Academic literature on the topic 'Modern pollen rain'

Modern pollen samples collected from 80 locations and representing a wide array of mature habitats in Panama and Costa Rica provide analogs to assist in the interpretation of fossil pollen records. Pollen spectra accurately reflect changes in actual forest types. Upslope transport of pollen of anemophilous species is evident in the sparsely vegetated montane samples. However, the corresponding downslope transport of these prolific pollen producers is masked by local pollen production. Mean pollen representation across gradients of mean annual temperature (MAT; 4°C increments) and mean annual precipitation (MAP; 500 mm increments) for 17 pollen types are presented as response matrices. Although preliminary in nature, these response matrices present a clearer image of pollen representation than can be obtained by considering gradients of MAT or MAP alone.

AbstractThe paucity of modern pollen-rain data from Amazonia constitutes a significant barrier to understanding the Late Quaternary vegetation history of this globally important tropical forest region. Here, we present the first modern pollen-rain data for tall terra firme moist evergreen Amazon forest, collected between 1999 and 2001 from artificial pollen traps within a 500 × 20 m permanent study plot (14°34′50″S, 60°49′48″W) in Noel Kempff Mercado National Park (NE Bolivia). Spearman's rank correlations were performed to assess the extent of spatial and inter-annual variability in the pollen rain, whilst statistically distinctive taxa were identified using Principal Components Analysis (PCA). Comparisons with the floristic and basal area data of the plot (stems ≥10 cm d.b.h.) enabled the degree to which taxa are over/under-represented in the pollen rain to be assessed (using R-rel values). Moraceae/Urticaceae dominates the pollen rain (64% median abundance) and is also an important constituent of the vegetation, accounting for 16% of stems ≥10 cm d.b.h. and ca. 11% of the total basal area. Other important pollen taxa are Arecaceae (cf. Euterpe), Melastomataceae/Combretaceae, Cecropia, Didymopanax, Celtis, and Alchornea. However, 75% of stems and 67% of the total basal area of the plot ≥10 cm d.b.h. belong to species which are unidentified in the pollen rain, the most important of which are Phenakospermum guianensis (a banana-like herb) and the key canopy-emergent trees, Erisma uncinatum and Qualea paraensis.

For accurate interpretations of palaeopalynological data, it is important to understand the influence of the current vegetation composition and characteristics on the formation of the palynological assemblage recorded in artificial or natural pollen traps. Therefore, in this study, modern pollen rain was characterized using artificial pollen traps under different ecological conditions and climatic seasons in Trilha da Mata Lake, Carajás North Ridge, southeastern Amazonia. The collection of pollen rain data comprises the total period from September 2015 to August 2016. There were two periods of low rainfall (September to December 2015 and May to August 2016) and one period of high rainfall (January to April 2016). The first two periods were represented by a predominance of canga vegetation pollen relative to forest pollen. Under dry conditions, the associations among the taxa Aparisthmium/Alchornea, Myrcia and Bellucia dichotoma were considered important for forest ecosystems, while those among Pleroma, Hyptis parkeri, Borreria and Perama carajensis were considered important for canga ecosystems. Under wet conditions, the forests were well represented by Schefflera, Anthurium lindmanianum, Pseudopiptadenia suaveolens and Glycydendron, and the most represented canga vegetation in the pollen rain were Poaceae undif., Miconia, M. acutistipula var. ferrea and Psychotria. Aparisthmium/Alchornea and Poaceae undif. Aparisthmium/Alchornea was related to periods of low water availability, and Poaceae undif. was associated with marshy or flooded environments. Thus, an increase in the influx of Poaceae undif. pollen grains was determined by variations in the extension of flooded areas, indicating an increase in the amount of rainfall and not the opposite case. Thus, future studies on vegetation reconstruction must consider modern pollen assemblages to precisely determine paleoenvironmental and paleoclimate conditions during sediment deposition.

