Abstract Holocene relative sea level (RSL) changes were reconstructed from four sites along the less‐studied southern Solway Firth. A multiproxy approach, including lithostratigraphical and biostratigraphical analyses, combined with radiocarbon dating, produced ten sea level index points (SLIPs). These SLIPs constrained Holocene RSL changes in the region between ~8300 cal BP and ~6018 cal BP and captured the Main Postglacial Transgression. These ten new points are combined with the ten pre‐existing SLIPS from the southern Solway Firth to greatly refine the trend of Holocene RSL changes across this region. The Main Postglacial Transgression was shown to occur between ~8320 and 7500 cal BP, reaching a highstand of 3.26 ± 0.56 mOD. The new data were combined with 73 existing SLIPS from two sites around the northern Solway Firth and compared to RSL predictions from glacial isostatic modelling. Comparison between the corrected SLIPs and RSL predictions using British and Irish ice sheet reconstructions showed that the timing of the Main Postglacial Transgression is best captured with a hybrid model for the presence of thick and thin ice sheets. Pollen analysis at Cowgate Farm and Herd Hill provided a record of vegetation and coastal changes, acting as a chronostratigraphic marker when compared to published pollen records of the region. The records show a general transition from saltmarsh to reed swamp, then peat bog as RSL declined through the mid to late Holocene, with some indications of human clearance in the Bronze Age.

ABSTRACTFuture projections of climate change in the subtropics suggest warming and drying, while evidence from warm periods in the past shows increases in subtropical temperatures and precipitation. Eastern Australia is subject to interannual hydroclimate drivers and has experienced extreme flooding and droughts in recent years. To understand how the changes to the mean global conditions may affect sensitive environments, such as the wetlands in this region, baseline records of mean temperatures, especially since and during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), are vital. Several palaeoenvironment records exist from the coastal sand islands of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) and K'gari (Fraser Island), south‐east Queensland. However, these records appear to show divergent responses to climate change. Whilst there are a variety of proxies used for environmental reconstruction (e.g., pollen, charcoal, dust flux), there are relatively few continuous records of quantitative temperature, which limits our understanding of the causes of environmental change. Presented here is a palaeoclimate reconstruction spanning the LGM to Holocene, utilising glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGT), for Broutha Waterhole, a subtropical perched wetland in the Cooloola Sand Mass, Queensland, Australia, located between Minjerribah and K'gari. The GDGT‐based palaeotemperature reconstruction features a temperature minimum of 17.0°C (~4.3°C maximum cooling) during the LGM, which is very close to the palaeotemperature recorded from K'gari and consistent with the Australia‐wide temperature range. A progressively warming temperature during the deglacial is interrupted by a temperature decline (0.8°C–1.6°C) coincident with the Antarctic Cold Reversal (ACR), followed by a stable warm Holocene. It should be noted that there are possibilities of hiatuses of different periods at Cooloola Sand Mass compared to K'gari and Minjerribah, which may imply different control on the sediment deposition. This study provides a palaeotemperature record through the LGM and deglacial period that contributes to the limited quantitative temperature data in the subtropics.

ABSTRACT Radiocarbon dating of bones is essential for reconstructing timelines of species' occurrences, domestication, extinction, migrations, and interactions with Quaternary environments. Many studies compile these chronologies at continental to global scales by aggregating radiocarbon dates from various sources, often balancing data quantity and quality. A major challenge, however, is the frequent lack of reported bone‐collagen pretreatment protocols, which directly affect dating accuracy. Without this information, radiocarbon dates cannot be reliably quality‐ranked, and retrieving unpublished pretreatment details is often difficult due to lost data, outdated contacts, or restricted access to records. Researchers should ensure that pretreatments are replicable in their publications; and dated materials, taxonomic identities, geolocation details and genetic sequences are linked to individual radiocarbon dates. Journals should mandate the inclusion of reproducible radiocarbon chemistry and liaise with reviewers or advisory board members with expertise in chronological methods for studies presenting new dates or compilations of published dates. Radiocarbon facilities can enhance accessibility and transparency by publishing pretreatment protocols, documenting their history and digitizing older data. We advocate for the creation of a global radiocarbon database, emphasizing the need for close collaboration among the scientific community, dating facilities, research institutions and universities, as well as the adequate allocation of resources to generate and curate reliable radiocarbon data. The scientific community should recognize that current limitations in collagen purification compromise dating accuracy and might significantly affect critical research on Quaternary chronologies, megafaunal extinctions and human evolutionary history.

