Carpinus betulus pollen accumulation rates in Roztocze (SE Poland) in relation to presence of Carpinus in Ferdynandovian pollen diagrams

Carpinus pollen has been recorded in fossil pollen diagrams of different interglacials. In case of the Ferdynandovian pollen sequence it is of particular importance to know if scattered presence of Carpinus pollen at the decline of Ferdynandovian 1 interglacial represents long distance transport of pollen or small isolated Carpinus populations. The study aims to trace the pollen-vegetation relationship in Roztocze (SE Poland) using Tauber-style pollen traps to understand better the pattern of Carpinus pollen dispersal and deposition. High and low pollen deposition years were recorded for Carpinus betulus in the period 1998–2010. Deposition was extremely high in 2002. Average annual pollen accumulation rate was calculated at 1348 grains cm -2 year -1, which was 4.1% of total pollen spectrum. The study confirms that the earlier pollen presence/absence threshold values of about 5% for the presence of Carpinus trees in vegetation (Huntley & Birks 1983) were too high. The pollen monitoring data from Roztocze support the opinion of Ralska-Jasiewiczowa et al. (2004) that low values of about 0.5% may reflect the presence of Carpinus trees in the forests. These data, in comparison to the scattered Carpinus pollen grains in the last part of the Ferdynandovian 1 interglacial seem to indicate that single trees of this genus may nave occurred in the vegetation at the decline of interglacial optimum

SELECTED GEOCHEMICAL CRITERIA IN MIRE PROFILES OF PORĘBY WOJSŁAWSKIE (SANDOMIERZ BASIN, POLAND SE)

The geochemical analysis of biogenic sediments was used to reconstruct environmental conditions and the impact of human activity from a small mire geo-system in the Sandomierz Basin (Poland SE). Changes in the nature of selected geochemical indicators show a significant impact on the transformation of the mire during the early stages of human activity. It is reflected in the geochemical record by means of a high proportion of heavy metals – cadmium, lead and copper. Evident variability of main geochemical components concentration is also visible in a vertical record of analysed cores. This is a consequence of the sedimentary basin asymmetric configuration and the ensuing variable biogenic sedimentary succession. Analizy geochemiczne stanową jedną z podstawowych metod badań osadów biogenicznych deponowanych w torfowiskach. W pracy wykorzystano analizę geochemiczną osadów biogenicznych z małego geosystemu torfowiskowego in the Sandomierz Basin (Poland SE) do odtworzenia warunków środowiskowych i wpływu działalności człowieka. Zmiany charakteru wybranych wskaźników geochemicznych zaznaczają znaczący wpływ na transformację torfowiska w najmłodszych fazach działalności człowieka. Rejestrowana jest ona w zapisie geochemicznym poprzez wysoki udział metali ciężkich – kadm, ołów i miedź. Zaznacza się także wyraźna zmienność koncentracji głównych składników geochemicznych w zapisie pionowym analizowanych rdzeni. Jest to konsekwencją asymetrycznej konfiguracji zbiornika sedymentacyjnego i wynikającej z niej zmiennej w czasie biogenicznej sukcesji osadowej

Górski Szlak dla Alergików jako nowy produkt turystyczny Tatr

Among the tourist services offered in Poland for a group of people with allergies, which increases rapidly, there are no listings related to the practice of hiking. The aim of this article is to offer a tourist walking trail in the Tatras for allergy sufferers, which combines active holidays with avoidance of allergens and comfort of being in the clear air above the upper forest limit. The trail has been designed in three variants, taking into account the physical condition of potential users. Its routes run along existing, popular trails in the Tatra National Park.Wśród usług turystycznych oferowanych w Polsce wzrastającej dynamicznie grupie alergików brakuje ofert związanych z uprawianiem turystyki pieszej. Celem artykułu jest propozycja turystycznego szlaku pieszego w Tatrach dla osób cierpiących na alergie wziewne, który łączy aktywny wypoczynek z unikaniem alergenów i komfortem przebywania w czystym powietrzu powyżej górnej granicy lasu. Szlak zaprojektowano w trzech wariantach, uwzględniając kondycję fizyczną potencjalnych użytkowników. Jego trasy biegną wzdłuż istniejących, popularnych szlaków na terenie Tatrzańskiego Parku Narodowego.

