| Title | Diatoms in saline lakes paleoclimate and paleoecology interpretations |
| Author | Ekdahl, E.J. |
| Author Affil | Ekdahl, E.J., VESTRA Resources, Redding, CA |
| Source | The Paleontological Society Papers, Vol.13, p.149-168, ; Geological Society of America annual meeting; Paleontological Society short course, Denver, CO, Oct. 27, 2007, edited by S.W. Starratt. Publisher: Paleontological Society, [location varies], United States. ISSN: 1089- 3326 |
| Publication Date | Oct. 2007 |
| Notes | In English. 86 refs. GeoRef Acc. No: 287313 |
| Index Terms | Antarctica--East Antarctica; Great Plains; South America--Lake Titicaca; Sierra Nevada; China--Xizang; algae; Antarctica; Asia; Cenozoic; China; diatoms; East Antarctica; Far East; global change; global warming; Holocene; lacustrine environment; Lago Lagunillas; Lago Umayo; Lake Titicaca; microfossils; North America; paleoclimatology; paleoecology; paleoenvironment; paleosalinity; Plantae; Quaternary; South America; Xizang China |
| Abstract | Average global temperatures are predicted to rise over the next century and changes in precipitation, humidity, and drought frequency will likely accompany this global warming. Understanding associated changes in continental precipitation and temperature patterns in response to global change is an important component of long- range environmental planning. For example, agricultural management plans that account for decreased precipitation over time will be less susceptible to the effects of drought through implementation of water conservation techniques. A detailed understanding of environmental response to past climate change is key to understanding environmental changes associated with global climate change. To this end, diatoms are sensitive to a variety of limnologic parameters, including nutrient concentration, light availability, and the ionic concentration and composition of the waters that they live in (e.g. salinity). Diatoms from numerous environments have been used to reconstruct paleosalinity levels, which in turn have been used as a proxy records for regional and local paleoprecipitation. Long-term records of salinity or paleoprecipitation are valuable in reconstructing Quaternary paleoclimate, and are important in terms of developing mitigation strategies for future global climate change. High-resolution paleoclimate records are also important in groundtruthing global climate simulations, especially in regions where the consequences of global warming may be severe. |
| Publication Type | conference paper or compendium article |
| Record ID | 84666 |