A skeleton of peat-trapped forest rhinoceros Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis (Jäger, 1839) from Gorzów Wielkopolski, Northwestern Poland: a record of life and death of the Eemian large mammals

We present a description of an almost complete skeleton of the forest rhino (Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis) found near Gorzów Wielkopolski (Northwest Poland) in its geological and palaeoenvironmental context. While finds of bones and teeth are common, the importance of this find resides in, that it is the most complete specimen of this species, almost perfectly preserved in a well-studied and dated stratigraphic and sedimentological context, along with other fossil fauna and flora. The OSL dates of glaciofluvial sediments sandwiching skeleton-bearing horizons indicate a Middle Eemian age of the Pleistocene paleolake land. This warm climate is also indicated by the results of sedimentological, geochemical, paleobotanical, and isotopic analyses. The rhino skeleton was deposited in a shallow area near the lake’s littoral zone. Bite marks of a large predator (cave hyena) were recognized on the rhino’s pelvis, which, due to their location, were probably created post-mortem. With an estimated height of 1.82 m at the withers, this was a large adult Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis. The results of osteometric analyses indicate that we are dealing with one of the largest known individuals of this species. Although it suffered from a pathologically deformed spine, the individual died at a relatively old age.Peer reviewe

Denudation features of the Late Vistulian (Weichselian late glacial) preserved in the geochemical analysis of the biogenic deposits of the Łódź Region

Przedstawiono charakterystykę geochemiczną wybranych torfowisk regionu łódzkiego (Ługi, Podwódka i Rąbień). Celem pracy jest określenie typów i natężenia denudacji w zlewni badanych zbiorników w późnym vistulianie. Miąższość udokumentowanych osadów biogenicznych wynosiła: 2,66 m (profil R-3), 3,0 m (profil Ł-1) oraz 4,75 m (profil P-1). Badania geochemiczne obejmowały oznaczenie podstawowych składników tych osadów, tj. materię organiczną, węglan wapnia, krzemionkę terygeniczną i biogeniczną. Metodą spektrometrii absorpcji atomowej oznaczono pierwiastki pomocne w rekonstrukcji paleograficznej: Na, K, Ca, Mg i Zn. W analizie przemian typów denudacji zlewni, jakie panowały podczas depozycji osadów, wykorzystano wskaźniki geochemiczne odzwierciedlające najważniejsze zmiany w proporcjach oznaczonych elementówThe paper presents the geochemical description of selected peatlands of the Łódź region: Ługi, Podwódka and Rąbień. The aim of this study is evaluation of the type and intensity of the Late Wechselian processes in the peatland catch-ment. The thickness of the document biogenic sediments in the profiles analyzed was: 2,66 m (core R-3), 3,0 m (core Ł-1) and 4,75 m (core P-1). The objective of the geochemical analyses of the above peatlands was identification of basic compo-nents of biogenic sediments, i.e. organic matter, calcium carbonate, terigenic and biogenic silica. In the resulting solution, elements helpful in palaeogeographical reconstruction were identified by the method of atomic absorption spectroscopy: Na, K, Ca, Mg and Zn. The analysis of types of denudation in the catchment following geochemical indices reflecting the most important changes in contribution of marked elements