Vegetation was mapped using existing maps, Landsat interpretation, aerial photograph interpretation and some verification by ground surveys. Twenty-five moss cushions were collected to identify pollen rain and pollen indicators of vegetation for use in fossil pollen interpretation. Eucalyptus (10%), Poaceae (4-10%), Casuarina (4-5%), Asteraceae (Tubuliflorae) (0-4%) and Cyperaceae (0-2%) were the general components in the pollen rain of the region. Subtropical rain forest was characterized by Backhousia and low values of a wide range of taxa. Cool temperate rain forest had Nothofagus values above 40% and Eucalyptus values below 20%. Subalpine grasslands had Poaceae values above 45%, Eucalyptus values below 15% and small quantities of Epacridaceae and Goodeniaceae pollen. Subalpine forest and wet eucalypt forest formations had very similar pollen representation and could be confused in pollen spectra. However, Monotoca, Banksia, Leptospermum pollen and fern spores were more common in the wet eucalypt forests. Dry eucalypt formations were characterized by 2-20% values of Bursaria, Callitris and Dodonaea as well as eucalypt values.

The relationship between the southern Brazilian tropical Atlantic lowland rain forest and modern pollen rain was studied by pollen traps. The study was carried out on a one hectare plot undisturbed rain forest of the reserve Volta Velha and two secondary forests, ± 50 and 7 years old. About 248 identified tree, shrub and herb species (excluding epiphytes) of 50 families were represented by 126 different pollen and spore types (including non-local taxa). The calculated average influx of pollen rain from the native Atlantic rain forest was 12465 pollen grains per cm² and year. The influx from the ± 50 years old and from the 7 years old secondary forest was relatively low (4112 and 3667 grains per cm² and year, respectively) compared to the undisturbed rain forest. The occurrence of pollen grains of herbs and fern spores were significantly higher in the secondary forests than in the undisturbed rain forest.

AbstractThe characterization of modern pollen rain assemblages along environmental gradients is an essential prerequisite for reliable interpretations of fossil pollen records. In this study, we identify pollen-vegetation relationships using modern pollen rain assemblages in moss polsters (n = 13) and lake sediment surface samples (n = 11) along a steep temperature gradient of 7°C (3100–4200 m above sea level) on the western Andean Cordillera, Ecuador. The pollen rain is correlated to vascular plant abundance data recorded in vegetation relevées (n = 13). Results show that pollen spectra from both moss polsters and sediment surface samples reflect changes in species composition along the temperature gradient, despite overrepresentation of upper montane forest taxa in the latter. Estimated pollen transport distance for a lake (Laguna Llaviucu) situated in a steep upper montane forest valley is 1–2 km, while a lake (Laguna Pallcacocha) in the páramo captures pollen input from a distance of up to 10–40 km. Weinmannia spp., Podocarpus spp., and Hedyosmum sp. are indicators of local upper montane forest vegetation, while Phlegmariurus spp. and Plantago spp. are indicators for local páramo vegetation.

The influence of gamma- (γ) and beta- (β) diversity on modern pollen rain is assessed using data from three Amazonian forests. Pollen rain of 79 forest locations was collected in modified Oldfield pollen traps between 1991 and 1993. Pollen diversity in the traps was high with > 280 palynomorph types recognized. Gamma diversity was assessed by comparing lowland terra firme forests in Cuyabeno, Ecuador, with two terra firme forests near Manaus, Brazil. The influence of β-diversity on local pollen rain was investigated using samples collected from neighbouring terra firme forests, seasonally flooded forests, and Mauritia-rich forests at Cuyabeno, Ecuador. Multivariate analyses revealed that γ-diversity produces a stronger signal in the pollen rain than β-diversity. However, β-diversity is accurately reflected in the pollen rain when the diversity is an expression of strong environmental gradients.

