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This special issue of QSR comprises a series of papers written to celebrate the careers of Neil Roberts (Professor of Physical Geography) and Henry Lamb (Professor of Quaternary Science), as they retire from full-time posts. Both Henry's and Neil's research careers have been exceptional, marked by novel, cutting-edge research of the very highest quality within cognate disciplines and which address the big questions in Quaternary Science. Both have promoted the importance of environmental change; Neil primarily in the ‘sea in the middle of the earth’ (i.e., the lands bordering the Mediterranean) and Henry in tropical east Africa and Morocco. Both have made immense contributions to our understanding of global change in the Quaternary and have been instrumental in raising the discipline to new levels of scientific rigour. They both have CVs listing over 100 publications and still counting. This volume is an opportunity to celebrate their work and say thanks.

Direct exploration of subglacial lakes buried deep under the Antarctic Ice Sheet has yet to be achieved. However, at retreating margins of the ice sheet, there are a number of locations where former subglacial lakes are emerging from under the ice but remain perennially ice covered. One of these lakes, Hodgson Lake (72°00.549′S, 068°27.708′W) has emerged from under more than 297–465 m of glacial ice during the last few thousand years. This paper presents data from a multidisciplinary investigation of the palaeolimnology of this lake through a study of a 3.8 m sediment core extracted at a depth of 93.4 m below the ice surface. The core was dated using a combination of radiocarbon, optically stimulated luminescence, and relative palaeomagnetic intensity dating incorporated into a chronological model. Stratigraphic analyses included magnetic susceptibility, clast provenance, organic content, carbonate composition, siliceous microfossils, isotope and biogeochemical markers. Based on the chronological model we provisionally assign a well-defined magnetic polarity reversal event at ca 165 cm in the lake sediments to the Mono Lake excursion (ca 30–34 ka), whilst OSL measurements suggest that material incorporated into the basal sediments might date to 93 ± 9 ka. Four stratigraphic zones (A–D) were identified in the sedimentological data. The chronological model suggests that zones A–C were deposited between Marine Isotope Stages 5–2 and zone A during Stage 1, the Holocene. The palaeolimnological record tracks changes in the subglacial depositional environment linked principally to changing glacier dynamics and mass transport and indirectly to climate change. The sediment composition in zones A–C consists of fine-grained sediments together with sands, gravels and small clasts. There is no evidence of overriding glaciers being in contact with the bed reworking the stratigraphy or removing this sediment. This suggests that the lake existed in a subglacial cavity beneath overriding LGM ice. In zone D there is a transition to finer grained sediments characteristic of lower energy delivery coupled with a minor increase in the organic content attributed either to increases in allochthonous organic material being delivered from the deglaciating catchment, a minor increase in within-lake production or to an analytical artefact associated with an increase in the clay fraction. Evidence of biological activity is sparse. Total organic carbon varies from 0.2 to 0.6%, and cannot be unequivocally linked to in situ biological activity as comparisons of δ13C and C/N values with local reference data suggest that much of it is derived from the incorporation of carbon in catchment soils and gravels and possibly old CO2 in meteoric ice. We use the data from this study to provide guidelines for the study of deep continental subglacial lakes including establishing sediment geochronologies, determining the extent to which subglacial sediments might provide a record of glaciological and environmental change and a brief review of methods to use in the search for life.

