TY - JOUR A1 - Tian, Fang A1 - Qin, Wen A1 - Zhang, Ran A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike A1 - Ni, Jian A1 - Zhang, Chengjun A1 - Mischke, Steffen A1 - Cao, Xianyong T1 - Palynological evidence for the temporal stability of the plant community in the Yellow River Source Area over the last 7,400 years JF - Vegetation history and archaeobotany N2 - The terrestrial ecosystem in the Yellow River Source Area (YRSA) is sensitive to climate change and human impacts, although past vegetation change and the degree of human disturbance are still largely unknown. A 170-cm-long sediment core covering the last 7,400 years was collected from Lake Xingxinghai (XXH) in the YRSA. Pollen, together with a series of other environmental proxies (including grain size, total organic carbon (TOC) and carbonate content), were analysed to explore past vegetation and environmental changes for the YRSA. Dominant and common pollen components-Cyperaceae, Poaceae, Artemisia, Chenopodiaceae and Asteraceae-are stable throughout the last 7,400 years. Slight vegetation change is inferred from an increasing trend of Cyperaceae and decreasing trend of Poaceae, suggesting that alpine steppe was replaced by alpine meadow at ca. 3.5 ka cal bp. The vegetation transformation indicates a generally wetter climate during the middle and late Holocene, which is supported by increased amounts of TOC and Pediastrum (representing high water-level) and is consistent with previous past climate records from the north-eastern Tibetan Plateau. Our results find no evidence of human impact on the regional vegetation surrounding XXH, hence we conclude the vegetation change likely reflects the regional climate signal. KW - Pollen KW - Lake Xingxinghai KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - Holocene KW - Vegetation change KW - Regional climate Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00334-022-00870-5 SN - 0939-6314 SN - 1617-6278 VL - 31 IS - 6 SP - 549 EP - 558 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Yuan, Xiaoping P. A1 - Jiao, Ruohong A1 - Dupont-Nivet, Guillaume A1 - Shen, Xiaoming T1 - Southeastern Tibetan Plateau growth revealed by inverse analysis of landscape evolution model JF - Geophysical research letters N2 - The Cenozoic history of the Tibetan Plateau topography is critical for understanding the evolution of the Indian-Eurasian collision, climate, and biodiversity. However, the long-term growth and landscape evolution of the Tibetan Plateau remain ambiguous, it remains unclear if plateau uplift occurred soon after the India-Asia collision in the Paleogene (similar to 50-25 Ma) or later in the Neogene (similar to 20-5 Ma). Here, we reproduce the uplift history of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau using a 2D landscape evolution model, which simultaneously solves fluvial erosion and sediment transport processes in the drainage basins of the Three Rivers region (Yangtze, Mekong, and Salween Rivers). Our model was optimized through a formal inverse analysis with 20,000 forward simulations, which aims to reconcile the transient states of the present-day river profiles. The results, compared to existing paleoelevation and thermochronologic data, suggest initially low elevations (similar to 300-500 m) during the Paleogene, followed by a gradual southeastward propagation of topographic uplift of the plateau margin. KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - landscape evolution KW - fluvial erosion KW - inverse analysis KW - mountain growth KW - propagating uplift Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL097623 SN - 0094-8276 SN - 1944-8007 VL - 49 IS - 10 PB - American Geophysical Union CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Jia, Weihan A1 - Anslan, Sten A1 - Chen, Fahu A1 - Cao, Xianyong A1 - Dong, Hailiang A1 - Dulias, Katharina A1 - Gu, Zhengquan A1 - Heinecke, Liv A1 - Jiang, Hongchen A1 - Kruse, Stefan A1 - Kang, Wengang A1 - Li, Kai A1 - Liu, Sisi A1 - Liu, Xingqi A1 - Liu, Ying A1 - Ni, Jian A1 - Schwalb, Antje A1 - Stoof-Leichsenring, Kathleen R. A1 - Shen, Wei A1 - Tian, Fang A1 - Wang, Jing A1 - Wang, Yongbo A1 - Wang, Yucheng A1 - Xu, Hai A1 - Yang, Xiaoyan A1 - Zhang, Dongju A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike T1 - Sedimentary ancient DNA reveals past ecosystem and biodiversity changes on the Tibetan Plateau: overview and prospects JF - Quaternary science reviews : the international multidisciplinary research and review journal N2 - Alpine ecosystems on the Tibetan Plateau are being threatened by ongoing climate warming and intensified human activities. Ecological time-series obtained from sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) are essential for understanding past ecosystem and biodiversity dynamics on the Tibetan Plateau and their responses to climate change at a high taxonomic resolution. Hitherto only few but promising studies have been published on this topic. The potential and limitations of using sedaDNA on the Tibetan Plateau are not fully understood. Here, we (i) provide updated knowledge of and a brief introduction to the suitable archives, region-specific taphonomy, state-of-the-art methodologies, and research questions of sedaDNA on the Tibetan Plateau; (ii) review published and ongoing sedaDNA studies from the Tibetan Plateau; and (iii) give some recommendations for future sedaDNA study designs. Based on the