Chemical composition of organic sediments from the Koźmin Las site

W oparciu o wyniki składu chemicznego osadów organicznych w stanowisku Koźmin Las, przedstawiono rekonstrukcję warunków środowiskowych doliny Warty pod koniec allerödu i w młodszym dryasie. Do rekonstrukcji wykorzystano dane dotyczące zawartości materii organicznej, materii mineralnej, węglanu wapnia, odczynu oraz koncentracji makro- (Na, K, Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn) i mikropierwiastków (Cu, Zn i Pb). Do czynników kształtujących skład chemiczny późnovistuliańskich osadów organicznych w dolinie Warty zaliczono sorpcję metali przez materię organiczną i uwodnione tlenki żelaza, zmien-ność akumulacji minerałów ilastych w środowisku sedymentacyjnym, sposób zasilania ekosystemu oraz właściwości aku-mulacyjne roślin w stosunku do określonych pierwiastków.The chemical composition of organic deposits from the site Koźmin Las are the basis of reconstruction of envi-ronment conditions of the Warta River valley at the end of the Alleröd and in the Younger Dryas. Environmental archives presented in this study, comprise organic matter content, mineral matter content, calcium carbonate content, reaction and macro- (Na, K, Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn) and microelements (Cu, Zn and Pb). The sorption of metals by organic matter and hydrated iron oxides, clay minerals accumulation variability in depositional environment, water relations of the ecosystem and bioac-cumulation of some elements are the factors determining the chemical composition of organic sediments in the Warta river valley

Factors influencing temporal changes in chemical composition of biogenic deposits in the middle Tążyna River Valley (Kuyavian Lakeland, central Poland)

The present paper discusses the influence of geochemical properties on biogenic deposits in the Wilkostowo mire near Toruń, central Poland. The analysed core has allowed the documentation of environmental changes between the older part of the Atlantic Period and the present day (probably interrupted at the turn of the Meso- and Neoholocene). In order to reconstruct the main stages in the sedimentation of biogenic deposits, we have used stratigraphic variability of selected litho-geochemical elements (organic matter, calcium carbonate, biogenic and terrigenous silica, macro- and micro-elements: Na, K, Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr and Ni). The main litho-geochemical component is CaCO 3 ; its content ranges from 4.1 per cent to 92 per cent. The variability of CaCO 3 content reflects mainly changes in hydrolog- ical and geomorphological conditions within the catchment area. The effects of prehistoric anthropogenic activities in the catchment of the River Tążyna, e.g., the use of saline water for economic purposes, are recorded in a change from calcareous gyttja into detritus-calcareous gyttja sedimentation and an increased content of lithophilous elements (Na, K, Mg and Ni) in the sediments. Principal component analysis (PCA) has enabled the distinction the most important factors that affected the chemical composition of sediments at the Wilkostowo site, i.e., mechanical and chemical den- udation processes in the catchment, changes in redox conditions, bioaccumulation of selected elements and human activity. Sediments of the Wilkostowo mire are located in the direct vicinity of an archaeological site, where traces of intensive settlement dating back to the Neolithic have been documented. The settlement phase is recorded both in li- thology and geochemical properties of biogenic deposits which fill the reservoir formed at the bottom of the Parchania Canal Valley

Factors influencing temporal changes in chemical composition of biogenic deposits in the middle Tążyna River Valley (Kuyavian Lakeland, central Poland)

The present paper discusses the influence of geochemical properties on biogenic deposits in the Wilkostowo mire near Toruń, central Poland. The analysed core has allowed the documentation of environmental changes between the older part of the Atlantic Period and the present day (probably interrupted at the turn of the Meso- and Neoholocene). In order to reconstruct the main stages in the sedimentation of biogenic deposits, we have used stratigraphic variability of selected litho-geochemical elements (organic matter, calcium carbonate, biogenic and terrigenous silica, macro- and micro-elements: Na, K, Mg, Ca, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr and Ni). The main litho-geochemical component is CaCO3; its content ranges from 4.1 per cent to 92 per cent. The variability of CaCO3 content reflects mainly changes in hydrological and geomorphological conditions within the catchment area. The effects of prehistoric anthropogenic activities in the catchment of the River Tążyna, e.g., the use of saline water for economic purposes, are recorded in a change from calcareous gyttja into detritus-calcareous gyttja sedimentation and an increased content of lithophilous elements (Na, K, Mg and Ni) in the sediments. Principal component analysis (PCA) has enabled the distinction the most important factors that affected the chemical composition of sediments at the Wilkostowo site, i.e., mechanical and chemical denudation processes in the catchment, changes in redox conditions, bioaccumulation of selected elements and human activity. Sediments of the Wilkostowo mire are located in the direct vicinity of an archaeological site, where traces of intensive settlement dating back to the Neolithic have been documented. The settlement phase is recorded both in lithology and geochemical properties of biogenic deposits which fill the reservoir formed at the bottom of the Parchania Canal Valley