ABSTRACTThe presence of permafrost at the foreland of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) is evidenced by a range of landforms and structures characteristic of the periglacial zone. In areas once covered by the LGM ice sheet, lake and peatland sediments serve as excellent archives for paleoclimatic reconstruction and environmental change analysis. Current knowledge suggests that the melting of buried dead ice blocks and the formation of deep kettle lakes occurred in tandem with the degradation of permafrost. In the Polish Lowlands, the first phase of lake formation corresponds to the Bølling–Allerød complex (14.7–12.8 ka cal BP). However, our understanding remains limited regarding the geomorphological and hydrological dynamics immediately following ice sheet retreat—particularly in relation to air temperature changes. Until recently, no in situ biogenic sediments had been found to record environmental changes in this highly dynamic postglacial system. The period of more than 1000 years between the ice sheet's disappearance and the formation of deep kettle lakes was occupied by thermokarst lakes—depression landforms caused by permafrost degradation and ground collapse under periglacial conditions. Preliminary studies have mapped over 200 relict thermokarst lakes (RTL) within the LGM extent in Poland. These are characterized by distinctive morphologies, including aligned orientations, marginal ridges, and location on sandy outwash plains (sandurs). The lack of previous studies in the European Lowlands may be due to their subtle landscape expression. The analysis of LiDAR data, combined with field verification, has greatly facilitated their identification and geomorphological interpretation.

ABSTRACTNorth American arvicoline rodents have long been considered to have high biogeographic, biochronologic, and paleoecological value. They provide relative dating of faunal assemblages when absolute dating is not possible and contribute to paleobiome characterization. However, the scientific value of Arvicolinae is often limited by the level of taxonomic identification achievable by morphological analyses. ZooMS (zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry) is a proteomic method that permits taxonomic identification of bone material. We added 19 North American arvicoline species to the ZooMS reference database to assess the level of taxonomic resolution between those species using ZooMS. Results show species‐level taxonomic resolution for all tested arvicolines that diverged up to just under 1 mya. We estimate species‐level taxonomic resolution is achievable for arvicolines that diverged up to 273 kya and up to 170.5 kya for members of Microtus. Application to arvicoline fossils demonstrates the presence of previously unidentified species of Microtus in the Great Basin, that isolated molars are sufficient for taxonomic identification, and provides results consistent with the morphological hypothesis that Microtus paroperarius and Alexandromys oeconomus are not conspecific. ZooMS can drastically improve taxonomic identification of arvicolines, and may increase their utility for biochronological, biogeographic, and paleoecological interpretations of Pleistocene faunal response to climatic and other environmental changes.

Data will be made available on request.

ABSTRACTMaritime glaciers on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau (SETP) are experiencing rapid mass loss, yet both current rates and future projections lack centennial‐scale context. Here, we mapped the outlines of 2454 glaciers at their Little Ice Age (LIA) maximum (~1300–1700 CE) on the SETP and reconstructed their thickness. The results show that there has been a 21.5% reduction in area and a loss of 152.9 km3 of ice (130 Gt) since the LIA at a rate of 0.19–0.43 Gt year−1. We estimated the long‐term average mass balance of glaciers to be between −0.028 and −0.065 m water equivalent (w.e.) year−1. The rate of change between 2000 and 2019 CE was 10 to 23 times higher than LIA maximum to 2000 CE, far exceeding any centennial‐scale rates of change recorded elsewhere in the world. Locally, lake‐terminating glaciers lost mass faster than land‐terminating glaciers. Spatial trends in the rate of glacier mass loss and the extent of equilibrium‐line altitude (ELA) changes on the SETP are influenced by glacier size, as well as the topography and climate of the study area. Glaciers in the lowland of river valleys such as the Yarlung Zangbo‐Brahmaputra show slower mass loss and larger ELA changes. The significant spatial heterogeneity of glacier change suggests that glacier evolution is influenced by both regional and local factors.

ABSTRACTThe Yabrai range‐front fault (YRF) is a large‐scale fault within the Alashan Block, located northeast of the Tibetan Plateau, which has undergone several surface rupture events on the southwestern and middle segments since the late Quaternary. As no relevant research has been conducted on the northeastern segment, paleoseismic data for this area are lacking, which restricts our overall understanding of the spatiotemporal and intensity distribution of strong earthquakes on the YRF. To address this problem, we conducted investigations based on trench wall interpretation and stratigraphic optically stimulated luminescence ages. Four paleoearthquakes were identified in the middle of the northeastern segment, and occurred after 11.6 ± 0.7 ka and between 11.6 ± 0.7 to 6.9 ± 0.5, 6.9 ± 0.5 to 4.8 ± 0.6 and 4.8 ± 0.6 to 3.9 ± 0.7 ka, respectively. Three paleoearthquake events, one of which occurred at around 23.6 ± 1.6 ka, were identified at the northeastern end of the fault. According to the spatiotemporal distribution of the ruptured events on the YRF, the middle segment may be a long seismic gap (~8 ka), and combined with the status of tectonic stress concentration, this segment can be regarded as a zone of high seismic probability with the ability to produce a magnitude 7.2 earthquake. Furthermore, from the late Pleistocene to early Holocene, cascading ruptures may have occurred on the middle and northeastern segments of the YRF, with magnitudes approaching 7.3. In terms of tectonic relationships, we suggest that the YRF and the Langshan piedmont fault are two independent faults even though they are connected.