The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau
Understanding the relationship between modern pollen assemblages and vegetation/climate for various elevations is essential for accurately interpreting fossil pollen records and conducting quantitative climate reconstructions in mountainous regions. However, these relationships for the Tibetan Plate...
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2024-11-01
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| author | Weihe Ren Min Liu Feng Qin Quan Li Guitian Yi Weiyu Chen Shuming Li Zijian Liu Qing Peng Chen Liang Yan Zhao |
| author_facet | Weihe Ren Min Liu Feng Qin Quan Li Guitian Yi Weiyu Chen Shuming Li Zijian Liu Qing Peng Chen Liang Yan Zhao |
| author_sort | Weihe Ren |
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| description | Understanding the relationship between modern pollen assemblages and vegetation/climate for various elevations is essential for accurately interpreting fossil pollen records and conducting quantitative climate reconstructions in mountainous regions. However, these relationships for the Tibetan Plateau, which is the highest and one of the most ecologically sensitive regions globally, are still scarce. We present modern pollen assemblages from 78 topsoil samples collected along altitudinal gradients from 498 to 4046 m above sea level on the eastern Tibetan Plateau. They were distributed in alpine shrub meadows, coniferous forests, and mixed broad-leaved and coniferous forest vegetation types. Multivariate statistical methods, including discriminant analysis, indicator species analysis, logistic regression, and redundancy analysis, were employed to identify relationships among modern pollen assemblages, vegetation types, and climate along an altitudinal gradient. The results revealed that (1) vegetation types along the altitudinal gradient can be effectively differentiated by comparing pollen assemblages, discriminant analysis, and indicator species analysis; (2) the conifer/broadleaf pollen ratio (C/B) efficiently distinguished coniferous forests (C/B > 5) from mixed forests (C/B < 5); and (3) variations in modern pollen assemblages are primarily influenced by temperature, with pollen ratios, such as <i>Artemisia</i>/Cyperaceae (<i>Art</i>/Cy) and <i>Tsuga</i>/(<i>Tsuga</i> + <i>Abies</i> + <i>Picea</i>) (T/TAP), displaying notable altitudinal and temperature differences. These findings demonstrate that variations in modern pollen assemblages on the eastern Tibetan Plateau differentiate between vegetation types and correlate with temperature variations associated with elevation. The results provide insights for future paleovegetation and paleoclimatic reconstructions for similar mountainous regions. |
| format | Article |
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| issn | 2073-445X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Land |
| spelling | doaj-art-d38c3bde3f5c492c995f818136baefda2025-08-20T01:53:57ZengMDPI AGLand2073-445X2024-11-011311186610.3390/land13111866The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan PlateauWeihe Ren0Min Liu1Feng Qin2Quan Li3Guitian Yi4Weiyu Chen5Shuming Li6Zijian Liu7Qing Peng8Chen Liang9Yan Zhao10College of Geography and Tourism/HIST Hengyang Base, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421010, ChinaCollege of Geography and Tourism/HIST Hengyang Base, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421010, ChinaKey Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaKey Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaCollege of Geography and Tourism/HIST Hengyang Base, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421010, ChinaKey Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaCollege of Geography and Tourism/HIST Hengyang Base, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421010, ChinaCollege of Geography and Tourism/HIST Hengyang Base, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421010, ChinaCollege of Geography and Tourism/HIST Hengyang Base, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421010, ChinaDepartment of Land Resource and Urban Planning, Hebei GEO University, Shijiazhuang 050031, ChinaKey Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaUnderstanding the relationship between modern pollen assemblages and vegetation/climate for various elevations is essential for accurately interpreting fossil pollen records and conducting quantitative climate reconstructions in mountainous regions. However, these relationships for the Tibetan Plateau, which is the highest and one of the most ecologically sensitive regions globally, are still scarce. We present modern pollen assemblages from 78 topsoil samples collected along altitudinal gradients from 498 to 4046 m above sea level on the eastern Tibetan Plateau. They were distributed in alpine shrub meadows, coniferous forests, and mixed broad-leaved and coniferous forest vegetation types. Multivariate statistical methods, including discriminant analysis, indicator species analysis, logistic regression, and redundancy analysis, were employed to identify relationships among modern pollen assemblages, vegetation types, and climate along an altitudinal gradient. The results revealed that (1) vegetation types along the altitudinal gradient can be effectively differentiated by comparing pollen assemblages, discriminant analysis, and indicator species analysis; (2) the conifer/broadleaf pollen ratio (C/B) efficiently distinguished coniferous forests (C/B > 5) from mixed forests (C/B < 5); and (3) variations in modern pollen assemblages are primarily influenced by temperature, with pollen ratios, such as <i>Artemisia</i>/Cyperaceae (<i>Art</i>/Cy) and <i>Tsuga</i>/(<i>Tsuga</i> + <i>Abies</i> + <i>Picea</i>) (T/TAP), displaying notable altitudinal and temperature differences. These findings demonstrate that variations in modern pollen assemblages on the eastern Tibetan Plateau differentiate between vegetation types and correlate with temperature variations associated with elevation. The results provide insights for future paleovegetation and paleoclimatic reconstructions for similar mountainous regions.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/11/1866modern pollenaltitudinal vegetation zonerepresentationeastern Tibetan Plateau |
| spellingShingle | Weihe Ren Min Liu Feng Qin Quan Li Guitian Yi Weiyu Chen Shuming Li Zijian Liu Qing Peng Chen Liang Yan Zhao The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau Land modern pollen altitudinal vegetation zone representation eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title | The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_full | The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_fullStr | The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_short | The Pollen Representation of Vegetation and Climate Along an Altitudinal Gradient on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| title_sort | pollen representation of vegetation and climate along an altitudinal gradient on the eastern tibetan plateau |
| topic | modern pollen altitudinal vegetation zone representation eastern Tibetan Plateau |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/11/1866 |
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