At retreating margins of the Antarctic Ice Sheet, there are a number of locations where former subglacial lakes are emerging from under the ice but remain perennially ice-covered. This paper presents a site description of one of these lakes, Hodgson Lake, situated on southern Alexander Island, west of the Antarctic Peninsula (72° 00.549′ S, 68° 27.708′ W). First, we describe the physical setting of the lake using topographic and geomorphological maps. Second, we determine local ice sheet deglaciation history and the emergence of the lake using cosmogenic isotope dating of glacial erratics cross-referenced to optically stimulated luminescence dating of raised lake shoreline deltas formed during ice recession. Third we describe the physical and chemical limnology including the biological and biogeochemical evidence for life. Results show that the ice mass over Hodgson Lake was at least 295 m thick at 13.5 ka and has progressively thinned through the Holocene with the lake ice cover reaching an altitude of c. 6.5 m above the present lake ice sometime after 4.6 ka. Thick perennial ice cover persists over the lake today and the waters have remained isolated from the atmosphere with a chemical composition consistent with subglacial melting of catchment ice. The lake is ultra-oligotrophic with nutrient concentrations within the ranges of those found in the accreted lake ice of subglacial Lake Vostok. Total organic carbon and dissolved organic carbon are present, but at lower concentrations than typically recorded in continental rain. No organisms and no pigments associated with photosynthetic or bacterial activity were detected in the water column using light microscopy and high performance liquid chromatography. Increases in SO4 and cation concentrations at depth and declines in O2 provide some evidence for sulphide oxidation and very minor bacterial demand upon O2 that result in small, perhaps undetectable changes in the carbon biogeochemistry. However, in general the chemical markers of life are inconclusive and abiotic processes such as the diffusion of pore waters into the lake from its benthic sediments are far more likely to be responsible for the increased concentrations of ions at depth. The next phases of this research will be to carry out a palaeolimnological study of the lake sediments to see what they can reveal about the history of the lake in its subglacial state, and a detailed molecular analysis of the lake water and benthos to determine what forms of life are present. Combined, these studies will test some of the methodologies that will be used to explore deep continental subglacial lakes.

In their analysis of relative sea level observations from the J. Bonaparte Gulf of Northern Australia, the authors interpret the raw observations of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) lowstand of the sea by invoking the notion that there is a significant difference between the “spatially averaged change in sea level at any time” and what is referred to as ice-equivalent eustatic sea level in Peltier (On eustatic sea level history, Last Glacial Maximum to Holocene, Quaternary Science Review 21 (2002), in press; companion paper). This notion is incorrect as it violates the principle of mass conservation. The implications of this error of interpretation to the primary conclusion of the Yokoyama et al. (Nature 406 (2000) 713–716) analysis, that “the ice-volume equivalent sea level at LGM lies between −135 and −130 m” is discussed herein. It is concluded on the basis of this discussion that, although the argument presented in this paper for such a deep LGM depression of sea level relies upon this invalid notion, it may nevertheless be true that the LGM low stand was greater than the 120 m conventionally assumed.

The recent reconstruction by Bowen et al. (2002) of the history of the last British and Irish Ice sheet (BIIS) at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) resumes a debate over the extent and behaviour of the last Scottish Ice Sheet (ScIS) that extends back over 20 years (Sutherland, 1984). The ScIS at the LGM is seen as restricted in extent, with ice-free peripheral areas that include Buchan, Caithness, Orkney, Shetland, together with extensive areas of the North Sea and the Hebridean and Shetland shelves (Fig. 1). Moreover, the BIIS is viewed as a long-lived, if dynamic feature throughout Oxygen Isotope Stages 4-2. We consider it unfortunate that Bowen et al. (2002) do not refer to much long-standing and recent work in Scotland that indicates extensive glaciation at the LGM yet a ScIS of very limited extent around 30 ka BP. This note seeks to redress that balance. ‘Uncorrected’ radiocarbon ages rather than calibrated ages are referred to below, because calibration before 17 cal ka BP is uncertain (van der Plicht, 2002). A reservoir age of ca. 400 years has been applied to marine C ages, though we recognise that this may be in error prior to ca. 12.5 ka BP (cf. Voelker et al., 1998).

This paper reviews previous work conducted on Laser Ablation – Inductively Coupled Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) sourcing 33 Clovis period projectile points from the Gault Site (41BL323) in Central Texas. This paper includes new geochemical data from four new primary geologic sources to increase an Edwards Plateau region chert database to 302 primary geologic samples from 204 samples with which to test against the geochemistry of the 33 Clovis artifacts. These artifacts are then assessed with regards to their form, breakage patterns, and distance to source to suggest a blended model of mobility for Clovis period hunter-gatherers in Central Texas. This data suggests that the pattern of movement across the landscape of the Edwards Plateau for these hunter-gatherers may have been a blended pattern alternating between collector and forager based on changing distribution of resources seasonally. This patterning may have been influenced for the Gault Clovis hunter-gatherers reliant on availability of chert resources as well as ecotonal density and diversity of plants and animals; especially, as gauged by Clovis site types and distribution spread throughout much of the Southern Great Plains.