current knowledge of taphonomy, we infer that deep glacial lakes with freshwater and high clay sediment input, such as those from the southern and southeastern Tibetan Plateau, may have a high potential for sedaDNA studies. Metabarcoding (for microorganisms and plants), metagenomics (for ecosystems), and hybridization capture (for prehistoric humans) are three primary sedaDNA approaches which have been successfully applied on the Tibetan Plateau, but their power is still limited by several technical issues, such as PCR bias and incompleteness of taxonomic reference databases. Setting up high-quality and open-access regional taxonomic reference databases for the Tibetan Plateau should be given priority in the future. To conclude, the archival, taphonomic, and methodological conditions of the Tibetan Plateau are favorable for performing sedaDNA studies. More research should be encouraged to address questions about long-term ecological dynamics at ecosystem scale and to bring the paleoecology of the Tibetan Plateau into a new era. KW - Sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - Environmental DNA KW - Taphonomy KW - Ecosystem KW - Biodiversity KW - Paleoecology KW - Paleogeography Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2022.107703 SN - 0277-3791 SN - 1873-457X VL - 293 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zhang, Di A1 - Cao, Kai A1 - Yuan, Xiaoping A1 - Wang, Guocan A1 - van der Beek, Peter T1 - Late Oligocene-early Miocene origin of the First Bend of the Yangtze River explained by thrusting-induced river reorganization JF - Geomorphology N2 - The origin of the First Bend of the Yangtze River is key to understanding the birth of the modern Yangtze River. Despite considerable efforts, the timing and mechanism of formation of the First Bend remain highly debated. Inverse river-profile modeling of three tributaries (Chongjiang, Lima, and Gudu) of the Jinsha River, integrated with regional tectonic and geomorphic interpretations, allows the onset of incision at the First Bend to be constrained to 28-20 Ma. The spatio-temporal coincidence of initial river incision and activity of Yulong Thrust Belt in southeastern Tibet highlights thrusting to be fundamental in reshaping the pre-existing stream network at the First Bend. These results enable us to reinterpret a change in sedimentary environment from a braided river to a swamp-like lake in the Jianchuan Basin south of the First Bend, recording the destruction of the hypothesized southwards-flowing paleo-Jinsha and Shuiluo Rivers at ~36-35 Ma by magmatism. During the late Oligoceneearly Miocene, the paleo-Shuiluo River was diverted to the north by focused rock uplift due to thrusting along the Yulong Thrust Belt, which also led to exhumation of the Jianchuan Basin. Diversion of the paleo-Shuiluo River can be explained by capture from a downstream river in the footwall of the Yulong Thrust Belt. Subsequent rapid headward erosion, that was caused by thrusting-induced drop of local base level, is recorded by upstream younging ages for the onset of incision and led to the formation of the First Bend. The combination of new ages for the onset of incision at 28-20 Ma at the First Bend and younger ages upstream indicates northwards expansion of the Jinsha River at a rate of 62 +/- 18 mm/yr. Our results suggest that the origin of the First Bend was likely triggered by thrusting at 28-20 Ma, after which the Yangtze River formed. KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - Yangtze River KW - river incision KW - inverse modeling Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2022.108303 SN - 0169-555X SN - 1872-695X VL - 411 PB - Elsevier Science CY - Amsterdam [u.a.] ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Cook, Kristen L. A1 - Hovius, Niels A1 - Wittmann-Oelze, Hella A1 - Heimsath, Arjun M. A1 - Lee, Yuan-Hsi T1 - Causes of rapid uplift and exceptional topography of Gongga Shan on the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau JF - Earth & planetary science letters N2 - Erosion and tectonic uplift are widely thought to be coupled through feedbacks involving orographic precipitation, relief development, and crustal weakening. In many orogenic systems, it can be difficult to distinguish whether true feedbacks exist, or whether observed features are a consequence of tectonic forcing. To help elucidate these interactions, we examine Gongga Shan, a 7556 m peak on the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau where cosmogenic Be-10 basin-wide erosion rates reach >5 mm/yr, defining a region of localized rapid erosion associated with a restraining bend in the left-lateral Xianshuihe Fault. Erosion rates are consistent with topography, thermochronometry, and geodetic data, suggesting a stable pattern of uplift and exhumation over at least the past 2-3 My. Transpression along the Xianshuihe Fault, orographically enhanced precipitation, thermally weakened crust, and substantial local relief all developed independently in the Gongga region and existed there prior to the uplift of Gongga Shan. However, only where all of these conditions are present do the observed topographic and erosional extremes exist, and their relative timing indicates that these conditions are not a consequence of rapid uplift. We conclude that their collocation at 3-4 Ma set into motion a series of feedbacks between erosion and uplift that has resulted in