摘要
Because of the unique geographical location and important ecological effect of the Qinling Mountains, reconstruction of its vegetation and climate needs comprehensive research. We need to consider a multiple-proxy approach to gain more information on recovering the paleovegetation and climate in the Qinling Mountains. Black carbon （BC） is produced by the incomplete combustion of vegetation and fossil fuels, and is a good proxy, recording paleoenvironmental information. However, in the Qinling Mountains, what are the characteristics of the BC, and whether BC stable carbon isotope （δ^13CBc） can be used as a new proxy to study ancient vegetation, still need further study. In order to establish a sound basis for studying paleoenvironmental by BC proxy in the Qinling Mountains, we carried out systematic and detailed study on modern process of BC on the northern slope of the mountains. We analyzed stable carbon isotopes and carbon concentration of organic carbon （% SOC, δ^13Csoc） and BC （%BC, δ^13CBc）, and identified the pollen assemblages from systematically sampled surface soil. The results show that the calculated ratio of C4 plants in the vegetation （%C4） based on the δ13Csoc data reflects a similar distribution of C4 plants in the surface vegetation and the pollen assemblage. The δ^13Cac values have a strong positive correlation with δ13Csoc values, and their difference （△13CSOC-BC） is in the low range. These data indicate that δ^13CBC and δ^13CSOC have very similar characteristics. Surface soil δ13BC values can indicate surface vegetation as effectively as δ^13Csoc values, and the δ^13CBC proxy can be used effectively in paleovegetational research in the northern slope of Qinling Mountains.
Because of the unique geographical location and important ecological effect of the Qinling Mountains, reconstruction of its vegetation and climate needs comprehensive research. We need to consider a multiple-proxy approach to gain more information on recovering the paleovegetation and climate in the Qinling Mountains. Black carbon （BC） is produced by the incomplete combustion of vegetation and fossil fuels, and is a good proxy, recording paleoenvironmental information. However, in the Qinling Mountains, what are the characteristics of the BC, and whether BC stable carbon isotope （δ^13CBc） can be used as a new proxy to study ancient vegetation, still need further study. In order to establish a sound basis for studying paleoenvironmental by BC proxy in the Qinling Mountains, we carried out systematic and detailed study on modern process of BC on the northern slope of the mountains. We analyzed stable carbon isotopes and carbon concentration of organic carbon （% SOC, δ^13Csoc） and BC （%BC, δ^13CBc）, and identified the pollen assemblages from systematically sampled surface soil. The results show that the calculated ratio of C4 plants in the vegetation （%C4） based on the δ13Csoc data reflects a similar distribution of C4 plants in the surface vegetation and the pollen assemblage. The δ^13Cac values have a strong positive correlation with δ13Csoc values, and their difference （△13CSOC-BC） is in the low range. These data indicate that δ^13CBC and δ^13CSOC have very similar characteristics. Surface soil δ13BC values can indicate surface vegetation as effectively as δ^13Csoc values, and the δ^13CBC proxy can be used effectively in paleovegetational research in the northern slope of Qinling Mountains.
基金
supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(41102106)