This paper introduces a series of articles assembled in a special issue that explore Holocene climate evolution, as recorded in lakes on the Island of Amsterdamoya on the westernmost fringe of the Arctic Svalbard archipelago. Due to its location near the interface of oceanic and atmospheric systems sourced from Arctic and Atlantic regions, Amsterdamoya is a key site for recording the terrestrial response to marine and atmospheric changes. We employed multi-proxy approaches on lake sediments, integrating physical, biogeochemical, and isotopic analyses to infer past changes in temperature, precipitation, and glacier activity. The results comprise a series of quantitative Holocene-length paleoclimate reconstructions that reveal different aspects of past climate change. Each of the four papers addresses various facets of the Holocene climate history of north-western Svalbard, including a reconstruction of the Annabreen glacier based on the sedimentology of the distal glacier-fed lake Gjoavatnet, a reconstruction of changing hydrologic conditions based on sedimentology and stratigraphy in Lake Hakluytvatnet, reconstruction of summer temperature based on alkenone paleothermometry from lakes Hakluytvatnet and Hajeren, and a hydrogen isotope-based hydrological reconstruction from lake Hakluytvatnet. We also present high-resolution paleomagnetic secular variation data from the same lake, which document important regional magnetic field variations and demonstrate the potential for use in synchronizing Holocene sedimentary records in the Arctic. The paleoclimate picture that emerges is one of early Holocene warmth from ca. 10.5 ka BP interrupted by transient cooling ca. 10-8ka BP, and followed by cooling that mostly manifested as two stepwise events ca. 7 and 4 ka BP. The past 4ka were characterized by dynamic glaciers and summer temperature fluctuations decoupled from the declining summer insolation.

This special issue relates to the Second International Conference of the PAST Gateways (Palaeo-Arctic Spatial and Temporal Gateways) network which was held in Trieste, Italy in 2014. Twenty five papers are included and they address topics under four main themes: (1) The growth and decay of Arctic ice sheets; (2) Arctic sea ice and palaeoceanography; (3) Terrestrial Arctic environments and permafrost change; and (4) Holocene Arctic environmental change. Geographically the focus is circum-Arctic; the special issue includes detailed regional studies from Greenland, Scandinavia, Russia, and Arctic North America and the adjoining seas, as well as a series of synthesis-type, review papers on Fennoscandian Ice Sheet deglaciation and Holocene Arctic palaeo-climate change. The methodologies employed are diverse and include marine sediment core and geophysical investigations, terrestrial glacial geology and geomorphology, isotopic analysis of ground ice, palaeo-ecological analysis of lacustrine and terrestrial sedimentary archives, geochronology and numerical ice sheet modeling.

This paper examines the evidence for climatic changes in the Eastern Mediterranean for the period 200–800 AD and offers hypotheses on the role of climatic fluctuations in the societal developments that occurred in this region at the end of Antiquity. The geographical focus of the paper includes Anatolia and the Levant, two major regions of the Eastern Roman Empire that are rich in environmental, historical and archaeological data. The paper starts with the review of current research on the economic, settlement and vegetation history of the Eastern Mediterranean in Late Antiquity, which provides the necessary framework for the study of potential climate impacts. The core of the article is devoted to the analysis of the palaeoclimatic evidence, which is divided in two groups. The first one encompasses the direct evidence, that is palaeoclimate proxies and the textual record of extreme weather events, while the second includes indirect information on climate, in particular multi-proxy studies that include pollen analysis, archaeological evidence, and the historical evidence of subsistence crises. We conclude that during our study period there occurred three periods of substantially different climatic conditions. A late Roman drought ∼350–470 AD was followed by a dramatic shift to much wetter climatic conditions. These in turn changed into increasing dryness after ∼730 AD in Anatolia and ∼670 AD in the Levant. The lack of chronological precision in the dating of the archaeological evidence and of some climatic records makes it impossible at present to make conclusive observations regarding the societal responses to these climatic fluctuations. Nonetheless in all probability, the extended and – in some areas - severe late Roman drought did not cause any major social upheaval or economic decline in Anatolia or the Levant, although it appears to have contributed to a change in patterns of water use in the cities. In contrast, the increased availability of moisture after ∼470 AD does appear to have contributed to the expansion of rural settlement and agriculture into environmentally marginal terrain, including semi-arid areas such as the Negev. In this way climate probably contributed to the general economic prosperity of the late Roman Empire in the east of the Mediterranean basin. The end of this late Roman world system came about finally in mid-7th c. and, at least in Anatolia, is not directly associated with any shift in climatic conditions. Aridity during early Medieval times may be one of the main factors behind the gradual long-term decline of settlement on the marginal lands in the Levant following Islamic conquest.