To improve our understanding of the Atlantic Forest responses to climate changes in space and time, it is essential to explore how the Brazilian Atlantic rain forest is structured as observed in modern pollen assemblages and which climate parameters determine these patterns. In this context, we compiled 196 modern pollen samples including 125 from the Atlantic Forest biome and assigned each sample to one or more eco-physiognomies. We identified seven eco-physiognomies of which four clusters of one or two eco-physiognomies were clearly distinguished, namely (1) Araucaria forest with high elevation grassland, (2) lowland rain forest, (3) semi-deciduous with riverine forests and (4) northeastern Atlantic rain forest. Climatically distinct, these clusters reflect a general temperature increase and precipitation increase from the first to the fourth cluster. Furthermore, comparison of the modern pollen dataset with the Côlonia pollen record from southeastern Brazil revealed that vegetation attributed to Araucaria forest with high elevation grassland showed an important variability with several shifts towards the lowland rain forest. As illustrated by comparison with the long fossil pollen record of Côlonia, developing such a modern training set is crucial for the understanding of responses of Atlantic Forest to environmental changes. However, additional samples are still necessary to improve characterization of different eco-physiognomies at a local scale following a defined floristic and climatic gradient. This sampling effort is becoming increasing urgent as a result of strong biodiversity loss and habitat destruction in this region.

The modern pollen spectra for Eucalyptus forest and rainforest communities were investigated from 19 sites in the Robertson area on the Central Tablelands of New South Wales. Cluster and discriminant analyses were applied to analyse pollen distribution from within and from outside warm temperate rainforest stands and tall open eucalypt forest stands. Pollen abundance is compared with a number of plant abundance estimates of taxa within forests to study pollen representation at the forest scale. Pollen of Doryphora, Polyosma, Pittosporum, Hymenanthera, Tasmannia, Asclepiadaceae and most rainforest taxa investigated are poorly represented, while sclerophyll and open-ground taxa, particularly Eucalyptus, are better represented. The pollen of many native taxa do not appear to be well dispersed, and local pollen is commonly outweighed by pollen from regional sources. Pollen representation varied between taxa and sites, with factors such as vegetation structure, plant distribution, topography and disturbance influencing pollen representation.

At present there is uncertainty over the response of neotropical ecosystems to the climatic changes of the Quaternary. The majority of vegetation reconstructions from the region are derived from fossil pollen records extracted from lake sediments. However, the interpretation of these records is restricted by limited knowledge of the contemporary relationships between the vegetation and pollen rain of neotropical ecosystems, especially for more open vegetation such as savanna and dry forest. This research aims to improve the interpretation of these records by investigating the relationship between the vegetation and modern pollen rain of different savanna and seasonally dry tropical forest (SDTF) ecosystems in Bolivia using artificial pollen traps and surface lake sediments to analyse the modern pollen rain. Vegetation data is used to identify taxa that are floristically important within the different ecosystems and to allow modern pollen/vegetation ratios to be calculated. The modern pollen rain from the upland savanna is dominated by Moraceae/Urticaceae (35.1%), Poaceae (29.6%), Alchornea (6.1%) and Cecropia (4.1%), whilst the seasonally-inundated savanna sites are dominated by Moraceae/Urticaceae (30.7%), Poaceae (19.5%), Cyperaceae (14.0%) and Cecropia (7.9%). These two different savanna ecosystems are only slightly differentiated by their modern pollen rain. The main taxa in the modern pollen rain of the upland SDTF are Moraceae/Urticaceae (25.8%), Cecropia (10.5%), Acalypha (7.6%) and Combretaceae/Melastomataceae (6.7%). Seasonally-inundated SDTF is dominated by Cecropia pollen to the extent that it was removed from the pollen sum and the main non-Cecropia pollen types are Moraceae/Urticaceae (39.0%), unknown type df 61 (6.4%), Asteraceae (6.3%), Celtis (6.0%) and Physocalymma scaberrimum (4.9%). These two SDTF ecosystems are well differentiated by their modern pollen rain, implying that they may be defined in fossil pollen records. The modern pollen rain obtained from the surface lake samples is generally complementary to that obtained from the artificial pollen traps for a given ecosystem. All sites have a high Moraceae/Urticaceae pollen signal due to effective dispersal of this pollen type from areas of evergreen forest in close proximity to the study sites. The savanna sites show lower Poaceae percentages than have been previously reported in the literature by some authors and this raises the possibility than the extent of this ecosystem in the past may have been underestimated. Modern pollen/vegetation ratios show that many key vegetation types are absent/under-represented within the modern pollen rain.

