Abstract
This paper reviews the evidence from terrestrial palaeoenvironmental records in north-central Europe and, in particular, central Germany, which relates to the controversial proposition that there were strong climate oscillations during the last interglacial (oxygen isotope substage 5e). In contrast to the evidence from the GRIP ice core at Summit, Greenland, and a recent palaeoclimate reconstruction based on the pollen profile from Bispingen, Germany, the evaluation of the palaeobotanical and the stable isotope data presented here strongly suggests relatively stable temperature for most of the Eemian and with instability confined to the beginning and end of the interglacial. High amplitude temperature variations can be seen in both the Early Weichselian pollen and isotope records. It is argued that this pattern of climate development is applicable to most of continental north-central Europe.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aaby B, Tauber H (1995) Eemian climate and pollen. Nature 376: 27–28
Aalbersberg G and Litt T (1996) The Eemian-Early Weichselian as an analogue of the expected cooling towards the end of the present interglacial. Final report, EPECC Working Group 2, EC-Project “Variations in natural climate over the past 130,000 years along a West-East European transect as a basis for upgrading GCM's”. Bonn 1996, pp 67
Behre KE (1989) Biostratigraphy of the last glacial period in Europe. Quat Sci Rev 8: 25–44
Behre KE, Lade U (1986) Eine Folge von Eem und 4 Weichsel-Interstadialen in Oerel/Niedersachsen und ihr Vegetationsverlauf. Eiszeitalter G 36: 11–36
Böttger M, Schidlowski M, Wand U (1993) Stable carbon isotope fractionation in lower plants from the Schirmacher and Untersee oases (central Dronning Maud land, East Antarctica). Isotopenpraxis Environ. Health Stud. 29: 21–250
Eicher U, Siegenthaler U (1976) Palynological and oxygen isotope investigations on Late-glacial sediment cores from Swiss lakes. Boreas 5: 109–117
Dansgaard W, Johnsen SJ, Clausen HB, Dahl-Jensen D, Gundestrup NS, Hammer CU, Hvidberg CS, Steffensen JP, Sveinbjörnsdottir AE, Jouzel J, Bond G (1993) Evidence for general instability of past climate from a 250-kyr ice-core record. Nature 364: 218–220
Field M, Huntley B, Müller H (1994) Eemian climate fluctuations observed in a European pollen record. Nature 371: 779–783
Frenzel B (1991) Das Klima des letzten Interglazials in Europa. In: Frenzel B (ed) Klimageschichtliche Probleme der letzten 130 000 Jahre. Gustav Fischer, Stuttgart, pp 51–78
Iversen J (1944) Viscum, Hedera and Ilex as climate indicators. Geol För Stockh Förh 66: 463–483
Johnsen SJ, Clausen HB, Dansgaard W, Gundestrup NS, Hammer CU, Tauber H (1995) The Eem stable isotope record along the GRIP ice core and its interpretation. Quat Res 43: 117–124
Larsen E, Sejrup HP, Johnsen SJ, Knudsen KL (1995) Do Greenland ice cores reflect NW European interglacial climate variations? Quat Res 43: 125–132
Litt T (1990) Pollenanalytische Untersuchungen zur Vegetationsund Klimaentwicklung während des Jungpleistozäns in den Becken von Gröbern und Grabschütz. Altenburger naturwiss Forsch 5: 92–105
Litt T (1994) Paläoökologie, Paläobotanik und Stratigraphie des Jungquartärs im nordmitteleuropäischen Tiefland (Unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des Elbe-Saale-Gebietes). Diss Bot 227: 1–185
Mai DH (1990a) Die Flora des Interglazials von Gröbern (Kreis Gräfenhainichen). Altenburger naturwiss Forsch 5: 106–115
Mai DH (1990b) Die Flora des Interglazials von Grabschütz (Kreis Delitzsch). Altenburger naturwiss Forsch 5: 116–137
Mangerud J (1989) Correlation of the Eemian and the Weichselian with deep sea oxygen isotope stratigraphy. Quat Int 3/4: 1–4
Martinson DG, Pisias NG, Hays JD, Imbrie J, Moore TC, Shackleton NJ (1987) Age dating and orbital theory of Ice Ages: development of a high-resolution 0 to 300,000 year chronostratigraphy. Quat Res 27: 1–29
McCrea JM (1950) On the Isotopic chemestry of the carbonates and a palaeotemperature scale. J Chem Phys 18: 849–857
McManus JF, Bond GC, Broecker WS, Johnsen S, Labeyrie L, Higgins S (1994) High-resolution climate records from the North Atlantic during the last Interglacial. Nature 371: 326–329
Menke B, Tynni R (1984) Das Eeminterglazial und das Weichselfrühglazial von Rederstall/Dithmarschen und ihre Bedeutung für die mitteleuropäische Jungpleistozän-Gliederung. Geol Jahrb A 76: 3–120
Meusel H, Jäger E, Rauschert S, Weinert E (1978) Vergleichende Chorologie der zentraleuropäischen Flora II. Gustav Fischer, Jena
Müller G and Gastner M (1971) The “Karbonat bomb” — a simple device for the determination of the carbonate content in sediments, soils and other materials. Neues Jahrb Mineral 10: 464–469
Müller H (1974) Pollenanalytische Untersuchungen und Jahresschichtenzählungen an der eemzeitlichen Kieselgur von Bispingen/Luhe. Geol Jahrb A 21: 149–169
Zagwijn W (1992) Migration of vegetation during the Quaternary in Europe. Cour Forsch Inst Senckenberg 153: 9–20
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Litt, T., Junge, F.W. & Böttger, T. Climate during the Eemian in north-central Europe — a critical review of the palaeobotanical and stable isotope data from central Germany. Veget Hist Archaebot 5, 247–256 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00217502
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00217502