We address concerns raised by Wanless and Dravis (2020) on our paper documenting the late Quaternary evolution of West Caicos island. We negate the claim that omitting their paper (Dravis and Wanless, 2017) had any consequences for our interpretations. We also provide reasoning and data to demonstrate that our interpretation of the Quaternary stratigraphy of the island was derived from detailed field work and high-resolution remote sensing data, which was subsequently corroborated by AAR and U-Th age-dating control, the opposite of the claim by Wanless and Dravis.

The paper under discussion, ignores a published, very large new data set (Charrach, 2018a, b), which is multi-disciplinary and integrates the most recent research. The detailed study of the geology of Mt. Sedom raises many questions regarding the interpretation and models presented in the paper. The analysis of the new data set from Mt. Sedom, gathered from measured evidence, with an analysis of the hydro-geochemistry of the Dead Sea Basin regarding the different sources of sulphate ions could considerably improve their paper.

In a recent paper ( Lewis et al., 2019 ) we reported the results of geological and archaeological investigations at Happisburgh Site 1. We also considered the significance of the site for understanding the human occupation of northern Europe during the early Middle Pleistocene. In a comment on the paper, Gibbard et al. (2019) raise a number of issues concerning lithostratigraphic terminology, the age of the deposits at Site 1, and the wider regional context of the Site 1 archaeological assemblage. Here we respond to Gibbard and colleagues’ objections and, in particular, we present evidence in support of our contention that the Palaeolithic assemblages from the Breckland sites of Warren Hill and High Lodge pre-date the Anglian (MIS 12) glaciation and may be considered to date to MIS 13.

This paper provides a brief overview of the most common dating techniques applied in palaeoclimate and palaeoenvironmental studies including four radiometric and isotopic dating methods (radiocarbon, 230Th disequilibrium, luminescence, cosmogenic nuclides) and two incremental methods based on layer counting (ice layer, varves). For each method, concise background information about the fundamental principles and methodological approaches is provided. We concentrate on the time interval of focus for the INTIMATE (Integrating Ice core, MArine and TErrestrial records) community (60–8 ka). This dating guide addresses palaeoclimatologists who aim at interpretation of their often regional and local proxy time series in a wider spatial context and, therefore, have to rely on correlation with proxy records obtained from different archives from various regions. For this reason, we especially emphasise scientific approaches for harmonising chronologies for sophisticated and robust proxy data integration. In this respect, up-to-date age modelling techniques are presented as well as tools for linking records by age equivalence including tephrochronology, cosmogenic 10Be and palaeomagnetic variations. Finally, to avoid inadequate documentation of chronologies and assure reliable correlation of proxy time series, this paper provides recommendations for minimum standards of uncertainty and age datum reporting.

The paper reviews previously published and presents new data on the Darhad Basin, Mongolia, which is a key locality for reconstruction of Quaternary glaciation and environmental changes in northern Central Asia. The previously published data include those obtained in the 20th century by Soviet geological surveys and academic researches of the Darhad Basin, which are, as a rule, not accessible for an international reader, and those obtained by several international teams during the last decade. The new results include geomorphologic, sedimentological and geochronological data obtained prior to and within the International Darhad Drilling Project (DDP-2010). These data show that the Darhad sedimentary sequence has been formed since the Pliocene and represents a detailed archive of environmental changes due to a high content of lacustrine beds. Lakes formed several times in the Darhad Basin by basaltic, glacial and sedimentary dams, which blocked the water outlet of the basin. Of special interest in this paper are the late Pleistocene damming events, which are well-documented in the sediments and landforms, however, their chronology is still obscure. There have been two stages of deep lake. The first lake was dammed by a glacier during late MIS 5 ( Krivonogov et al., 2005 ) or, alternatively, during early to middle MIS 3 ( Gillespie et al., 2008a ). The second damming, glacial or sedimentary, formed another deep lake during MIS 4 or MIS 2. The level of the lake was greatly variable up to its complete disappearance. Our new data from the DDP10-3 and DN-1 boreholes and from the Hodon outcrop illustrate the Holocene history of the paleolake, which was dammed by the sediments and was kept at low levels. We propose a first sedimentation model for the Holocene part of the lacustrine sedimentary sequence. The lake was minimal or disappeared at ca 12–9.6 and after 4.5 ka cal. BP, relatively deep at 9.6–7.1 and 6.4–4.5 ka cal. BP and shallow at 7.1–6.4 ka cal. BP. Conclusively, we highlighted solved and unsolved geological problems of the Darhad Basin, the most important of which are our recognized stages of the paleolake development (solved) and the detailed chronology and environments of the lacustrine and glacial events (unsolved).