O registro palinológico de manguezais atuais é, de uma maneira geral, pouco estudado. A maioria dos trabalhos foram realizados na região Indo-Pacífica (India, Polinésia e Norte da Austrália), de modo que pouco se sabe sobre registros palinológicos deste ecossistema na região do Atlântico Sul. Os trabalhos realizados na costa brasileira são restritos a poucas áreas, tendo em vista a ampla distribuição de bosques de mangue ao longo do litoral do Brasil. Neste contexto, esta pesquisa buscou contribuir para o conhecimento da evolução de um ecossistema de manguezal, através da análise palinológica de testemunho coletado em sedimentos do manguezal de Itanhaém, litoral sul de São Paulo. A planície costeira de Itanhaém possui cerca de 50 km de comprimento e largura máxima de 15 km. A margem do rio Itanhaém e de seus afluentes são ocupadas, a jusante, por densa mata de restinga, em sua maior parte em condições primárias de conservação e, a montante, próximo das encostas da serra do mar, por floresta tropical (mata atlântica). Próximo à foz do rio Itanhaém existe uma área de aproximadamente 3,5 km2 ocupada por manguezal pouco degradado. Além da análise palinológica de um testemunho raso (135 cm) coletado na área de manguezal, foi realizada a calibração dos ecossistemas presentes (manguezal, restinga e mata atlântica) em termos de chuva polínica moderna. Ao longo do testemunho, foram coletadas amostras para a análise palinológica em intervalos de 4 cm e foram selecionados quatro níveis, de acordo com mudanças no tipo de sedimento, para datações 14C. Pelos resultados obtidos, através da análise palinológicas das amostras do testemunho, foi possível observar uma forte influência dos gêneros de mata tropical no registro polínico do manguezal. Estes dados, aliados a dados da bibliografia, mostraram diferenças significativas no registro palinológico de manguezais das regiões sudeste-sul e norte-nordeste. Trabalhos realizados na região norte-nordeste apresentaram registros com super-representação de pólens de Rhizophora, enquanto que os trabalhos feitos na região sudeste-sul indicaram pouca quantidade de pólens de associação típica de mangue (Rhizophora/Avicennia) e grande quantidade de taxa polínicos de mata. Esta diferença pode ser explicada pela distância que separa os manguezais da mata atlântica. A análise dos dados obtidos permitiu a elaboração de um modelo para explicar a evolução do manguezal de Itanhaém. O manguezal de Itanhaém deve ter surgido nesta região há pelo menos 1300 anos AP. Há cerca de 1000 anos AP este ecossistema deve ter se expandido até áreas próximas ao local onde o testemunho foi coletado e colonizado a área do testemunho por volta de 330 anos AP. A evolução do manguezal de Itanhaém estaria relacionada à dinâmica sedimentar do estuário. Desta forma, o desenvolvimento e expansão da vegetação de mangue teria ocorrido com o aumento da faixa de intermaré do estuário, provocado por progradação de deltas de cabeceira de baía.
There are few studies about palynology of modern mangroves. Most of them were carried out in the Indo-Pacific region (India, Polynesia and north of Australia). Palynological studies of mangroves of the south Atlantic coast are scarces and poorly studied. In this context, the main objective of this research was to describe the modern mangrove evolution through the pollen record observed from core samples collected in the Itanhaém mangrove area, State of São Paulo (SE, Brazil). The Itanhaém coastal plain is 50 km leight and 15 km of maximum width. The area drained by the Itanhaém river is occupied, by rain forest upstream and by coastal forest (restinga) downstream. The mangrove has an area of 3,5 km2 and is located dowstream the Itanhaém river estuary. A 135 cm deph core was collected inside the mangrove and the core samples analyses were based on modern pollen rain results. The adopted sample interval was 4 cm. The chronology of the palynological record was established by four 14C ages. The results show that there is a strong influence of rain forest taxa on the mangrove pollen spectra. This was observed in other analysis from mangroves of the southern and southeastern coast of Brazil. On the other hand, the northern mangroves are characterized by high percentages of mangrove taxa (Rhizophora and Avicennia). This difference can be explaned by the distance between the mangrove and the rain forest. In the south and southeast regions the rain forest is very close to the mangroves areas. We were able to build a conceptual model of evolution for the Itanhaém mangrove. The Itanhaém mangrove development started at least 1300 yr BP. The mangrove expansion should have occurred within the regional increase of the intertidal zone, provoked by the estuary sedimentary filling. At about 1000 yr BP, the mangrove expanded until areas where the core was collected and colonized this area around 300 yr AP. These results show that the evolution of the Itanhaém mangrove is related to the sedimentary dynamic of the estuary. This work differs from previous analysis that usually interpret the palynologycal record in terms of climatic changes.