Nowe dane paleobotaniczne z profilu Ferdynandów 2011 na stanowisku stratotypowym

The new drilling, made in 2011 in the Ferdynandovian interglacial stratotype site in Ferdynandów near Kock (E Poland) allows to carry out high resolution palaeobotanical analyses (including palynological and plant macrofossils ones). The results of the analyses are presented and interpreted against the background of the earlier partition of the ferdynandovian succession (acc. to Janczyk-Kopikowa 1975). A particular attention was paid to the similarity of succession derived from the profile Ferdynandów 2011 with those from neighboring sites in Łuków and Zdany. Very clearly it outlines the division of the three analyzed profiles of the ferdynandovian succession into two distinct interglacials separated by a sediment section bearing the record of the succession typically glacial with its stadial-interstadial oscillations. In the light of the new data from the Ferdynandów 2011 profile, it is clear that the division which was first used by Mamakowa (1996), applies to all ferdynandovian successions in Poland, if only two warm periods were registered in them (formerly known as two climate optima). The warm units in the Ferdynandów 2011 succession correspond to climatostratigraphic units Ferdynandovian 1 and 2, and the cold unit – to Ferdynandovian 1/2 (Lindner et al. 2004). The whole ferdynandovian succession s.l. correlates with the Cromerian complex in the early Middle Pleistocene of Western Europe stratigraphy (Cromerian II Westerhoven and Cromerian III Rosmalen) and marine oxygen isotope stages (MIS) 13–15. The new geological and palaeobotanical data allowed to reconstruct the functioning of interglacial lake and its palaeogeographic context on the stratotype site and its evolution.Stanowiska z zapisem ferdynandowskiej sukcesji pyłkowej są rzadko spotykane, a zwłaszcza te z zapisem paleobotanicznym dwu okresów ciepłych i dzielącego je ochłodzenia. Na tym tle, na szczególną uwagę zasługuje obszar Południowego Podlasia, na którym zostało rozpoznanych 8 stanowisk z osadami interglacjału ferdynandowskiego. Są one udokumentowane badaniami palinologicznymi (Żarski i in. 2009a; Ryc. 1). Na tym obszarze zlokalizowane jest również stanowisko stratotypowe Ferdynandów B z 1963 roku, dla którego opisano w 1981 roku nową wówczas sukcesję pyłkową, określoną jako sukcesja ferdynandowska (Janczyk-Kopikowa i in. 1991; Mojski, 1985; Janczyk-Kopikowa 1991; Rzechowski 1996)

New methods applied to interpretations of pollen data in the Holocene - selected examples from the last decade

The results of palynological analyses of the Holocene deposits and modern pollen deposition in Poland and Finland are used to illustrate the progress in pollen analysis - the main palaeoecological method. The increased potential of modern palaeoecology for reconstruction of vegetation and for drawing conclusions on other environmental variables (climate, water conditions, landscape, anthropogenic disturbances) is demonstrated. Pollen analysis - develops at present interpretive tools for precise reconstruction of the structure and composition of vegetation and climate conditions. The progress consists in the quantitative presentation of pollenvegetation-climate relationships based on the examination of modern pollen deposition. The application of numerical analyses to pollen data allows correlating pollen spectrum features with the landscape/vegetation type. Special attention is paid to the Holocene vegetation changes of the transitional zone between boreal forest and tundra in the areas subjected to weak anthropopression (e.g. Lapland), which reflect climatic changes. Databases of modern pollen analogues are based on analysis of samples of surface mosses and contents of Tauber traps. These traps are used in Poland in investigations conducted as a part of the Pollen Monitoring Programme (http://pmp.oulu.fi). The correlation of Tauber-trap data with aerobiological ones contributes to understanding of the relationship between pollen production and climate elements. Additionally, the precise C 14 dating allows a near-annual resolution in fossil deposits to be obtained more frequently. Due to time scales comprising hundreds of years, pollen analysis can provide means to resolve questions inaccessible for direct observation

