High-resolution Palaeoenvironmental Investigations on Holocene Mires in the Baltic Region

The principal aim of this research project was to generate proxy datasets from four sites in the Baltic region. In order to achieve this, a core of peat was taken from four ombrotrophic mires, and high-resolution multi-proxy analyses of contiguous 1 cm peat samples were undertaken. Proxy-climate curves were generated for each site using colorimetric humification analysis and plant macrofossil analysis as the primary proxies. At a slightly coarser resolution, testate amoebae analysis was carried out to provide an independent source of palaeohydrological data. Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) and Weighted Averages Ordination (WAO) were applied to the raw macrotossil data in order to generate proxy-climate datasets that can be directly. A series of wiggle-matched AMS 14C dates enabled an effective chronological framework to be produced for each site and allowed inter-site comparison of the datasets. Results indicate that changes in peat stratigraphy may in fact be driven by additional internal factors, notably autogenic succession and that climate appears to have played a secondary role. This supports the established view of many Baltic researchers and indicates that changes on Baltic mires are driven by the interplay of a range of internal and external factors. Additionally, critical evaluation of the methodologies and proxy indicators was also undertaken in order to ascertain whether they were able to record proposed episodes of climate change