Within this paper we review the pre-Weichselian glacial history of northern Europe focussing on evidence from the British Isles, Netherlands, Norway and adjacent marine areas that record the activity of the British (BIS) and Scandinavian (SIS) ice sheets. The objective of the paper is to examine the long-term evolution of the two ice sheets in order to determine their level of synchronicity and their relationship to the Plio-Pleistocene record of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation. Geological evidence demonstrates striking long-term similarities between the behaviour of the BIS and SIS, with a step-wise intensification in the glacial signal: (1) first Ice Rafted Debris (IRD) input onto the continental margin at ca 2.7-2.6 Ma and restricted glaciation prior to ca 1.1 Ma; (2) initiation of more lowland-style glaciation from 1.1 Ma; (3) repeated shelf-edge glaciations from 0.45 Ma. These 'steps' coincide with a major intensification of the Northern Hemisphere climate signal at the beginning of the Quaternary, and the Mid Pleistocene Transition. Temporal and spatial variabilities in the behaviour of different sectors of the BIS and SIS appear to reflect regional-scale geographic (latitude, elevation), climatic (moisture, temperature) and glaciological (deformable beds) controls that modulate the build-up of ice volume in the main ice accumulation areas relative to global climate forcing and its subsequent lateral expansion. © 2010 NERC.

The Weddell Sea Embayment (WSE) sector of the Antarctic ice sheet has been suggested as a potential source for a period of rapid sea-level rise – Meltwater Pulse 1a, a 20 m rise in ∼500 years. Previous modelling attempts have predicted an extensive grounding line advance in the WSE, to the continental shelf break, leading to a large equivalent sea-level contribution for the sector. A range of recent field evidence suggests that the ice sheet elevation change in the WSE at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) is less than previously thought. This paper describes and discusses an ice flow modelling derived reconstruction of the LGM ice sheet in the WSE, constrained by the recent field evidence. The ice flow model reconstructions suggest that an ice sheet consistent with the field evidence does not support grounding line advance to the continental shelf break. A range of modelled ice sheet surfaces are instead produced, with different grounding line locations derived from a novel grounding line advance scheme. The ice sheet reconstructions which best fit the field constraints lead to a range of equivalent eustatic sea-level estimates between approximately 1.4 and 3 m for this sector. This paper describes the modelling procedure in detail, considers the assumptions and limitations associated with the modelling approach, and how the uncertainty may impact on the eustatic sea-level equivalent results for the WSE.

This paper reviews the application of cosmogenic-nuclide exposure dating to glacier chronology. Exposure dating of glacial landforms has made an outsize impact on this field because the technique filled an obvious need that had already been recognized by glacial geologists. By now, hundreds of studies have used cosmogenic-nuclide exposure dating to date glacial deposits, and in fact it is rare to find a study of glacial geology or glacier chronology, or any paleoclimate synthesis that makes use of such studies, that does not involve exposure dating. These developments have resulted in major contributions to glacier chronology and paleoclimate, in particular i) reconstructing Antarctic ice sheet change, ii) establishing the chronology of late Pleistocene and Holocene glacier change in mountain regions where it was previously unknown; iii) establishing the broad chronological outlines of mountain glaciations prior to the Last Glacial Maximum; and iv) gaining insight into subglacial erosional processes through the observation that many glaciated surfaces preserve cosmogenic-nuclide inventories from long past ice-free periods as well as the present one. An important potential future contribution will be the application of the large data set of exposure-dated glacier chronologies to better understand global and regional climate dynamics during Lateglacial and Holocene millennial-scale climate changes. However, this contribution cannot be realized without significant progress in two areas: i) understanding and accounting for geologic processes that cause apparent exposure ages on glacial landforms to differ from the true age of the landform, and ii) minimizing systematic uncertainties in exposure ages that stem from cosmogenic-nuclide production-rate estimates and scaling schemes. At present there exists an enormous data set of exposure ages on glacial deposits, but these data cannot be used to their full potential in paleoclimate syntheses due to an inadequate understanding of geologic scatter and production-rate uncertainties. The intent of this paper is to highlight this situation and suggest some strategies for realizing this potential.