South-western Australia is a globally significant hotspot of plant species diversity, with high endemism and many rare plant species. Proteaceae is a major component of the south-western flora, though little is known about how its diversity developed. This prompted the present study to investigate changes in the abundance and diversity of Proteaceae, in south-western Australia, by concurrently studying three sediment sequences of different ages over the Cainozoic and a modern pollen rain study. Modern pollen-vegetation relationships in the two Proteaceae species rich nodes of the northern and southern sandplains were quantified. It was found that Proteaceous genera can contribute up to 50% of the total pollen rain. Banksia/Dryandra pollen was the most abundant with Isopogon, Petrophile and Lambertia also commonly noted. The vegetation and environmental setting during three pivotal periods of the Cainozoic: Holocene, Pliocene and Eocene, were investigated. Eocene sediment from Lake Lefroy confirmed the presence of a Nothofagus dominated rainforest in the Middle to Late Eocene. At this time Proteaceae species were at least as diverse as today, if not more so, contributing up to a maximum of 42% of the total pollen rain. Taxa recorded included: Banksieaeidites arcuatus, Propylipollis biporus, Proteacidites confragosus, Proteacidites crassus, Proteacidites nasus and Proteacidites pachypolus. Several taxa remain undescribed and unnamed. This study also identified that Proteaceae pollen representation varies across small lateral distances. Thus as samples varied spatially and temporally, single core samples are not sufficient to identify spatial patterns in Proteaceae or other low pollen producing taxa. Some 7.91 cm of laminated Pliocene sediment from Yallalie, south-western Australia, was also examined. It covers 84 years of record and confirmed other regional reports that south-western Australia was covered by a rich vegetation mosaic consisting of heathy and wet rainforest elements. Although Proteaceae species were a consistent component of the pollen counts, diversity and abundance (maximum of 5%) was low throughout the studied section. Banksia/Dryandra types were most commonly noted. A 2 m core was retrieved from Two Mile Lake, near the Stirling Ranges and provided an early Holocene vegetation history. Geochemical and palynological evidence recorded little change, suggesting the environment of deposition was relatively uniform. Proteaceae species were noted throughout the core, though in low numbers, at a maximum of 3.5 % of the total pollen rain. Banksia/Dryandra was the most abundant while Isopogon, Lambertia, Petrophile and Franklandia were also noted. A regression model was developed through the modern pollen rain study to predict the number of Proteaceae in the vegetation. This was also applied to the fossil pollen records. The estimated number of Proteaceae species in the Eocene suggests a maximum of 20 and a minimum of 10 taxa. For the Pliocene record, an estimated 7 - 9 species was found and for the Holocene pollen, between 7 - 8 were present. Thus the Eocene was similar in Proteaceae diversity to today. The results from the Pliocene and Holocene suggest that Proteaceae diversity was lower than today. Findings of this research indicate that Proteaceae species are an important and consistent component of vegetation in south-western Australia over the Cainozoic. It is likely that both changing pollination mechanisms and changes in associated vegetation are important in the determining the dispersal of Proteaceaous pollen. By understanding how the vegetation has changed and developed in south-western Australia, present vegetation can be managed to include intra-specific variation and ensure the majority of species are conserved for present and future generations to enjoy.

