔藓植物群落研究

报道了英国英格兰西北部和威尔士北部共 6个岩溶沉积地点苔藓植物群落的研究结果。记载典型钙华苔藓群落 1 0个 ,苔藓种类 9科 1 2属 1 4种 (含变种 ) ;区系地理成分含北温带分布 ( 6 4 .3% )、温带欧洲分布( 1 4 .3% )和世界广泛分布 ( 2 1 .4 % ) 3种类型 ;生活型含高丛集型 ( 7.1 % )、垫状矮丛集型 ( 4 2 .9% )、交织型( 35 .8% )和平埔型 ( 1 4 .2 % ) 4种。根据岩溶沉积环境特征 ,划分该地区苔藓群落为 :泉华苔藓群落、瀑华苔藓群落、洞穴钙华苔藓群落、峭壁钙华苔藓群落和溪流钙华苔藓群落等 5种生态类型。研究地点现代苔藓植物群落钙华沉积作用十分活跃     

Spring-associated limestones of the Eastern Alps: overview of facies,deposystems, minerals,and biota

In the Eastern Alps, both fossil spring limestones and actively limestone-depositing springs are common. The geological context and a few radiometric age data of fossil spring-associated limestones (SAL) mentioned herein indicate that they accumulated subsequent to the Last Glacial Maximum in the Eastern Alps (24–21 ka BP). Prevalent facies of the SAL deposits, active and fossil, including phytoclastic tufa, microbialites s.l., springstone, and moss tufa form, or formed, from (a) waterfall/creek systems, (b) hillslope-paludal systems, (c) moss-tufa systems, and from (c) foreland-type systems. Precipitated minerals include calcite and, at springs of elevated Mg/Ca ratio, magnesian calcite and aragonite. In a few limestone-depositing, oxygen-deficient springs with dissolved Fe²⁺, downstream, iron oxide precipitates ahead of CaCO₃ (mineralogical zonation). Biota associated with calcium-carbonate deposition include cyanobacteria, green micro-algae, macro-algae, and mosses. Calcium-carbonate precipitation may be speeded by biological mediation, but mineralogy and polymorphy of precipitated CaCO₃ are not biotically controlled. In the Eastern Alps, SAL deposits in total range from 190 to 2,520 m a.s.l., corresponding to mean annual temperatures of 10°C to less than 0°C. In altitudes below the continuous permafrost line (about 2,600–3,000 m a.s.l., depending on location), SAL deposition is chiefly controlled by proper balance between water supply and sufficient supersaturation for CaCO₃, rather than by mean annual temperature.     

The Villaviciosa tufa: a scale model for an active cool water tufa system,Guadalajara (Spain)

The Villaviciosa tufa building, on the banks of the Tajuña River, central Spain, is a recent perched springline tufa with four architectural elements: cascades, pools, channels, and barrages. The facies of the tufa building are LMC (low magnesium calcite) framestones of bryophytes, hanging stems, charophytes, phytoclastic rudstones, and rudstones of oncoids. Isotopic analyses give δ¹³C values ranging from ? 8.05 to ? 10.3‰ VPDB, and δ¹⁸O values from ? 6.9 to ? 7.45‰ VPDB. These values are in the range of most common tufa systems and such a short range of values is consistent with the Villaviciosa tufa building’s reduced dimensions. The mechanisms involved in precipitation vary within the building’s different environments, as reflected in the isotopic composition of the samples. Non-biogenic degassing values in cascade deposits (framestones of bryophytes) are the heaviest, whereas in pools, dominated by biogenic degassing, values for framestones of charophytes and phytoclasts are the lightest. Microbial bio-mediation is also strongly influenced by the development of oncoid, stromatolite, and bryophyte framestones. Temperature variation throughout the system of approximately 3 °C is not clearly reflected in the isotope signals. In short, in spite of the reduced dimensions of this tufa deposit, its notable environmental, facies, and geochemical variations may aid not only in the interpretation of detail of other tufa systems but also in the discussion of detailed facies analyses in paleoclimatic interpretations of this type of deposits.     

The geological record of a mid-Holocene marine storm in southwestern Spain

Integrated analysis of a 50-m long sedimentary core collected in the central part of the Odiel estuary (SW Atlantic coast of Spain) allows delineation of the main paleoenvironmental changes that occurred in this area during the Holocene. Eight sedimentary facies were deposited in the last ca. 9000 years BP, confirming a transgressive-regressive cycle that involves the transition from fluvial to salt marsh deposits with intermediate marine tidal deposits. A storm event is detected at ca. 5705 ¹⁴C years BP (mean calibrated age) with distinct lithostratigraphical, textural, geochemical, and palaeontological features.     