the exceptionally high topography and rapid erosion rates observed today. KW - cosmogenic erosion rates KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - climate-tectonic feedbacks Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2017.10.043 SN - 0012-821X SN - 1385-013X VL - 481 SP - 328 EP - 337 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Huang, Wentao A1 - Jackson, Michael J. A1 - Dekkers, Mark J. A1 - Zhang, Yang A1 - Zhang, Bo A1 - Guo, Zhaojie A1 - Dupont-Nivet, Guillaume T1 - Challenges in isolating primary remanent magnetization from Tethyan carbonate rocks on the Tibetan Plateau: Insight from remagnetized Upper Triassic limestones in the eastern Qiangtang block JF - Earth & planetary science letters N2 - Carbonate rocks, widely used for paleomagnetically quantifying the drift history of the Gondwana derived continental blocks of the Tibetan Plateau and evolution of the Paleo/Meso/Neo-Tethys Oceans, are prone to pervasive remagnetization. Identifying remagnetization is difficult because it is commonly undetectable through the classic paleomagnetic field tests. Here we apply comprehensive paleomagnetic, rock magnetic, and petrographic studies to upper Triassic limestones in the eastern Qiangtang block. Our results reveal that detrital/biogenic magnetite, which may carry the primary natural remanent magnetization (NRM), is rarely preserved in these rocks. In contrast, authigenic magnetite and hematite pseudomorphs after pyrite, and monoclinic pyrrhotite record three episodes of remagnetization. The earliest remagnetization was induced by oxidation of early diagenetic pyrite to magnetite, probably related to the collision between the northeastern Tibetan Plateau and the Qiangtang block after closure of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean in the Late Triassic. The second remagnetization, residing in hematite and minor goethite, which is the further subsurface oxidation product of pyrite/magnetite, is possibly related to the development of the localized Cenozoic basins soon after India-Asia collision in the Paleocene. The youngest remagnetization is a combination of thermoviscous and chemical remanent magnetization carried by authigenic magnetite and pyrrhotite, respectively. Our analyses suggest that a high supply of organic carbon during carbonate deposition, prevailing sulfate reducing conditions during early diagenesis, and widespread orogenic fluid migration related to crustal shortening during later diagenesis, have altered the primary remanence of the shallow-water Tethyan carbonate rocks of the Tibetan Plateau. We emphasize that all paleomagnetic results from these rocks must be carefully examined for remagnetization before being used for paleogeographic reconstructions. Future paleomagnetic investigations of the carbonate rocks in orogenic belts should be accompanied by thorough rock magnetic and petrographic studies to determine the origin of the NRM. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. KW - Triassic limestone KW - remagnetization KW - Tibetan Plateau Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2019.06.035 SN - 0012-821X SN - 1385-013X VL - 523 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Korzeniowska, Karolina A1 - Korup, Oliver T1 - Object-Based Detection of Lakes Prone to Seasonal Ice Cover on the Tibetan Plateau JF - Remote sensing KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - lakes KW - LANDSAT KW - SRTM KW - MNDWI KW - OBIA KW - change detection Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/rs9040339 SN - 2072-4292 VL - 9 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Li, Kai A1 - Liu, Xingqi A1 - Wang, Yongbo A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike A1 - Ni, Jian A1 - Liao, Mengna A1 - Xiao, Xiayun T1 - Late Holocene vegetation and climate change on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau: Implications for the Indian Summer Monsoon and links to the Indian Ocean Dipole JF - Quaternary science reviews : the international multidisciplinary research and review journal N2 - The Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) is one of the most important climate systems, whose variability and driving mechanisms are of broad interest for academic and societal communities. Here, we present a well-dated high-resolution pollen analysis from a 4.82-m long sediment core taken from Basomtso, in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau (TP), which depicts the regional climate changes of the past millennium. Our results show that subalpine coniferous forest was dominant around Basomtso from ca. 867 to ca. 750 cal. yr BP, indicating a warm and semi-humid climate. The timberline in the study area significantly decreased from ca. 750 to ca.100 cal. yr BP, and a cold climate, corresponding to the Little Ice Age (LIA) prevailed. Since ca. 100 cal. yr BP, the vegetation type changed to forest-meadow with rising temperatures and moisture. Ordination analysis reveals that the migration of vegetation was dominated by regional temperatures and then by moisture. Further comparisons between the Basomtso pollen record and the regional temperature reconstructions underscore the relevance of the Basomtso record from the southeastern TP for regional and global climatologies. Our pollen based moisture reconstruction demonstrates the strong multicentennial-scale link to ISM variability, providing solid evidence for the increase of monsoonal strengths over the past four centuries. Spectral analysis indicates the potential influence of solar forcing. However, a closer relationship has been observed between multicentennial ISM variations and Indian Ocean sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTs), suggesting that the variations in monsoonal precipitation over the southeastern TP are probably driven by the Indian Ocean Dipole on the multicentennial scale. