TY - JOUR A1 - Engels, Stefan A1 - Medeiros, Andrew S. A1 - Axford, Yarrow A1 - Brooks, Steve A1 - Heiri, Oliver A1 - Luoto, Tomi P. A1 - Nazarova, Larisa B. A1 - Porinchu, David F. A1 - Quinlan, Roberto A1 - Self, Angela E. T1 - Temperature change as a driver of spatial patterns and long-term trends in chironomid (Insecta: Diptera) diversity JF - Global change biology N2 - Anthropogenic activities have led to a global decline in biodiversity, and monitoring studies indicate that both insect communities and wetland ecosystems are particularly affected. However, there is a need for long-term data (over centennial or millennial timescales) to better understand natural community dynamics and the processes that govern the observed trends. Chironomids (Insecta: Diptera: Chironomidae) are often the most abundant insects in lake ecosystems, sensitive to environmental change, and, because their larval exoskeleton head capsules preserve well in lake sediments, they provide a unique record of insect community dynamics through time. Here, we provide the results of a metadata analysis of chironomid diversity across a range of spatial and temporal scales. First, we analyse spatial trends in chironomid diversity using Northern Hemispheric data sets overall consisting of 837 lakes. Our results indicate that in most of our data sets, summer temperature (T-jul) is strongly associated with spatial trends in modern-day chironomid diversity. We observe a strong increase in chironomid alpha diversity with increasing T-jul in regions with present-day T-jul between 2.5 and 14 degrees C. In some areas with T-jul > 14 degrees C, chironomid diversity stabilizes or declines. Second, we demonstrate that the direction and amplitude of change in alpha diversity in a compilation of subfossil chironomid records spanning the last glacial-interglacial transition (similar to 15,000-11,000 years ago) are similar to those observed in our modern data. A compilation of Holocene records shows that during phases when the amplitude of temperature change was small, site-specific factors had a greater influence on the chironomid fauna obscuring the chironomid diversity-temperature relationship. Our results imply expected overall chironomid diversity increases in colder regions such as the Arctic under sustained global warming, but with complex and not necessarily predictable responses for individual sites. KW - Arctic KW - biodiversity KW - climate warming KW - freshwater ecosystems KW - insects KW - palaeoecology KW - Quaternary Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.14862 SN - 1354-1013 SN - 1365-2486 VL - 26 IS - 3 SP - 1155 EP - 1169 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Plikk, Anna A1 - Engels, Stefan A1 - Luoto, Tomi P. A1 - Nazarova, Larisa B. A1 - Salonen, J. Sakari A1 - Helmens, Karin F. T1 - Chironomid-based temperature reconstruction for the Eemian Interglacial (MIS 5e) at Sokli, northeast Finland JF - Journal of paleolimnology N2 - The Last Interglacial (Eemian, MIS 5e) can be considered a test-bed for climate dynamics under a warmer-than-present climate. In this study we present a chironomid record from the high latitude Sokli site (N Finland), where a long continuous sediment sequence from the last interglacial has been preserved from glacial erosion. The chironomid-analysis shows a diverse fauna, with dominance of warm-water indicators and shifts in assemblage composition that can be attributed to temperature, lake depth, productivity and habitat availability. Quantitative mean July paleotemperature estimates based on the chironomid data indicate overall mean July air temperatures up to 1 degrees C warmer than present. Two cooling events can be discerned, the Tunturi event, dated to about 127.5kaBP, in the lower part of the sequence, and the Varrio event, dated to about 119kaBP, associated with the beginning of a cooling trend in the upper part of the record. Warm conditions already at the onset of the interglacial contrast with a recent chironomid-based last interglacial temperature reconstruction from Denmark, which suggests a late onset of Eemian warming. The relatively small increase in inferred temperatures compared to present day temperatures at Sokli differs from other high latitude Eemian sites, and likely reflects the influence of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation in maintaining already elevated temperatures in Fennoscandia during interglacials. KW - Paleoclimate KW - Abrupt events KW - Last Interglacial KW - AMOC KW - Transfer functions KW - Validation Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-018-00064-y SN - 0921-2728 SN - 1573-0417 VL - 61 IS - 3 SP - 355 EP - 371 PB - Springer Science CY - Dordrecht ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Engels, Stefan A1 - Brauer, Achim A1 - Buddelmeijer, Nico A1 - Martin-Puertas, Celia A1 - Rach, Oliver A1 - Sachse, Dirk A1 - Van Geel, Bas T1 - Subdecadal-scale vegetation responses to a previously unknown late-Allerod climate fluctuation and Younger Dryas cooling at Lake Meerfelder Maar (Germany) JF - Journal of quaternary science N2 - Lake Meerfelder Maar (MFM) is the northernmost Western European sediment record with annual laminations across the Younger Dryas (YD), and the onset of the YD in the record of MFM has previously been defined as an increase in non-arboreal pollen abundance at ca. 12 680 varve a BP. Here we present a palynological record at unprecedented subdecadal resolution for MFM, covering the Allerod-YD transition. Our results show a fluctuation in pollen accumulation rates (PARs) before the onset of the YD, with lower rates between ca. 12 725 and 12 685 varve a BP. The fluctuation in PARs occurs simultaneous with a previously undescribed short fluctuation in sediment composition and varve thickness, as well as with changes in biogeochemical proxies. The combined evidence indicates signs of climatic instability ca. 45 years before the onset of the YD. The PAR records of Betula and Pinus furthermore show earlier and more abrupt changes at the onset of the YD than the percentage-records do. Finally, heliophilous herbaceous taxa show a delayed increase following the onset of the YD of ca. 145 years. This paper illustrates the potential to identify previously unrecognized climate variability and vegetation change when using subdecadal-resolution analyses. Copyright (C) 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. KW - climate instability KW - Lateglacial KW - Meerfelder Maar KW - pollen accumulation rates KW - vegetation change Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.2900 SN - 0267-8179 SN - 1099-1417 VL - 31 SP - 741 EP - 752 PB - Wiley-Blackwell CY - Hoboken ER -