Palaeoecological evolution of a spring-fed fen in Pawłów (eastern Poland)

A continuous record of sedimentation in spring-fed fens makes them suitable for detailed palaeoenvironmental studies. A newly investigated cupola spring-fed fen (Paw?ów site), located in the Lublin chalkland, eastern Poland, was the object of our study. This special karst region is characterised by the occurrence of Upper Cretaceous carbonate rocks in the substratum. Sedimentological observations indicated strong variability of biogenic-carbonate series in the deposits (=peat-tufa rhythmite), reflects changes of accumulation conditions (oxidising versus reducing), resulting from alternate occurrence of warmer and cooler periods. Difficulties in pollen analysis due to oxidising conditions necessitate a multidisciplinary approach for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. We used a multidisciplinary approach (sedimentological, palaeobotanical, geochemical analyses and radiocarbon dating) to determine the main evolutionary stages of this unique fen ecosystem and to discuss the role of local or/and regional factors in its development. Pollen and plant macrofossil analyses, supported by radiocarbon dating, proved that the bottom part of the cores represents the Late Glacial–Early Holocene stages of the fen development. A comparative analysis of palaeoenvironmental data showed close resemblance between the Paw?ów fen and the earlier studied fens in eastern Poland and Central-Eastern Europe, and the connection between their development and supraregional hydrological-climatic factors. The results indicated also the influence of the morphological position of such a type of ecosystem on the development of a continuous deposit succession. The occurrence of a river valley in close proximity of the Paw?ów site resulted in the lack of tufa deposits from the Atlantic period, because of an erosional phase in the river valley.     

Palaeoenvironments of the Buia Homo site: High-resolution facies analysis and non-marine sequence stratigraphy in the Alat formation (Pleistocene Dandiero Basin, Danakil depression, Eritrea)

The Early to Middle Pleistocene Dandiero rift basin is located near the Buia village, 110 km south of Massawa (Eritrea), and is filled by about 1000 m of continental deposits bearing 1 My erectus-like human remains. The basin fill consists of six formations (from bottom up): Bukra sand and gravels (fluvial), Alat formation (fluvio-lacustrine), Wara sand and gravel (fluvial), Goreya formation (lacustrine), Aro sand (fluvio-deltaic) and Addai fanglomerate (alluvial fan). This paper is focused on the Homo-bearing deposits of the Alat formation. The Alat formation records several episodes of changing accommodation space, with repeated shifts from fluvial to lacustrine conditions. The first episode points to rapid lake formation followed by a progressive shallowing. The second episode records fluvial aggradation above a sequence boundary, followed by the development and progressive infill of a second lake. The third episode points to a rapid lake formation followed by deposition of deltaic and fluvial sediments. The last episode is characterised by fluvial deposition under low-accommodation conditions. The development of the lacustrine environments was probably controlled by tectonics, in accordance with its formation during regionally dry climatic conditions, although minor shifts toward wetter conditions cannot be excluded. Human remains occur in the upper Alat formation, where the transition from a deltaic to alluvial setting is characterised by high frequency, potentially millennial-scale, lake-level oscillations. The palaeoanthropological record in the Buia area seems to be correlated with water availability (lacustrine coastal plains and floodplains) in a relatively open and grassy environment (grassland- and savannah-dominated). The increase in fluvial discharge that occurred at the top of the Alat formation led to erosion and winnowing of the underlying fossil-bearing, fluvio-deltaic deposits. A large number of bones and artefacts were consequently accumulated at the base of channel fills, which represent a preferential horizon for fossil searching.     