Annual pollen sums of alnus in Lublin and Roztocze in the years 2001-2007 against selected meteorological parameters

Alder (Alnus Mill.), as an anemophilous species, produces large quantities of easily dispersed pollen. Annual pollen sums recorded in south-eastern Poland (by the volumetric method - Lanzoni trap) and in the area of the village of Guciów in the Central Roztocze region (pollen deposition in Tauber traps) were compared. The height at which the respective trap sites were located as well as local and regional vegetation and the distance from the nearest alder communities differ in both cases, likewise, the climate of these two regions differ. The analysed pollen data series cover the years 1998-2007 in Roztocze and 2001-2007 in Lublin. Large differences have been noted in Alnus pollen deposition values between particular years. Among them, there were observed years of very high annual sums (2001, 2003, 2006), as well as years of very low pollen deposition values in both regions (2002, 2005, 2007). In the period in question, the mean value of annual Alnus pollen count for Lublin was 5372 alder pollen grains in m3 of air, and in Roztocze 1647 grains per cm2 of area. During the seven-year period of monitoring (2001-2007), very similar trends were noted with respect to airborne alder pollen concentrations at both trap sites. Pollen data have been analysed against meteorological factors affecting alder pollen production and deposition. These are total precipitation and mean monthly air temperature in June, July and August in the year preceding pollen emission and the same weather elements in January and February in the year of pollen emission. In Roztocze a statistically significant negative correlation has been found between Alnus pollen annual sums and total precipitation in August in the year preceding alder pollen emission and in February in the year of pollen emission. In both regions, the Spearman's correlation coefficient does not show any statistically significant values when comparing annual Alnus pollen sums with mean monthly temperatures of both January and February and summer months in the year preceding alder pollen emission

Airborne birch pollen in Poland and Latvia in the light of data obtained from aerobiological monitoring and tauber traps in relation to mean air temperature

Birch pollen contains allergens belonging to those with the strongest allergenic properties. In order to trace pollen season patterns of this taxon and pollen annual sums at a wider regional scale, cooperation was established with the University of Latvia in Riga (Latvia). A comparison of the results obtained in the years 2003-2008 in Lublin and in Riga, using volumetric samplers, shows that there was a similar trend in the abundance of birch pollen. The highest sums were noted at both sites in 2003. In all the study years, more birch pollen grains were recorded in Lublin than in Riga, on the average by 7110. The birch pollen seasons started earlier in Lublin than in Riga, on the average by 6 days, and they ended earlier in Lublin, on the average by 18 days. In Riga the birch pollen seasons were longer and less abundant than in Lublin. In addition, in both the regions, i.e. in SE Poland (the Roztocze area) and in Latvia (the area of Marupe near Riga, Taurene, Teici and Rucava), there is pollen data series available obtained from annual pollen deposition monitoring conducted using the modified Tauber traps. These pollen counts have been carried out under the Pollen Monitoring Programme (http://pmp.oulu.fi) since 1998. The 11- year data series in Roztocze and the 10-year data series in Latvia allowed the trends in the occurrence of years of abundant or poor birch pollen release to be traced. In Roztocze maximum Betula pollen deposition occurred in the year 2003, in Latvia - in 1999. The absence of a significant correlation between SE Poland and Latvia with regard to the trends in the occurrence of years of abundant Betula pollen deposition induced the authors to seek climatic factors responsible for increased birch pollen production. The analysis of the Spearman's rank correlation coefficients between annual Betula pollen sums in Roztocze and mean air temperature in June, July and August in the year preceding pollen emission as well as in spring (January-April) of the year of pollen emission showed a statistically significant negative correlation with air temperature in February of the year of pollen emission

