Biomarker and Pollen Evidence for Late Pleistocene Pluvials in the Mojave Desert

Mark D. Peaple; Tripti Bhattacharya; Tim K. Lowenstein; David McGee; Kristian J. Olson; Justin S. Stroup; Jessica E. Tierney; Sarah J. Feakins

doi:10.1029/2022PA004471

Biomarker and Pollen Evidence for Late Pleistocene Pluvials in the Mojave Desert

Mark D. Peaple, Tripti Bhattacharya, Tim K. Lowenstein, David McGee, Kristian J. Olson, Justin S. Stroup, Jessica E. Tierney, Sarah J. Feakins

Continental Scientific Drilling Facility

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

The climate of the southwestern North America has experienced profound changes between wet and dry phases over the past 200 Kyr. To better constrain the timing, magnitude, and paleoenvironmental impacts of these changes in hydroclimate, we conducted a multiproxy biomarker study from samples collected from a new 77 m sediment core (SLAPP-SRLS17) drilled in Searles Lake, California. Here, we use biomarkers and pollen to reconstruct vegetation, lake conditions, and climate. We find that δD values of long chain n-alkanes are dominated by glacial to interglacial changes that match nearby Devils Hole calcite δ¹⁸O variability, suggesting both archives predominantly reflect precipitation isotopes. However, precipitation isotopes do not simply covary with evidence for wet-dry changes in vegetation and lake conditions, indicating a partial disconnect between large scale atmospheric circulation tracked by precipitation isotopes and landscape moisture availability. Increased crenarchaeol production and decreased evidence for methane cycling reveal a 10 Kyr interval of a fresh, productive, and well-mixed lake during Termination II, corroborating evidence for a paleolake highstand from shorelines and spillover deposits in downstream Panamint Basin and Death Valley during the end of the penultimate (Tahoe) glacial (140–130 ka). At the same time brGDGTs yield the lowest temperature estimates (mean months above freezing = 9°C ± 3°C) of the 200 Kyr record. These limnological conditions are not replicated elsewhere in the 200 Kyr record, suggesting that the Heinrich stadial 11 highstand was wetter than the last glacial maximum and Heinrich 1 (18–15 ka).

Original language	English (US)
Article number	e2022PA004471
Journal	Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology
Volume	37
Issue number	10
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1029/2022PA004471
State	Published - Oct 2022

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The plant wax study and GRA (Peaple) were supported by U.S. National Science Foundation Grant NSF‐EAR‐1903665 to S.F., GDGT analyses were supported by the Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering to J.T., and the pollen analyses were supported by a sub‐Award to T.B. from NSF‐EAR‐1903659 to T.L. Drilling was supported by the Comer Science and Education Foundation grant to D.M. and T.L. We thank Searles Valley Minerals for access and Jade Brush in particular. The sample material used in this project was provided by the Continental Scientific Drilling Facility, University of Minnesota. We thank the SLAPP team involved in coring and collaborative discussions of surroundings and paleoenvironment, as well as Marith Reheis for discussion of Lake Russell overflow, Jay Quade for plant identification in the Mojave Desert, Alan Juarez for field assistance in the San Bernardino Mountains, and Patrick Murphy for assistance measuring GDGTs. Thanks to the Associate Editor Carlos Jaramillo and two anonymous reviewers.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors.

Keywords

carbon isotopes
GDGTs
hydrogen isotopes
plant wax
pollen

Continental Scientific Drilling Facility tags

SLAPP

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10.1029/2022PA004471

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title = "Biomarker and Pollen Evidence for Late Pleistocene Pluvials in the Mojave Desert",

abstract = "The climate of the southwestern North America has experienced profound changes between wet and dry phases over the past 200 Kyr. To better constrain the timing, magnitude, and paleoenvironmental impacts of these changes in hydroclimate, we conducted a multiproxy biomarker study from samples collected from a new 77 m sediment core (SLAPP-SRLS17) drilled in Searles Lake, California. Here, we use biomarkers and pollen to reconstruct vegetation, lake conditions, and climate. We find that δD values of long chain n-alkanes are dominated by glacial to interglacial changes that match nearby Devils Hole calcite δ18O variability, suggesting both archives predominantly reflect precipitation isotopes. However, precipitation isotopes do not simply covary with evidence for wet-dry changes in vegetation and lake conditions, indicating a partial disconnect between large scale atmospheric circulation tracked by precipitation isotopes and landscape moisture availability. Increased crenarchaeol production and decreased evidence for methane cycling reveal a 10 Kyr interval of a fresh, productive, and well-mixed lake during Termination II, corroborating evidence for a paleolake highstand from shorelines and spillover deposits in downstream Panamint Basin and Death Valley during the end of the penultimate (Tahoe) glacial (140–130 ka). At the same time brGDGTs yield the lowest temperature estimates (mean months above freezing = 9°C ± 3°C) of the 200 Kyr record. These limnological conditions are not replicated elsewhere in the 200 Kyr record, suggesting that the Heinrich stadial 11 highstand was wetter than the last glacial maximum and Heinrich 1 (18–15 ka).",

keywords = "carbon isotopes, GDGTs, hydrogen isotopes, plant wax, pollen",

author = "Peaple, {Mark D.} and Tripti Bhattacharya and Lowenstein, {Tim K.} and David McGee and Olson, {Kristian J.} and Stroup, {Justin S.} and Tierney, {Jessica E.} and Feakins, {Sarah J.}",

note = "Funding Information: The plant wax study and GRA (Peaple) were supported by U.S. National Science Foundation Grant NSF‐EAR‐1903665 to S.F., GDGT analyses were supported by the Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering to J.T., and the pollen analyses were supported by a sub‐Award to T.B. from NSF‐EAR‐1903659 to T.L. Drilling was supported by the Comer Science and Education Foundation grant to D.M. and T.L. We thank Searles Valley Minerals for access and Jade Brush in particular. The sample material used in this project was provided by the Continental Scientific Drilling Facility, University of Minnesota. We thank the SLAPP team involved in coring and collaborative discussions of surroundings and paleoenvironment, as well as Marith Reheis for discussion of Lake Russell overflow, Jay Quade for plant identification in the Mojave Desert, Alan Juarez for field assistance in the San Bernardino Mountains, and Patrick Murphy for assistance measuring GDGTs. Thanks to the Associate Editor Carlos Jaramillo and two anonymous reviewers. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022 The Authors.",

