Cargando…

First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia

The use of volcanic ash layers for dating and correlation (tephrochronology) is widely applied in the study of past environmental changes. We describe the first cryptotephra (non-visible volcanic ash horizon) to be identified in the Amazon basin, which is tentatively attributed to a source in the Ec...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Watson, Elizabeth J., Swindles, Graeme T., Savov, Ivan P., Bacon, Karen L.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Nature Publishing Group 2015
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4616060/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26493541
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep15579
_version_ 1782396557853720576
author Watson, Elizabeth J.
Swindles, Graeme T.
Savov, Ivan P.
Bacon, Karen L.
author_facet Watson, Elizabeth J.
Swindles, Graeme T.
Savov, Ivan P.
Bacon, Karen L.
author_sort Watson, Elizabeth J.
collection PubMed
description The use of volcanic ash layers for dating and correlation (tephrochronology) is widely applied in the study of past environmental changes. We describe the first cryptotephra (non-visible volcanic ash horizon) to be identified in the Amazon basin, which is tentatively attributed to a source in the Ecuadorian Eastern Cordillera (0–1°S, 78-79°W), some 500-600 km away from our field site in the Peruvian Amazon. Our discovery 1) indicates that the Amazon basin has been subject to volcanic ash fallout during the recent past; 2) highlights the opportunities for using cryptotephras to date palaeoenvironmental records in the Amazon basin and 3) indicates that cryptotephra layers are preserved in a dynamic Amazonian peatland, suggesting that similar layers are likely to be present in other peat sequences that are important for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. The discovery of cryptotephra in an Amazonian peatland provides a baseline for further investigation of Amazonian tephrochronology and the potential impacts of volcanism on vegetation.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-4616060
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2015
publisher Nature Publishing Group
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-46160602015-10-29 First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia Watson, Elizabeth J. Swindles, Graeme T. Savov, Ivan P. Bacon, Karen L. Sci Rep Article The use of volcanic ash layers for dating and correlation (tephrochronology) is widely applied in the study of past environmental changes. We describe the first cryptotephra (non-visible volcanic ash horizon) to be identified in the Amazon basin, which is tentatively attributed to a source in the Ecuadorian Eastern Cordillera (0–1°S, 78-79°W), some 500-600 km away from our field site in the Peruvian Amazon. Our discovery 1) indicates that the Amazon basin has been subject to volcanic ash fallout during the recent past; 2) highlights the opportunities for using cryptotephras to date palaeoenvironmental records in the Amazon basin and 3) indicates that cryptotephra layers are preserved in a dynamic Amazonian peatland, suggesting that similar layers are likely to be present in other peat sequences that are important for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. The discovery of cryptotephra in an Amazonian peatland provides a baseline for further investigation of Amazonian tephrochronology and the potential impacts of volcanism on vegetation. Nature Publishing Group 2015-10-23 /pmc/articles/PMC4616060/ /pubmed/26493541 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep15579 Text en Copyright © 2015, Macmillan Publishers Limited http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
spellingShingle Article
Watson, Elizabeth J.
Swindles, Graeme T.
Savov, Ivan P.
Bacon, Karen L.
First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia
title First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia
title_full First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia
title_fullStr First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia
title_full_unstemmed First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia
title_short First discovery of Holocene cryptotephra in Amazonia
title_sort first discovery of holocene cryptotephra in amazonia
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4616060/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26493541
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep15579
work_keys_str_mv AT watsonelizabethj firstdiscoveryofholocenecryptotephrainamazonia
AT swindlesgraemet firstdiscoveryofholocenecryptotephrainamazonia
AT savovivanp firstdiscoveryofholocenecryptotephrainamazonia
AT baconkarenl firstdiscoveryofholocenecryptotephrainamazonia