climate change & human impact through fossil insects
DESCRIPTION
Climate Change & Human Impact Through Fossil Insects. Phil Buckland. ”Say, George... sea defence wall taller today?”. ”Say, Thag... wall of ice closer today?”. Contents. PhD Aims Why Insects (mainly beetles) Bugs - Coleopteran Ecology Package Insects & Climate - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Climate Change & Human ImpactThrough Fossil Insects
”Say, Thag... wall of ice closer today?”
Phil Buckland
”Say, George... sea defence wall taller today?”
Contents
PhD Aims
Why Insects (mainly beetles)
Bugs - Coleopteran Ecology Package
Insects & Climate
Insects & Human Impact/Environmental Change
Sites
AimsCompare Early Holocene climate and environmental signals from fossil insects for:- remote/undisturbed sites.- sites with known human activity.
Create an Early Holocene climate change curve for Northern Sweden from fossil insects.
Enhance the capabilities of the Bugs Coleopteran Ecology Package - with respect to climate, environmental & archaeological interpretations.
NOTE: These are intrinsically related.
Why insects?Diversity - ~99% of all species of animal, found in all terrestrial and freshwater-brackish environments.
Habitat specific, depend on a range of environmental factors e.g. temperature, humidity, food source...
75% are beetles (skalbaggar)
Species not dependent on higher vegetation/other species
Environmental dependency can be determined from collection of modern specimens
Fig.
Species constancy – migrate rather than evolve (Exceptions in isolated islands/mountains)
Respond rapidly – annual reproductive cyclesFig.
Species transported with hostFig.
Preserve well in waterlogged (or dry) sedimentsFig.
Often identifiable to species on fossil partsFig.
BUGSDatabase of Coleopteran Ecology & Distribution
5400+ taxa
2200+ references
- approx. 23000+ fossil record entries
- 19300+ habitat entries- 16500+ distribution entries
420+ sites with abundance/collection data (mainly archaeological & geological)
includes:
BUGS - Fossil RecordDiacheila arctica
Sortable on any field.All fields hotlinked…
BUGS - Fossil RecordDiacheila arctica Late Glacial UK distribution
Modern
BUGS - Query features
Complex questions, such as:
list all species found at English Late Glacial sites
list all sites where selected species are found
list species with similar ecology that are equally threatened
summarise ecology codes for a site (basic diversity stat’s)
statistically compare sites and species lists
show sites with similar faunas
Climate ChangeEarly Holocene Climate Change
Last Ice AgeBølling/AllerødInterstadial
Younger Dryas stadial8200 Cold Event...
GISP2 Dataset
Rapid Climate Change EventsA widespread, ~200 year abrupt cold event 8200 years ago
(Oxy
gen
Isot
opes
)
Insect responses to change (2)Example: Diachila arctica
Present distributionYounger Dryas?
Insects and Climate ChangeOverlays modern temperature data on fossil assemblages
1. Collect modern temperature dependency data for species...
Thermal envelope for species
TMAX = mean temperature of warmest month
TRANGE = difference between TMAX and mean of coldest month
- T R an g e +
- T
Max
+
S p e c ies 1
Beetle finds
+
Weather stationdata
Mutual Climatic Range (MCR)
Mutual Climatic Range (MCR)Overlays modern temperature data on fossil assemblages
2. Calculate temperature overlaps for species in each sample...
- T R an g e +
- T
Max
+
S p e c ies 1
- T R an g e +
- T
Max
+
S p e c ies 1
S p e c ies 2
- T R an g e +
- T
Max
+
S p e c ies 1
S p e c ies 2
...S p ec ies n
S p e c ies 3
3. Construct time series (if sequential sampling) and C14 calibrate...
C a len d er y ea rs b efore p resen t
0 .3
0 .2
0 .1
0 .0
05
1 01 52 02 53 0
-3 0-2 5-2 0-1 5-1 0
-505
1 0
1 5 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
1 6 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
R a d io ca rb on yea rs B P
T.M
in Co
T.M
ax Co
Acc
um
ulat
ion
(m
ice
per
yr)
G la n l ly n n a uS t .B e e s
2 5 -y e a r s m o o th e d d a ta
P re b o re a lYo u n g e rD ry a s
B ø ll in g e r/A lle rø dO ld e s t D ry a s
D a ta fro m A lle y (1 9 9 3 ) , N a tu re 3 6 2 a n d W a lk e r (1 9 9 3 ) , Q u a te rn a ry N e w s le tte r 6 9
e t a l. e t a l.
MCRdataUK
Mutual Climatic Range (MCR)
3. Construct time series (if sequential sampling) and C14 calibrate...
4. Compare with other datasets
C a len d er y ea rs b efore p resen t
0 .3
0 .2
0 .1
0 .0
05
1 01 52 02 53 0
-3 0-2 5-2 0-1 5-1 0
-505
1 0
1 5 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
1 6 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
R a d io ca rb on yea rs B P
T.M
in Co
T.M
ax Co
Acc
um
ulat
ion
(m
ice
per
yr)
G la n l ly n n a uS t .B e e s
2 5 -y e a r s m o o th e d d a ta
P re b o re a lYo u n g e rD ry a s
B ø ll in g e r/A lle rø dO ld e s t D ry a s
D a ta fro m A lle y (1 9 9 3 ) , N a tu re 3 6 2 a n d W a lk e r (1 9 9 3 ) , Q u a te rn a ry N e w s le tte r 6 9
e t a l. e t a l.
MCRdataUK
GISP2
Mutual Climatic Range (MCR)
Integrating MCR & BUGS
1. Convert existing MCR data to a more useable form.
3. Program new system for MCR envelope calculation fromhistorical weather station data and historical beetle finds.
2. Create user interface for MCR analyses.
a) Nearest geographical neighbour b) Lapse rate interpolation
Extracting the signals...Compare background signals (climate?) with disturbed signals
Total signaleg. PCA axis 1
W interTem p.
ComponentsResolved through semiquantitative or statistics...
S um m erTem p.
P recip -ita tion
etc...
Extracting the signals...Compare background signals (climate?) with disturbed signals
Total signaleg. PCA axis 1
W interTem p.
ComponentsResolved through semiquantitative or statistics...
S um m erTem p.
P recip -ita tion
F orestS igna l
D om estican im a ls
A gric .S igna l
Background signals
Disturbed signals
Post Settlement Landscape Change
in IcelandInsects
PlantMacro.Pollen
SoilPropertiesGeologyTephraC14
Bare groundWoodlandFarm Deserted farm
Sites - Njulla, Abiskobackground signals
~9500BP →
Sites - Njulla, Abisko
~8500BP →
Sites - Hemavanbackground signals
Sites - Hemavanbackground signals
~6000BP → & ~9000BP →
Sites - David’s Bog (Fagerviksjön)disturbed signals
...others under consideration...
Figures
Diachila arctica
Modern distributional data
Insect responses to change (1)
Transported with hosts...
Sheep lice - Damalinia ovis
Oryzaephilus surinamensisSågtandad plattbagge
Grain mites
Rhy
zope
rtha
dom
inic
aK
apuc
iner
bagg
e
Sitophilus granariusKornvivel
Preserve well...Heleomyza borealis - pupariaGreenland ~1350AD
Dung beetles (Aphodius sp.)Armana, Egypt ~1350BC
Alphitobius diaperinuslesser mealworm beetle
Fossils identifiable to species
Notiophilus bigutatus
Responding to Climate ChangeExample: Diachila arctica
Present distributionYounger Dryas?