El sur de los Andes Ecuatorianos alberga una extraordinaria riqueza de especies. Muchos factores ambientales diferentes influyen entre sí en un espacio muy limitado y crean ecosistemas únicos y complejos. Sin embargo, esta área está altamente en peligro debido al creciente impacto humano a través de la intensificación del uso de la tierra y cambio global. Sólo poco se sabe acerca de la historia paleoecológica y dinámica del paisaje de esta zona. Sin embargo, la información acerca del por qué y cómo los ecosistemas han cambiado en el pasado es crucial para el desarrollo de estrategias innovadoras para la conservación y futuras predicciones del clima. En este estudio, presentamos los análisis palinológicos realizados en la región sur de los Andes Ecuatorianos, que ayudan aclarar los patrones y procesos de los ecosistemas presentes y pasados. El estudio paleoecológico de la cuenca volcánica Quimsacocha en la cresta oriental de la Cordillera Occidental revela cambios del clima, la vegetación y del régimen del fuego desde el período del Holoceno temprano. El Holoceno medio fue un período de severos cambios ambientales debido a un clima más seco y supuestamente más cálido en esta área. Durante el Holoceno tardío, varias fases cálidas y frías se indican en el registro. El fuego estuvo presente en la zona desde el Holoceno temprano y puede ser el primer signo del impacto humano. El análisis multivariado combinado con otros núcleos de sedimentos en el sur de los Andes Ecuatorianos reveló acontecimientos, en parte, contrastantes, los cuales supuestamente son debido a la heterogeneidad ambiental de los diferentes sitios. Por otra parte, un estudio de tres años entre la relación lluvia de polen actual – vegetación se llevó a cabo en la región del Parque Nacional Podocarpus, con el fin de comprender los patrones de dispersión de polen de los diferentes tipos de vegetación del bosque premontano, bosque montano bajo, bosque montano alto y páramo para crear una base más sólida para la interpretación de los datos de polen fósil. Una comparación entre la abundancia y los datos de presencia-ausencia a nivel de familia para el polen y la vegetación mostró que los patrones de diversidad, distribución y abundancia tienen una buena correspondencia el uno con el otro en ambos conjuntos de datos. Sin embargo, cantidades variables del polen transportado de larga distancia, la productividad desigual de polen de los diferentes taxones y los sistemas heterogéneos del viento impactan los patrones. Los análisis de las tasas de acumulación de polen indican poca variación interanual pero una alta variación espacial en los datos de polen. La evaluación de los dos diferentes tipos de trampa de polen utilizados con frecuencia en estudios palinológicos tropicales, la trampa Oldfield modificada y la trampa Behling, en comparación con muestras de suelo superficial y una trampa de referencia, mostró que en las muestras de suelo, los taxones con una exina frágil se representan en menor medida que en las trampas. Además, señaló que mientras que en el bosque, todos los tipos de trampas proporcionan resultados similares, la trampa Behling se debe preferir en el páramo, ya que resiste mejor a la alta radiación y periodos de sequía. Todos los análisis amplían el conocimiento preciso y completo de la dinámica de la vegetación de los Andes Tropicales en el espacio y el tiempo.