Microbially influenced lacustrine carbonates: A comparison of Late Quaternary Lahontan tufa and modern thrombolite from Fayetteville Green Lake,NY

Carbonate microbialites in lakes can serve as valuable indicators of past environments, so long as the biogenicity and depositional setting of the microbialite can be accurately determined. Late Pleistocene to Early Holocene frondose draping tufa deposits from Winnemucca Dry Lake (Nevada, USA), a subbasin of pluvial Lake Lahontan, were examined in outcrop, petrographically, and geochemically to determine whether microbially induced precipitation is a dominant control on deposition. These observations were compared to modern, actively accumulating microbialites from Fayetteville Green Lake (New York, USA) using similar methods. In addition, preserved microbial DNA was extracted from the Lahontan tufa and sequenced to provide a more complete picture of the microbial communities. Tufas are texturally and geochemically similar to modern thrombolitic microbialites from Fayetteville Green Lake, and the stable isotopic composition of organic C, N, inorganic C, and O supports deposition associated with a lacustrine microbial mat environment dominated by photosynthetic processes. DNA extraction and sequencing indicate that photosynthetic microbial builders were present during tufa deposition, primarily Chloroflexi and Proteobacteria with minor abundances of Cyanobacteria and Acidobacteria. Based on the sequencing results, the depositional environment of the tufas can be constrained to the photic zone of the lake, contrasting with some previous interpretations that put tufa formation in deeper waters. Additionally, the presence of a number of mesothermophilic phyla, including Deinococcus–Thermus, indicates that thermal groundwater may have played a role in tufa deposition at sites not previously associated with groundwater influx. The interpretation of frondose tufas as microbially influenced deposits provides new context to interpretations of lake level and past environments in the Lahontan lake basins.     

Les premières occupations humaines dans le Sud du Brésil : une vision géoarchéologique intégrée

Between ≈13,000 and 7000 BP, the territory of southern Brazil was occupied in a stable and diverse manner, with the main anthropic trace being in lithic material. Archaeological research has provided more consistent evidence of occupation in different environments and associated with different stratigraphic formation processes since the Late Pleistocene. Therefore, this paper proposes to analyse the history of the earliest evidence of pre-colonial occupation in southern Brazil from a geoarchaeological point of view, focusing on stratigraphic and chronological data and the process of formation of archaeological layers. Thirty-three stratigraphic sections were analysed from 31 archaeological sites distributed along the Paraná, Uruguay and Atlantic basins. Evidence of archaeological levels was found in different geomorphological contexts: plateau, slopes, valley bottom, alluvial plains and rockshelters. The results indicate that the oldest archaeological levels in the region were formed in the Late Pleistocene, associated with periods of fluvial incision that signal important changes in the southern river systems, characterized by the formation of alluvial and colluvial-alluvial terraces in the valley bottoms. This is followed in the Lower Holocene by widespread colluvial processes in the incised valleys, alluvium in the middle river courses and anthropogenic deposits in the rockshelters that formed the main ancient levels. In the early Middle Holocene, sedimentary deposits containing archaeological material decrease significantly, marking regional changes in lithic industries. The data indicate that there appears to be a threshold between deposition and archaeology in the Early Holocene, characterized by high stratigraphic resolution, where stratigraphic sequences show greater thickness and density of archaeological levels. Finally, the diversity of inter-regional lithic assemblages is clearly highlighted, marked by the predominance of industries on pebbles and blocks, the debitage of flakes and blades as a support for various tools in the interior basins and the shaping of small projectile points on the Atlantic slope.     

Differences in the C age, δC and δO of Holocene tufa and speleothem in the Dinaric Karst

We studied Holocene speleothems and tufa samples collected in numerous caves and rivers in the Dinaric Karst of Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Serbia and Montenegro. Differences in the formation process of tufa and speleothems are discussed in the context of their isotopic composition (¹⁴C, ¹³C and ¹⁸O), as well as the chemistry of surface water (rivers, lakes) and drip water (in caves). The physical and chemical parameters monitored in the surface water (tufa precipitation) and drip water (speleothem precipitation) show that more stable conditions accompany speleothem rather than tufa formation. This is particularly obvious in the water temperature variations (2-22°C in surface water and 7-12°C in drip water) and in saturation index variation (3-11 in surface water and 1-6 in drip water). The range of ¹⁴C ages recorded by Holocene speleothems (∼12?000 yr) is wider by several thousands years than that of Holocene tufa samples (∼6000 yr). δ¹³C values for tufa samples range from −12‰ to −6‰ and for speleothem samples from −12‰ to +3‰ reflecting higher soil carbon and/or vegetation impact on the process of tufa than on speleothem formation. The differences in δ¹⁸O values of tufa and speleothem samples from different areas reflect different temperature conditions and differing isotopic composition in the water. The study shows that speleothems from the Dinaric Karst can be used as global palaeoclimatic records, whereas tufa records changes in the local palaeoenvironment.     

