Identifying abrupt climate change on Quaternary terrestrial ecosystems from the eastern Mediterranean region: High-resolution signals in the pollen record of Tenaghi Philippon, NW Greece

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The proposed project aims to unravel the character of abrupt (decadal-to millenial-scale) natural climate changes in the eastern Mediterranean region during the Late Quaternary as recorded in terrestrial ecosystems. This will be achieved by a high-resolution palynological and stable isotope study of a record from Tenaghi Philippon, NE Greece, and subsequent quantitative paleoclimate reconstructions. Time intervals to be studied represent short-term climate variability under different boundary conditions. These are (1) the Early Holocene climate optimum coinciding with Sapropel S1 formation the the eastern Mediterranean (10-6 ky; "modern" conditions); (2) the Last Glacial Maximum (24-16 ky; fully glacial conditions), (3) the mid-Weichselian (60-25 ky; "semiglacial" conditions), (4) the Eemian interglacial maximum coinciding with Sapropel S5 formation in the eastern Mediterranean (130-115 ky; extremely warm period), and (5) the warm period of the Late Saalian coinciding with Sapropel S6 formation in the eastern Mediterranean (175-160 ky; strong monsoonal activity under glacial conditions). The outcome will be the first comprehensive, quantified record of short-term climatic and environmental variability in Late Quaternary terrestrial ecosystems of the eastern Mediterranean region. The first 2 years of the project ... comprise a first coring at Tenaghi Philippon and high-resolution ... studies of the Early Holocene and Last Glacial Maximum intervals. They are also for further coordinating a deeper coring which will yield material from the intervals (3) to (5) to be studied during the next application period...