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. KW - Indian Summer Monsoon KW - Late Holocene KW - Pollen record KW - Basomtso KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - Indian ocean dipole Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2017.10.020 SN - 0277-3791 VL - 177 SP - 235 EP - 245 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Rong A1 - Zhang, Yongzhan A1 - Wünnemann, Bernd A1 - Biskaborn, Boris A1 - Yin, He A1 - Xia, Fei A1 - Zhou, Lianfu A1 - Diekmann, Bernhard T1 - Linkages between Quaternary climate change and sedimentary processes in Hala Lake, northern Tibetan Plateau, China JF - Journal of Asian earth sciences N2 - Profundal lake sediment cores are often interpreted in line with diverse and detailed sedimentological processes to infer paleoenvironmental conditions. The effects of frozen lake surfaces on terrigenous sediment deposition and how climate changes on the Tibetan Plateau are reflected in these lakes, however, is seldom discussed. A lake sediment core from Hala Lake (590 km(2)), northeastern Tibetan Plateau spanning the time interval from the Last Glacial Maximum to the present was investigated using high-resolution grain-size composition of lacustrine deposits. Seismic analysis along a north-south profile across the lake was used to infer the sedimentary setting within the lake basin. Periods of freezing and melting processes on the lake surface were identified by MODIS (MOD10A1) satellite data. End-member modeling of the grain size distribution allowed the discrimination between lacustrine, eolian and fluvial sediments. The dominant clay sedimentation (slack water type) during the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) reflects ice interceptions in long cold periods, in contrast to abundant eolian input during abrupt cold events. Therefore, fluvial and slack water sedimentation processes can indicate changes in the local paleoclimate during periods of the lake being frozen, when eolian input was minor. Inferred warm (i.e., similar to 22.7 and 19.5 cal. ka BP) and cold (i.e., similar to 11-9 and 3-1.5 cal. ka BP) spells have significant environmental impacts, not only in the regional realm, but they are also coherent with global-scale climate events. The eolian input generally follows the trend of the mid-latitude westerly wind dynamics in winter, contributing medium-sized sand to the lake center, deposited within the ice cover during icing and melting phases. Enhanced input was dominant during the Younger Dryas, Heinrich Event 1 and at around 8.2 ka, equivalent to the well-known events of the North Atlantic realm. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. KW - Tibetan Plateau KW - Lake deposits KW - End-member modeling KW - Grain size KW - Pleistocene and Holocene climate Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2015.04.008 SN - 1367-9120 SN - 1878-5786 VL - 107 SP - 140 EP - 150 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Yongbo A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike A1 - Liu, Xingqi A1 - Korup, Oliver A1 - Diekmann, Bernhard T1 - A high-resolution sedimentary archive from landslide-dammed Lake Mengda, north-eastern Tibetan Plateau JF - Journal of paleolimnolog N2 - Lacustrine sediments have been widely used to investigate past climatic and environmental changes on millennial to seasonal time scales. Sedimentary archives of lakes in mountainous regions may also record non-climatic events such as earthquakes. We argue herein that a set of 64 annual laminae couplets reconciles a stratigraphically inconsistent accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) C-14 chronology in a similar to 4-m-long sediment core from Lake Mengda, in the north-eastern Tibetan Plateau. The laminations suggest the lake was formed by a large landslide, triggered by the 1927 Gulang earthquake (M = 8.0). The lake sediment sequence can be separated into three units based on lithologic, sedimentary, and isotopic characteristics. Starting from the bottom of the sequence, these are: (1) unweathered, coarse, sandy valley-floor deposits or landslide debris that pre-date the lake, (2) landslide-induced, fine-grained soil or reworked landslide debris with a high organic content, and (3) lacustrine sediments with low organic content and laminations. These annual laminations provide a high-resolution record of anthropogenic and environmental changes during the twentieth century, recording enhanced sediment input associated with two phases of construction activities. The high mean sedimentation rates of up to 4.8 mm year(-1) underscore the potential for reconstructing such distinct sediment pulses in remote, forested, and seemingly undisturbed mountain catchments. KW - Earthquake KW - Landslide KW - Natural dam KW - Tibetan Plateau Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-012-9666-6 SN - 0921-2728 SN - 1573-0417 VL - 51 IS - 2 SP - 303 EP - 312 PB - Springer CY - Dordrecht ER -