Geochemical and petrographic evidence of meteoric diagenesis in tufa deposits in Northern Dalmatia (Zrmanja and Krupa Rivers, Croatia)

Summary Holocene tufa deposits in the Northern Dalmatia region of Croatia occur along the banks and at present sites of waterfalls of the Zrmanja river and its tributary the Krupa river. Petrographic, geochemical and statistical analyses have been used to relate textural features and trace element composition to the degree of meteoric diagenesis. Trace metal concentrations associated with carbonate phase were determined by sequential extraction procedure. The insoluble residue (I.R.) is predominantly of primary origin and its amount ranges from 3% to 29%, averaging 13.75%, thus permitting variable water/rock ratios of the stabilazing meteoric system. All the evidence points to a scarcity of post-depositional recrystallization and cementation, but where present these features are accompanied by I.R., Mg, Sr and Zn depletion and Fe enrichment.     

Late Quaternary paleoenvironmental records from the western Lena Delta,Arctic Siberia

The three main Lena Delta terraces were formed during different stages of the late Quaternary. While only the first floodplain terrace is connected with active deltaic processes, the second and third terraces, which dominate the western part of the delta, are erosional remnants of arctic paleolandscapes affected by periglacial processes. The landscape dynamics of the second and the third terraces, and their relationship to each other, are of particular importance in any effort to elucidate the late Quaternary paleoenvironment of western Beringia.Multidisciplinary studies of permafrost deposits on the second terrace were carried out at several sites of the Arga Complex, named after the largest delta island, Arga–Muora–Sise. The frozen sediments predominantly consist of fluvial sands several tens of meters thick, radiocarbon-dated from > 52 to 16 kyr BP. These sands were deposited under changing fluvial conditions in a dynamic system of shifting river channels, and have been additionally modified by synsedimentary and postsedimentary cryogenesis. Later thermokarst processes affected this late Pleistocene fluvial landscape during the Lateglacial and the Holocene. In addition, eolian activity reworked the fluvial sands on exposed surfaces at least since the Lateglacial, resulting in dune formation in some areas. Contrary to the Arga Complex, the third terrace is mainly composed of polygenetic alluvial and proluvial ice-rich permafrost sequences (Ice Complex deposits) radiocarbon-dated from 50 to 17 kyr BP which cover older fluvial sand units luminescence-dated to about 100–50 kyr BP. Paleoecological records reflect tundra-steppe conditions that varied locally, depending on landscape dynamics, during the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 4 and 3 periods, and a persistent change to shrub and arctic tundra during Lateglacial and Holocene periods.The study results indicate a continuous fluvial sedimentation environment for the Laptev Sea shelf in the region of the second Lena Delta terrace during the late Pleistocene, and confirm the presence of a dynamic channel system of the paleo-Lena River that flowed at the same time as the nearby subaerial Ice Complex deposits were being formed.     

Facies and faunal assemblage changes in response to the Holocene transgression in the Lagoon of Mayotte (Comoro Archipelago, SW Indian Ocean)

This paper documents the facies change in response to the Holocene transgression within five sediment cores taken in the lagoon of Mayotte, which contain a Type-1 depositional sequence (lowstand, transgressive and highstand deposits underlain by an erosive sequence boundary). Quantitative compositional analysis and visual examination of the bioclasts were used to document the facies changes. The distribution of the skeletal and non-skeletal grains in the lagoon of Mayotte is clearly controlled by (1) the rate and amplitude of the Holocene sea-level rise, (2) the pre-Holocene basement topography and (3) the growth-potential of the barrier reef during sea-level rise, and the changes in bathymetry and continuity during this period. The sequence boundary consists of the glacial karst surface. The change-over from the glacial lowstand is marked by the occurrence of mangrove deposits. Terrigenous and/or mixed terrigenous-carbonate muds to sandy muds with a mollusc or mollusc-ostracod assemblage dominate the transgressive deposits. Mixed carbonate-siliciclastic or carbonate sand to gravel with a mollusc-foraminifer or mollusc-coral-foraminifer assemblage characterize the early highstand deposits on the inner lagoonal plains. The early highstand deposits in the outer lagoonal plains consist of carbonate muds with a mollusc-foraminifer assemblage. Late highstand deposits consist of terrigenous muds in the nearshore bays, mixed terrigenous-carbonate sandy muds to sands with a mollusc-foraminifer assemblage on the inner lagoonal plains and mixed muds with a mollusc-foraminifer assemblage on the outer deep lagoonal plains. The present development stage of the individual lagoons comprises semi-enclosed to open lagoons with fair or good water exchange with the open ocean.     