Zur Rekonstruktion der jungquartären Landschaftsentwicklung am Kilimanjaro werden Sedimente aus Paläoböden am Mt Kilimanjaro untersucht, um die lokale und regionale Ökosystem-, Klima-, Feuerdynamik in einem größeren Rahmen zu verstehen. Desweiteren soll die Reaktion der Ökosysteme auf Umweltveränderungen erforscht werden, um die Beziehungen verschiedener Ökosysteme und ihre Rolle hinsichtlich der Entwicklung von „Biodiversity Hot Spots“ in Ostafrika aufzudecken. Die Ergebnisse tragen zu einem besseren Verständnis der heutigen und zukünftigen Dynamik von Ökosystemen bei. Sie sind außerdem eine wichtige Grundlage im Naturschutz, da sie bedeutende Informationen für die Aufrechterhaltung und das Management der hohen Biodiversität in den ostafrikanischen Hochländern liefern. Die Durchführung von paläoökologischen Untersuchungen ist unerlässlich, da die Prozesse der Vergangenheit eine wichtige Rolle bei der Entwicklung der Ökosysteme und Biodiversität spielen. Die vorliegende Arbeit erforscht die spätquartäre Vegetation-, Klima- und Feuerdynamik am Kilimanjaro, um das Verständnis der dortigen Ökosystem zu vertiefen. Sowohl Pollen als auch weitere Klima-Proxies von zwei Sedimentkernen werden analysiert, um die Vegetationsdynamik vom frühen Spätglazial bis heute zu rekonstruieren und die jeweiligen Einflußfaktoren aufzudecken. Die Ergebnisse vom Maundi Krater, welcher auf 2780 m Höhe am südostlichen Hang des Kilimanjaros gelegen ist, stellen eines der längsten, terrestrischen Klimaarchive im tropischen Ostafrika dar, und ermöglichen den Einblick in fast 100 000 Jahre Vegetations- und Klimageschichte. Das WeruWeru Paläobodenprofil aus dem montanen Waldgürtel am Kilimanjaro ermöglicht die detaillierte Rekonstruktion der Reaktionsdynamik der Vegetation auf Veränderungen in der Umwelt. Die Ergebnisse beider Untersuchungen zeigen, dass Klimaveränderungen zu einer Verschiebung der montanen Vegetationsgürtel entlang des Höhengradienten des Mt Kilimanjaro geführt haben. Das Pollenarchiv des WeruWeru Profils dokumentiert starke Veränderungen in den höchsten Vegetationgürteln, dem Erikagürtel und dem oberen montanen Wald. Trotz markanter Klimaveränderungen scheint Mt Kilimanjaro aber auch als eiszeitliches Refugium für Waldarten gedient zu haben. Feuerereignissen spielten hinsichtlich der Ausbildung des Erikagürtels eine entscheidende Rolle. Hinweise auf verstärkte menschliche Aktivitäten können an keinem der beiden Untersuchungsstandorte festgestellt werden. Die Pollenregen-Studie entlang des Höhengradienten am Kilimanjaro zeigt, dass es sehr entscheidend ist, die quantitative Beziehung zwischen Pollen-Niederschlag und moderner Vegetation zu untersuchen, um die Rekonstruktionen der Vergangenheit zu kalibrieren. Die Ergebnisse ermöglichen eine weitaus präzisere Interpretation der Vegetations- und Klimarekonstruktionen im tropischen Ostafrika.

This chapter explores conversions to Judaism in pre-modern confessional states that were recognized as central to the experience of European Jews and became common in antiquity in the last two centuries BCE. It talks about the procedure and legal ramifications of conversion to Judaism that first emerged in the reforms that were retroactively attributed to Nehemiah and Ezra. It also explains how conversions to Judaism are considered as a social organization of difference of the situational reorganization of ethnic boundaries, which responds to the perceived threat of Hellenism and assimilation. The chapter looks at accounts of transition to Judaism from early modern western Europe, which were generally kept in secret as they ran the risk of ostracism by the surrounding Christian world. It discusses how individuals who became Jewish at the time were being driven by intellectual and theological reasoning.

