A Multi-cycle Climatic Fluctuation Record of the Last Interglacial Period:Typical Stratigraphic Section in the Salawusu River Valley on the Ordos Plateau,China

The Last Interglacial Period strata in the Milanggouwan section in the Salawusu River valley on the Ordos Plateau, China, have 8.5 sedimentary cycles composed alternately of eolian dune sands, fluvio-lacustrine facies and paleosols. Based on comprehensive analyses on the distribution of magnetic susceptibility and CaCO3 and paleo-ecology indicated by fossils in the region, it is considered that the sedimentation cycles resulted from dry-cold and warm-humid climate fluctuations. Magnetic susceptibility values and CaCO3 contents in stratigraphic sectors I, III, V and II, IV basically respectively present peaks and low vales, and the former three can in time correlate with MIS5a, MIS5c and MIS5e successively and the latter two with MIS5b and MIS5d. In addition, some horizons of eolian dune sands and the low vales of their magnetic susceptibility and CaCO3 are also correlated with 6 periods of cooling events indicated by the higher content of foraminifer Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (S.) documented in the V29—191 drill in the North Atlantic and the cold events recorded by δ 18O in the ice cores in GRIP, especially with 9 periods of dust events in Chinese Loess Plateau.

Modeling the Past and Current Distribution and Habitat Suitability for Ablepharus grayanus and A. pannonicus(Sauria: Scincidae)

Study of the climate variability in the past and present, and correlating those with changes in the distribution range of species has attracted considerable research interest. The genus Ablepharus consists of 10 recognized species, of which A. bivittatus, A. grayanus and A. pannonicus are documented from Iran. In the present study, we modeled with MaxEnt the potential distribution areas and determined the suitable habitats in past （mid-Holocene [MH], and the Last Interglacial [LIG]） and their current distribution for two species of snake-eyed skinks （A. grayanus and A. pannonicus） separately. Models of the species indicated good fit by the average high area under the curve （AUC） values （A. grayanus = 0.929 4- 0.087 and A. pannonicus = 0.979 4- 0.007）. Precipitation of the driest quarter of the year, mean temperature of the coldest quarter of the year, and precipitation of the driest month variables made important contributions to A. grayanus. Two important climate variables contributed importantly to A. pannonicus; temperature seasonality, and mean temperature of the wettest quarter of the year, and one topographic variable, slope. We conclude that these variables form a natural barrier for species dispersal. The MH and the LGM models indicated a larger suitable area than the current distribution.

Sea Level Records on Ouvéa Island in New Caledonia

Ouvéa Island in New Caledonia emerges as a new sea level standard. It has excellent morphological records of former sea level positions at interglacial high-stands as well as records of Holocene changes in sea level from a maximum at about +1.5 m via a significant +70 cm level of sub-recent, probably 17th century, age to a stable to falling sea level in present time.