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volume = "37",

journal = "Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology",

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AU - Peaple, Mark D.

AU - Bhattacharya, Tripti

AU - Lowenstein, Tim K.

AU - McGee, David

AU - Olson, Kristian J.

AU - Stroup, Justin S.

AU - Tierney, Jessica E.

AU - Feakins, Sarah J.

N1 - Funding Information: The plant wax study and GRA (Peaple) were supported by U.S. National Science Foundation Grant NSF‐EAR‐1903665 to S.F., GDGT analyses were supported by the Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering to J.T., and the pollen analyses were supported by a sub‐Award to T.B. from NSF‐EAR‐1903659 to T.L. Drilling was supported by the Comer Science and Education Foundation grant to D.M. and T.L. We thank Searles Valley Minerals for access and Jade Brush in particular. The sample material used in this project was provided by the Continental Scientific Drilling Facility, University of Minnesota. We thank the SLAPP team involved in coring and collaborative discussions of surroundings and paleoenvironment, as well as Marith Reheis for discussion of Lake Russell overflow, Jay Quade for plant identification in the Mojave Desert, Alan Juarez for field assistance in the San Bernardino Mountains, and Patrick Murphy for assistance measuring GDGTs. Thanks to the Associate Editor Carlos Jaramillo and two anonymous reviewers. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Authors.

PY - 2022/10

Y1 - 2022/10

N2 - The climate of the southwestern North America has experienced profound changes between wet and dry phases over the past 200 Kyr. To better constrain the timing, magnitude, and paleoenvironmental impacts of these changes in hydroclimate, we conducted a multiproxy biomarker study from samples collected from a new 77 m sediment core (SLAPP-SRLS17) drilled in Searles Lake, California. Here, we use biomarkers and pollen to reconstruct vegetation, lake conditions, and climate. We find that δD values of long chain n-alkanes are dominated by glacial to interglacial changes that match nearby Devils Hole calcite δ18O variability, suggesting both archives predominantly reflect precipitation isotopes. However, precipitation isotopes do not simply covary with evidence for wet-dry changes in vegetation and lake conditions, indicating a partial disconnect between large scale atmospheric circulation tracked by precipitation isotopes and landscape moisture availability. Increased crenarchaeol production and decreased evidence for methane cycling reveal a 10 Kyr interval of a fresh, productive, and well-mixed lake during Termination II, corroborating evidence for a paleolake highstand from shorelines and spillover deposits in downstream Panamint Basin and Death Valley during the end of the penultimate (Tahoe) glacial (140–130 ka). At the same time brGDGTs yield the lowest temperature estimates (mean months above freezing = 9°C ± 3°C) of the 200 Kyr record. These limnological conditions are not replicated elsewhere in the 200 Kyr record, suggesting that the Heinrich stadial 11 highstand was wetter than the last glacial maximum and Heinrich 1 (18–15 ka).

AB - The climate of the southwestern North America has experienced profound changes between wet and dry phases over the past 200 Kyr. To better constrain the timing, magnitude, and paleoenvironmental impacts of these changes in hydroclimate, we conducted a multiproxy biomarker study from samples collected from a new 77 m sediment core (SLAPP-SRLS17) drilled in Searles Lake, California. Here, we use biomarkers and pollen to reconstruct vegetation, lake conditions, and climate. We find that δD values of long chain n-alkanes are dominated by glacial to interglacial changes that match nearby Devils Hole calcite δ18O variability, suggesting both archives predominantly reflect precipitation isotopes. However, precipitation isotopes do not simply covary with evidence for wet-dry changes in vegetation and lake conditions, indicating a partial disconnect between large scale atmospheric circulation tracked by precipitation isotopes and landscape moisture availability. Increased crenarchaeol production and decreased evidence for methane cycling reveal a 10 Kyr interval of a fresh, productive, and well-mixed lake during Termination II, corroborating evidence for a paleolake highstand from shorelines and spillover deposits in downstream Panamint Basin and Death Valley during the end of the penultimate (Tahoe) glacial (140–130 ka). At the same time brGDGTs yield the lowest temperature estimates (mean months above freezing = 9°C ± 3°C) of the 200 Kyr record. These limnological conditions are not replicated elsewhere in the 200 Kyr record, suggesting that the Heinrich stadial 11 highstand was wetter than the last glacial maximum and Heinrich 1 (18–15 ka).

KW - carbon isotopes

KW - GDGTs

KW - hydrogen isotopes

KW - plant wax

KW - pollen

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DO - 10.1029/2022PA004471

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85141683467

SN - 2572-4517

VL - 37

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JF - Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology

IS - 10

M1 - e2022PA004471

ER -

Biomarker and Pollen Evidence for Late Pleistocene Pluvials in the Mojave Desert

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

Continental Scientific Drilling Facility tags

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