秦岭南麓汉水上游旧石器考古研究现状与契机

位于北纬33°上下、秦岭南麓的汉水上游是北半球同纬度地带自然生态系统最复杂、动植物资源丰富、适于早期人类生存的地区,也是我国古人类和旧石器遗存发现较早、遗址密集和研究较为深入的区域之一。上世纪70~80年代以来,汉水上游干支流地区发现的古人类和旧石器遗址数以百计,其丰富的古人类和动物化石资源以及旧石器文化遗存对研究早期人类迁徙与演化、环境适应、石器工业技术和南北旧石器文化交流具有十分重要的价值,在我国古人类和旧石器考古研究中占据着极为重要的位置。本文在对汉水上游汉中盆地和安康盆地旧石器遗址相关调查研究现状详细梳理的基础上,兼及丹江口库区周边古人类和旧石器遗址调查、发掘和研究的收获,结合本研究团队数年来在该区域研究工作的进展状况与面临的问题,讨论了汉水上游地区的古人类和旧石器考古研究工作收获及存在的问题,并对未来研究工作的重点和方向给予前瞻。     

Internal structure and Holocene evolution of One Tree Reef,southern Great Barrier Reef

Summary Analysis of core from six drill holes and ten vibrocores from One Tree Reef has delineated five major biosedimentological facies: algal pavement, coral head facies, branching coral facies, reef flat rubble facies and sand facies. Holocene growth began around 8,000 years B.P. with a high energy coral head facies on windward margins and a lower energy branching coral facies on patch reefs and on leeward margins. Vertical accumulation rates for these two principal facies are not greatly different; the coral head facies grew at 1.8–7.3 m/1,000 years and the branching coral facies at 0.6–8.3 m/1,000 years. Growth was initially much slower than the rate of sea level rise, a situation which changed only after sea level stabilized around 6,200 years B.P. A facies evolution model with rigidly imposed time constraints divides growth into three phases, i.e. vertical growth to sea level, transitional adjustment of biofacies at sea level, and leeward progradative phases.     

广西布兵盆地河流阶地新发现的史前石器遗址

本文是2000年以来广西布兵盆地第四纪石器遗址的调查报告。布兵盆地是一个小型的断陷溶蚀盆地,发育南方典型的卡斯特地貌,洞穴众多并保存大量堆积物。盆地内发育2条小河,自西南向东北穿过盆地汇入右江,阶地广泛分布在盆地内部,可以确认的有4级阶地。旧石器在布兵盆地的第二至第四级河流阶地堆积物中均有发现,时代涵盖中更新世到晚更新世的多个阶段,一级阶地的后缘有新石器时代的遗物。布兵盆地的石器属于中国南方的砾石工业,石器文化包含旧石器时代早期的两面打制技术和旧石器时代晚期的以石片为主的加工技术。这些遗址的进一步综合研究,将对了解华南早期人类石器文化的起源和演化提供重要的科学依据。     

Waterfalls drive parallel evolution in a freshwater goby

Waterfalls may affect fish distribution and genetic structure within drainage networks even to the extent of leading evolutionary events. Here, parallel evolution was studied by focusing on waterfall and the landlocked freshwater goby Rhinogobius sp. YB (YB), which evolved from amphidromous R. brunneus (BR). The fish fauna was surveyed at 30 sites in 11 rivers on Iriomote Island, Japan, the geography of which was characterized by terraces/tablelands with many waterfalls. We found that all YB individuals were distributed only above waterfalls (height 6.8-58.7 m), whereas BR, and other fishes, were mostly distributed below waterfalls. Mitochondrial DNA analysis showed that every YB local population above the waterfall was independently evolved from BR. In contrast, cluster analysis of nine morphological characters, such as fin color and body pattern, showed that the morphology of YB individuals held a similarity beyond the genetic divergence, suggesting parallel evolution has occurred relating to their morphology. Genetic distance between each YB local population and BR was significantly correlated with waterfall height (r(2) = 0.94), suggesting that the waterfalls have been heightened due to the constant geological erosion and that their height represents the isolation period of YB local populations from BR (ca. 11,000-88,000 years). Each local population of BR was once landlocked in upstream by waterfall formation, consequently evolving to YB in each site. Although the morphology of YB had a high degree of similarity among local populations, finer scale analysis showed that the morphology of YB was significantly correlated with the genetic distance from BR. Consequently, there could be simultaneous multiple phases of allopatric/parallel evolution of the goby due to variations in waterfall height on this small island.     

