Interdisciplinary studies of spring mire deposits from radzików (south podlasie lowland, east poland) and their significance for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions

Abstract

The paper presents the results of interdisciplinary (multi-proxy) palaeoenvironmental stud-ies of peat-calcareous tufa depositional sequences of spring mire from Radzików site (east Poland). Analyses of three biotic proxies (plant macrofossils, pollen, molluscs) were supplemented with sedi-mentological, geochemical, oxygen and carbon stable isotopes analyses and radiocarbon dating and used for reconstruction of environmental changes in Late Glacial and Holocene. The obtained results enable us to (1) reconstruct main phases of mire development and (2) determine environmental fac-tors influencing changes of water supply. The object started to develop in Alleroød. The Late Glacial and Early Holocene deposit sequence is relatively thick (about 1.0 m), with good palaeoecological record. The boundary between Younger Dryas and Preboreal is especially well confirmed by palynological and malacological analyses as well as radiocarbon dating. The Mesoholocene deposits are considerably worse preserved. Mire develop-ment was evaluated in terms of general mire ecology. © 2011 Silesian University of Technology.