青藏高原的抬升历史及其相应由气候和环境改变产生的生态学效应是全球科学界关注的热点，而中新世时期青藏高原各部不同地块抬升是否已经完成尚无定论。近年来，多学科手段的研究正在使得藏南和藏中南地区的抬升和气候变化历史逐渐清晰。然而，对高原北部地区的研究相对缺乏，先前在该地区进行的古高程和古环境研究大都来自地球科学。前人对青藏高原北部在中新世是否达到今天高度尚存分歧。本项目拟利用生物学的研究思路和方法，以青海可可西里盆地沱沱河地区为主要研究区域，系统采集植物化石和孢粉样品，研究该地区中新世植物群组成、类群演化、植被演替及定量重建青藏高原北部中新世古高程与古气候，并与来自地球科学和环境科学的研究结果进行综合对比，进而探讨该时期高原北部的隆升与环境变化、植被演替之间的内在联系，为完整理解整个青藏高原的抬升历史及其生态和环境效应提供重要的科学证据。

The upheaval of the Tibetan Plateau and its ecological impacts caused by the climate and environmental changes is a hot spot in the scientific community. However, whether the various blocks of the Plateau had finished their uplift process in Miocene or not are still unclear. Nowadays the uplift history of the southern and central Tibetan Plateau is being revealed by multidiscipline research. However, interpreting the history of northern Tibetan Plateau’s uplift generates controversy due to the paucity of consensus and a lack of biology research. The project attempts to study plant taxa evolution, flora composition, and vegetation succession in Hoh Xil Basin, and quantitatively reconstruct the palaeoelevation and palaeoclimate of northern Tibetan Plateau in Miocene. The progress of this project might give us the opportunity to explore the connections between uplift, climate change and vegetation succession in the northern part, and thus improve our understanding of the whole Tibetan Plateau uplift along with its ecological and environmental impacts.