Geochemistry of a sedimentary section at the Wąwelnica archaeological site, Szczecin Hills (Western Pomerania)

The results of geochemical assays on biogenic sediments filling a fossil lacustrine basin at Wąwelnica, in the Szczecin Hills, within the left-bank part of the Oder River catchment are presented. The data reveal a natural Holocene sedimentation sequence similar to that found for other sites in central Europe. The geochemical record of palaeo-environmental changes, which may be a consequence of human activities in the proximity of the site, is distinctly bipartite. The part of the profile corresponding to the lacustrine sediment accumulation during the Greenlandian occasionally shows an increased mineral content and an elevated catchment erosion index. An incidental presence of Palaeolithic and Mesolithic communities is confirmed by archaeological evidence from a few sites in the Szczecin Hills. More distinct episodes of mineral matter supply and more pronounced changes in geochemical indicators can be inferred as occurring from the onset of the older part of the Atlantic until the Older Subboreal. Most of the flint artefacts discovered along with a collection of vessel fragments in the Mierzyn-Dołuje area are associated with the Neolithic occupation. However, changes in the deposits’ geochemistry do not reflect all the settlement stages associated with the consecutive human groups identified by archaeological evidence. Possible reasons include a low sediment accumulation rate having restricted peat mass accretion and prevented the storing of any higher amounts of water. This, along with the climate-change-caused lowering of the water table, could have periodically stopped the accumulation of autochthonous organic matter. In addition, intensified human activities coincided with periods of stable and low water level in the basin. On the other hand, breaks in human activity correspond with moist Holocene stages and local flooding events

Geology, stratigraphy and palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis-bearing Quaternary palaeolake(s) of Gorzów Wielkopolski (NW Poland, Central Europe)

The sedimentary succession exposed in the Gorzów Wielkopolski area includes Eemian Interglacial (MIS 5e) or Early Weichselian (MIS 5d–e) deposits. The sedimentary sequence has been the object of intense interdisciplinary study, which has resulted in the identification of at least two palaeolake horizons. Both yielded fossil remains of large mammals, alongside pollen and plant macrofossils. All these proxies have been used to reconstruct the environmental conditions prevailing at the time of deposition, as well as to define the geological context and the biochronological position of the fauna. Optically stimulated luminescence dating of the glaciofluvial layers of the GS3 succession to 123.6 ± 10.1 (below the lower palaeolake) and 72.0 ± 5.2 ka (above the upper palaeolake) indicate that the site formed during the Middle–Late Pleistocene (MIS 6 – MIS 5). Radiocarbon-dating of the lacustrine organic matter revealed a tight cluster of Middle Pleniglacial Period (MIS 3) ages in the range of ~41–32 ka cal bp (Hengelo – Denekamp Interstadials). Holocene organic layers have also been found, with C ages within a range of 4330–4280 cal bp (Neolithic). Pollen and plant macrofossil records, together with sedimentological and geochemical data, confirm the dating to the Eemian Interglacial.This research was supported by grant 0201/2048/18 ‘Life and death of extinctrhino (Stephanorhinus sp.) from Western Poland: a multiproxy palaeoenvironmental approach’ financed by the National Science Centre, Poland. LiDAR DTM data presented in this study were used under academic licences DIO.DFT.DSI.7211.1619.2015_PL_N and DIO.DFT.7211.9874. 2015_PL_N awarded to the Faculty of Earth Sciences and the Environmental Management University of Wrocław, in accordance with the Polish legal regulations of the administration of the Head Office of Land Surveying and Cartography