Alpine glacier fluctuations provide important paleoclimate proxies where other records such as ice cores, tree rings, and speleothems are not available. About 20 years have passed since a special issue of Quaternary Science Reviews was published to review the worldwide evidence for Holocene glacier fluctuations. Since that time, numerous sites have been discovered, new dating techniques have been developed, and refined climatic hypotheses have been proposed that contribute to a better understanding of Earth's climate system. This special volume includes 12 papers on Holocene and latest Pleistocene alpine glacier fluctuations that update the seven review papers from 1988. Major findings of these 12 papers include the following: many, but certainly not all, alpine areas record glacier advances during the Younger Dryas cold interval. Most areas in the Northern Hemisphere witnessed maximum glacier recession during the early Holocene, with some glaciers disappearing, although a few sites yield possible evidence for advances during the 8.2 ka cooling event. In contrast, some alpine areas in the Southern Hemisphere saw glaciers reach their maximum post-glacial extents during the early to middle Holocene. In many parts of the globe, glaciers reformed and/or advanced during Neoglaciation, beginning as early as 6.5 ka. Neoglacial advances commonly occurred with millennial-scale oscillations, with many alpine glaciers reaching their maximum Holocene extents during the Little Ice Age of the last few centuries. Although the pattern and rhythm of these glacier fluctuations remain uncertain, improved spatial coverage coupled with tighter age control for many events will provide a means to assess forcing mechanisms for Holocene and latest Pleistocene glacial activity and perhaps predict glacier response to future impacts from human-induced climate change.

The rockshelter of Benzú has a Middle-Upper Pleistocene stratigraphic sequence with ten levels, seven with evidence of human occupation. Speleothems have been dated by U/Th and the sedimentary levels by OSL and TL, showing that the sequence extends from 250 ka to 70 ka. In this paper, we summarise the results of geomorphology, chronostratigraphy and excavation, and provide preliminary results on the pollen, faunal and lithic remains. The location of the site on the North African coast of the Strait of Gibraltar offers the potential to throw light on contacts and relationships between prehistoric communities in North Africa and the South Iberian Peninsula, for whom the Strait may have served as a bridge rather than a barrier., This Project is the result of collaboration between the Autonomous City of Ceuta and the University of Cádiz (Project OT2006/217) and is part of the International Cooperation Proyects AECI A/2893/05 and A/6728/06, in collaboration with Dr. Ali Maate (UAE, Tetouan, Morocco) and Ramon Morán. We would like to thank Mabel Deu, Fernando Villada, Maria Teresa Troya and Gabriel Fernández for their Institutional help. We would also like to thank Paloma Uzquiano for the anthracological data, Alfonso Arribas and Isabel Cáceres for their study of the faunal assemblage, Joaquín Rodríguez-Vidal for geomorphological data from the Gibraltar area, Clive Finlayson for inviting us to contribute this paper, and to the editors for improving the English. Finally, we thank all the specialists, archaeologists, students and volunteers that have participated in the excavations and studies during the Benzú Project.

The Iberian Peninsula is almost surrounded by the sea and is topographically and ecologically variable. These factors will have impacted on both the distribution and dispersal patterns of large mammals (including hominins) within Iberia, and are considered in detail in this paper. There are two routes of mammalian dispersal into Iberia: across the Pyrenees and across the Gibraltar Strait. With an increasing interest in the possible use of coastlines by early hominins the latter route has been the focus of much discussion. However, the arguments are limited by the relative lack of hominin remains and archaeology from the Early Pleistocene. This paper takes a wider perspective to hominin dispersals by examining what is known of the evolution and movements of other taxa in Iberia and how these may inform our understanding of the hominin fossil record. Beginning by briefly reviewing the present day and Pleistocene glacial and interglacial vegetation of Iberia, it then considers the large-mammal fauna. Particular attention is paid to the potential routes of movement for terrestrial animals in and out of the peninsula, and the evidence for each route is assessed. Iberia was a refuge for temperate species during the Quaternary glacial cycles and movements of Quaternary faunas are reviewed in the light of modern phylogeographic analyses and studies of fossil assemblages. Iberian faunas are highly variable, with some absences of otherwise widespread European animals, but cold-phase taxa such as reindeer and woolly rhinoceros did cross the Pyrenees. It seems that the large mountain ranges were less a barrier for the dispersal of these taxa than the line which today forms the limit of the summer drought. Iberia also provided the last refuge for extinct species such as the Neanderthals and endangered extant species such as the Iberian lynx.