Environmental Conditions of Settlement of the Danubian Communities in the Northern Foreland of the Sandomierz Upland

The article raises the issue of the nature, intensity and environmental conditions of the settlement processes occurring on the borderline of the loessic Sandomierz Upland and the sandy-clay areas of the Iłża Foothills, between the end of 6th and the beginning of the 4th millennia BC. The results of previously conducted research confirm the high settlement activity in these areas, throughout the period of development of the Danubian cultural groups. The obtained data document the phenomenon of the formation and functioning of the early-agricultural settlement centres in upland areas, located outside the range of compact loess cover, i.e. within ecological and landscape zones that diverge from the basic preferences of the Danubian communities, inhabiting the upland areas of the upper Vistula basin

The origin of pine pollen grains captured from air at Calypsobyen, Svalbard

Spitsbergen is the largest island in the Svalbard Archipelago (Norway) that has been permanently populated. The harsh Arctic climate prevents development of large vascular plants such as trees. A two-year aerobiological survey was conducted within the framework of two consecutive polar expeditions (2014 and 2015) in Spitsbergen (Calypsobyen, Bellsund). The air quality was measured continuously from June/July to August using a 7-day volumetric air sampler, Tauber trap and moss specimens. Collected air samples and gravimetric pollen deposits were processed following transfer to sterile laboratory conditions and analyzed with the aid of light microscopy. Days when pine pollen grains were detected in the air were selected for further analysis. Clusters of back-trajectories, computed using the Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model in combination with ArcGIS software as well as the Flextra trajectory model, showed the movement of air masses to the sampling location at Hornsund, and thus indicated the likely origin of pollen grains. The GlobCover 2009 and CORINE Land Cover 2012 datasets were employed to establish the distribution of coniferous forests in the areas of interest. Conclusions were drawn based on the analyses of the circulation of air masses, using visualization of global weather conditions forecast to supercomputers. For the first time we have demonstrated that pine pollen grains occurring in pine-free Spitsbergen, could originate from numerous locations, including Scandinavia, Iceland, Siberia and northern Canada. Pollen grains were transported via air masses for distances exceeding ~2000 km. Both air samples and gravimetric pollen deposits revealed the same pattern of Pinus pollen distribution

Annual pollen traps reveal the complexity of climatic control on pollen productivity in Europe and the Caucasus

Annual PAR (pollen accumulation rates; grains cm−2year−1) were studied with modified Tauber traps situated in ten regions, in Poland (Roztocze), the Czech Republic (two regions in Krkonoše, two in Šumava), Switzerland (4 regions in the Alps), and Georgia (Lagodekhi). The time-series are 10-16years long, all ending in 2007. We calculated correlations between pollen data and climate. Pollen data are PAR summarized per region (4-7 traps selected per region) for each pollen type (9-14 per region) using log-transformed, detrended medians. Climate data are monthly temperature and precipitation measured at nearby stations, and their averages over all possible 2- to 6-month windows falling within the 20-month window ending with August, just prior to the yearly pollen-trap collection. Most PAR/climate relationships were found to differ both among pollen types and among regions, the latter probably due to differences among the study regions in the habitats of plant populations. Results shared by a number of regions can be summarized as follows. Summer warmth was found to enhance the following year's PAR of Picea, Pinus non-cembra, Larix and Fagus. Cool summers, in contrast, increase the PAR of Abies, Alnus viridis and Gramineae in the following year, while wet summers promote PAR of Quercus and Gramineae. Wetness and warmth in general were found to enhance PAR of Salix. Precipitation was found to be more important for PAR of Alnus glutinosa-type than temperature. Weather did not have an impact on the PAR of Gramineae, and possibly of Cyperaceae in the same year. Care is advised when extrapolating our results to PAR in pollen sequences, because there are large errors associated with PAR from sediments, due to the effects of taphonomy and sedimentation and high uncertainty in dating. In addition, in pollen sequences that have decadal to centennial rather than near-annual resolution, plant-interaction effects may easily out-weigh the weather signa