Fluvial response to late Quaternary climate change in NE Queensland, Australia

Samples of alluvial and colluvial deposits from the coastal plain and coastal valleys north and south of Cairns (17°S) have been dated using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) protocols, with additional thermoluminescence (TL) and Radiocarbon assays. Coarse fanglomerates from elevated coastal terraces date back to 81 ka, but most are clustered in oxygen isotope stage three (OIS3, 64-28 ka), indicating high-energy conditions during this period. Extensive fans and terraces of finer calibre sediments are widely represented grading from coarse gravels and cobbles in proximal zones fine sand and silt in distal areas. Dates show that vertical accumulation of 10-15 m of sediment occurred between ∼ 28 and 14 ka (OIS2), after which the fans were dissected and Holocene deposits become fragmentary. A number of deposits indicating hillslope instability were successfully dated and these fall mainly into OIS3 and post 12 ka. These results are interpreted as catchment responses to Late Pleistocene climate and vegetation changes, documented elsewhere from local pollen and ocean drilling sites. Correlation with these records and with evidence for regional climate change from the Austral-Asian region is good and indicates that these changes were sufficient to transform fluvial activity and slope processes.     

Les séries silicoclastiques miocènes du Nord-Est au Sud-Ouest de la Tunisie : une mise au point

During the Miocene time, the Atlas-pelagian block, which is limited northward by the atlasic-alpin chain of North Africa-Sicily, southward by the Gafsa-Jeffara-Azizia fault and eastward by the Malta escarpment, resulted from the extension-compression regime, mainly controlled by the subduction-collision processes. This regime induced the opening of many Miocene microbasins, which have been infilled by silicoclastic materials showing lateral and vertical facies variations and several hiatus associated to tectonic and stratigraphic unconformities. Excepting the very local transgressive regimes, such as those of Langhian and Messinian periods, most of the Miocene deposits took place on internal platforms, especially at the NE part of the country. The fluviodeltaic and alluvial sediments are, in fact, lateral equivalents which infilled the valley and depression enclosed systems towards the SW. In this context (rapid facies variations in time and space, superposition of tectonic and eustatic unconformities, climatic variations, rare or absent stratigraphic markers…), some controversies remain as regards the correlation and dating of these series. This work consists of a study of the lateral and vertical facies and thickness variations, coupled to the identification of the main unconformities. It is also a study of significance of the main sedimentological mechanisms and an inventory of the different palynological and paleontological content of the sediments. The aim of this work is to propose a new vision on the Miocene deposits in Tunisia along a NE-SW axis. Then, using these data, we have correlated the different lithological formations, discuss their age and, finally, proposed paleogeographical drafts for them.     

Application of a depositional facies model to an acid mine drainage site

Lower Red Eyes is an acid mine drainage site in Pennsylvania where low-pH Fe(II) oxidation has created a large, terraced iron mound downstream of an anoxic, acidic, metal-rich spring. Aqueous chemistry, mineral precipitates, microbial communities, and laboratory-based Fe(II) oxidation rates for this site were analyzed in the context of a depositional facies model. Depositional facies were defined as pools, terraces, or microterracettes based on cm-scale sediment morphology, irrespective of the distance downstream from the spring. The sediments were composed entirely of Fe precipitates and cemented organic matter. The Fe precipitates were identified as schwertmannite at all locations, regardless of facies. Microbial composition was studied with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and transitioned from a microaerophilic, Euglena-dominated community at the spring, to a Betaproteobacteria (primarily Ferrovum spp.)-dominated community at the upstream end of the iron mound, to a Gammaproteobacteria (primarily Acidithiobacillus)-dominated community at the downstream end of the iron mound. Microbial community structure was more strongly correlated with pH and geochemical conditions than depositional facies. Intact pieces of terrace and pool sediments from upstream and downstream locations were used in flowthrough laboratory reactors to measure the rate and extent of low-pH Fe(II) oxidation. No change in Fe(II) concentration was observed with (60)Co-irradiated sediments or with no-sediment controls, indicating that abiotic Fe(II) oxidation was negligible. Upstream sediments attained lower effluent Fe(II) concentrations compared to downstream sediments, regardless of depositional facies.