We present a brief synthesis of the Quaternary fluvial record in the Lower Tagus Basin (central Portugal), concentrating on factors controlling infill and incision. The Holocene part of the record forms the focus of this paper and guides the questioning of the basic assumptions of the established Quaternary fluvial evolution model, in particular the link between sea-level change and fluvial incision-deposition. We suggest that several incision-aggradation phases may have occurred during glacial periods. Major aggradation events may overlap with cold episodes, while incision appears to concentrate on the warming limb of climate transitions. The complex stratigraphy of the Quaternary record in the Lower Tagus valley is influenced by repeated base-level and climate changes. This paper submits the first chronostratigraphic framework for valley fill deposits in the Lower Tagus area. Sea-level rise forced aggradation and controlled deposition of the fine-grained sedimentary wedge underlying the low-gradient Lower Tagus floodplain. Investigations have focused on the lower Muge tributary, where rapidly aggrading estuarine and fluvial environments were abruptly established (∼8150 cal BP) as sea level rose. Base level at the valley mouth controlled the upstream extent of the fine-grained backfill. Tidal environments disappeared abruptly (∼5800 cal BP) when the open estuary at the Muge confluence was infilled by the Tagus River. The decrease and final still stand of sea-level rise led to floodplain stabilisation with peat (∼6400–5200 cal BP) and soil formation (∼5200–2200 cal BP). Localised renewed sedimentation (∼2200–200 cal BP) is linked to human activity.

The paper discusses the Quaternary evolution of the Danube and Tisza rivers and their main tributaries in the context of evolution of the entire Pannonian Basin, which is Europe's largest intramontane basin, within the Alp–Carpathian orogen. The palaeo-drainage reconstruction of the Pannonian Basin for the pre-Quaternary period is outlined in connection with the gradual regression of Lake Pannon since the Late Miocene. Deltas of rivers that entered the basin from the northwest and northeast were gradually transformed into extended alluvial plains; thus, the earliest possible ancestor of the Danube coming southeastwards from the Alps could be as old as Late Miocene. By the Pliocene the whole Lake Pannon was infilled. The former extensional basin formation was replaced by a compresional stress field, which resulted in an uplift of the marginal flanks and late-stage subsidence anomalies. The increasing relief led to the formation of the Quaternary drainage pattern. The actively subsiding young basins were filled by fluvial sediments, transported by the Danube and Tisza river systems from the uplifting mountains. Between the subsiding regions of the Little and Great Plains, the Danube has formed an antecedent valley with terrace staircases between the uplifting sections of the Transdanubian Range and the North Midmountains. The formation of the terraces is attributed to periodic climate changes during the Pleistocene combined with differences in the uplift rate. The paper gives a complex overview of the classical chronology of the six terraces based on various data sources: mostly dating of loess/paleosol sequences, travertines, aeolian sand, and tephra strata overlying the fluvial sediments, complemented by scattered vertebrate faunal data and archaeological evidence directly from the terrace sediments. The Quaternary drainage pattern evolution of the Great Plain, with a strong tectonic control, is discussed in detail. Rivers originating from the uplifting marginal areas were drawn towards the subsiding depressions which served as local base level. Changes in subsidence rates in space and time throughout the Quaternary resulted in the evolution of a complex drainage pattern. A special emphasis is placed on the Late Pleistocene–Holocene development of the Middle–Tisza region and the Koros basin, where the Berettyo–Koros Rivers form an eastern tributary system of the Tisza River. A comparative evaluation of these two areas is especially relevant, as they provide insights into large-scale Late Pleistocene avulsion of the Tisza River. OSL dating, complemented with inferred transport directions determined from heavy mineral analysis of fluvial sediments in the Koros basin, has revealed an ancient large meandering river system that can be identified with the palaeo-Tisza, which was flowing along a tectonically controlled depression during the Late Pleniglacial. Successions in the Middle Tisza region have allowed differentiation between the older channels of the palaeo-Bodrog River and the Sajo–Hernad alluvial fan and the younger meander belts of the new course of the Tisza. In the Tisza system, changes in river style (braided to various scales of meandering) show correspondence to millennial-scale climate changes of the last 25 ka, while in the Koros basin the effects of tectonics are overprinted onto the regional climatic signals.