José Delfín Duarte rises at the crack of dawn in a neighborhood on the outskirts of San Isidro, Costa Rica. He grabs his machete and rain parka, puts on his black galoshes, and heads out in a flatbed truck up a series of muddy roads surrounded by lush forest interspersed with farms. Eventually he arrives at a small water-distribution facility located at the top of a hill overlooking the surrounding watershed. He checks the station’s tanks, carefully noting the water levels. Duarte is the elected leader of a group of local citizens who have been given responsibility for managing water resources in their community. They decide how much water is used and how it will be allocated among families and farms in the area. They collect user fees, purchase equipment, and make numerous daily decisions affecting water use. Their role stems from a power-sharing arrangement with the Costa Rican government, which in recent years has crafted similar agreements with hundreds of local water associations throughout the country. Six thousand miles to the east, Claudia Olazábal begins her day in the outer suburbs of Brussels. She takes the subway to her office in the European Commission, a sleek modern glass and steel building where she heads the Biodiversity Unit of the European Union’s Directorate General for the Environment. On this particular day, her attention is focused on the design of new rules for the control of invasive species, which pose a major threat to ecosystems worldwide. Six years in the making, this rule came about after extensive consultation with stakeholders throughout the twenty-seven member countries of Europe—farmers unions and botanic gardens, prime ministers and pet shop owners. Working with a professional staff of Swiss and Germans, Poles and Portuguese, and many other nationalities, Olazábal is preparing for a lengthy negotiation involving lawmakers throughout the continent in a complex dance that will hopefully produce a new European policy on invasive species. Claudia Olazábal and José Delfín Duarte operate worlds apart, yet they have much in common. Both are creating rules that will shape our planet for decades and even centuries to come.

Noemy Chan, a young Maya woman of Mexico, looked up from her cooking and spied her children switching butterflies out of the air with twigs. She immediately dropped her knife, ran to the yard, picked up the butterflies—and made the children eat them. The lesson was explicit: You kill only for food. In the traditional Maya world of the interior rainforests of Quintana Roo, animals are killed only from pressing need. If they are not to be eaten, they can be killed only if they are eating the crops on which humans depend. Ideally, they are slain only when both motives operate. Early one morning I met a family carrying a dead coati in a bag; they said, “It was eating our corn, so we are going to eat it.” In Noemy’s home town, Chunhuhub, even the sale of game is confined to local marketing to other subsistence farmers. The unfortunate habit of poaching game for sale to cities has not—so far—spread into the bush. Noemy and her husband are well off by Mexican standards—he manages heavy equipment for road construction. They saved their money and built an urban-style concrete block house. It stands empty; they live in a traditional Maya pole-and-thatch hut, of a style used continuously for thousands of years in the area. As they correctly point out, the hut is much cooler, cleaner, less damp, and in every way more efficient than the European-style house. The Maya civilization, one of the greatest of the ancient cultures, is by no means dead. Millions of Maya Indians, speaking two dozen related languages, still live in Central America. They practice traditional corn agriculture and maintain many pre-Columbian rituals. Yet they are no more “survivors” of the “past” than are modern Englishmen who still eat bread and beef and worship in the Church of England. Maya civilization is dynamic, living, changing, and, above all, creative. Tough and independent, its bearers have adapted to the modern world; many are doctors, lawyers, and degree-holding professors. They still speak Maya languages, and usually Spanish as well.

The aim of this paper is to analyze mixed electrified areas where there is a mix of AC/DC electrification. The grounding strategy is different. DC electrification is designed to have the rail isolated from ground and AC usually has the rail and other metallic parts such as structures and OCS poles connected to ground. This approach in mixed areas provokes the corrosion of the elements directly connected to ground, namely structure foundations or metallic rods or even the rail. This mixed environment presents challenges both for safety and corrosion management. On one side it would be a good anticorrosion practice to limit the number of elements that are directly grounded and connect them all by an aerial ground wire. On the safety side it has to be ensured that the voltages in fault condition are compliant with the standards (namely EN 50122). The authors have developed a parametric analysis to understand the impact of different grounding scenarios such as variations of the grounding impedance, impact of the reduction of the grounding impedance of a single element (i.e. the impact of a connection to the grounding mesh of a station or substation), an analysis of the maximum distance between grounding elements along the alignment ensuring that the rail to ground voltages are compliant to EN 50122-1. The methodology proposed is based on the modelling of the line considering electrical elements such as the rail impedance, grounding impedance for different elements (substations, stations, OCS poles) rail to ground impedance and OCS wires characteristics. Once the electrical model is obtained, a parametric analysis for each of the scenarios is performed to determine the impact of a particular variation into the general model obtaining the results of the short circuit analysis along the line. Results of these analyses will be presented as well as the proposed next steps and conclusions.