The paper focuses on the concept, mapping and discussion of loess distribution in Western, Central and Eastern Europe at a scale of 1:2,500,000. The research work is based on studies and data compilation primarily carried out in the 1970s and 1980s [Fink, J., Haase, G., Ruske, R., 1977. Bemerkungen zur Loskarte von Europe 1:2,5 Mio. Petermanns Geographische Mitteilungen 2(77), 81–94; Fink, J., 1969 Les progres de l’ etude de loess en Europe. Bulletin de l’ Association francaise pour l’ etude du Quarternaire 3–12. Haase, G., Ruske, R., Fink, J., 1983. Conception, preparation and some results of the Loess Map of Europe on a scale 1:2,5 Million. INQUA Newsletter 1983(1), 7–10] and completed recently by additional material and literature references. Reference is also made to recent GIS-based data processing and visualisation techniques that were utilised for the final version of the European Loess Map. The paper provides an overview of the history of the conceptualisation of the map as well as on the loess study in Europe, and than considers the cartographic data on loess sediment formation and distribution in Europe. The classification of loess and loess-like sediments and their distribution throughout Europe as reproduced in the map are discussed [Haase, G., Lieberoth, I., Ruske, R., 1970. Sedimente und Palaoboden im Lossgurtel. In: Richter, H., Haase, G., Lieberoth, I., Ruske, R. (Eds.), Periglazial-Los-Palaolithikum om JUngpleistozan der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik; Petermanns Geographische Mitteilungen 274, 99–212]. The paper illustrates the final state of the loess distribution map of Europe at a scale of 1:2,500,000 and the digital data references on which it is based. Some applications of the map are suggested.

This paper presents a review of (astrobiochronological) calibration of Recent to late Oligocene calcareous nannofossil datum events. Biohorizons included in the paper are those of the widely used “standard” nannofossil zonations of Martini, E. [1971. Standard Tertiary and Quaternary calcareous nannoplankton zonation. In: Farinacci, A. (Ed.), Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Planktonic Microfossils Roma. Rome, Ed. Tecnosci. vol. 2, pp. 739–785], and Okada, H., and Bukry, D. [1980. Supplementary Modification and Introduction of Code Numbers to the Low-Latitude Coccolith Biostratigraphy Zonation (Bukry, 1973, 1975). Marine Micropaleontology 51, 321–325], as well as supplementary biohorizons proposed in the literature. The biohorizons have been selected on the basis of the unambiguous taxonomy of the index taxa and their biostratigraphic usefulness. We emphasise the application of rigorous methodology in nannofossil studies which permits an evaluation of biohorizons in terms of reliability, and calibrates their potential correlatability. Astrochronological age estimates rely on the Geologic timescale developed by the ICS in 2004, with some new calibrations included. We provide an overview of the relative position of biohorizons versus the astronomically calibrated ages of magnetic reversals and reference isotope stratigraphies. Surprisingly, there are still few high-resolution quantitative biostratigraphic studies of astrochronologically tuned sections in spite of the central role of such studies in addressing fundamental problems such as the tempo and mode of plankton evolution.

Luminescence dating comprises a collection of numerical-age techniques that are among the most significant chronological tools currently used in Quaternary research. This paper briefly reviews the key historical developments in luminescence dating, from its roots in thermoluminescence dating of heated minerals to the development of optical dating methods for sunlight-exposed sediments. We describe the principles and practicalities of the various techniques commonly used in luminescence dating, including multiple-aliquot, single-aliquot and single-grain procedures, and we discuss some of the latest approaches to recognising and minimising potential errors in age estimation (e.g., by means of component analysis and dose distribution methods in optical dating). The overview also introduces the other papers in this special issue of Quaternary Science Reviews , which address a selection of important issues in basic research, technique development and application of luminescence dating to critical questions in the geological and archaeological sciences, illustrated with examples from around the world and the last million years of Earth history.

Chironomids (non-biting midges) have been used in palaeoenvironmental studies in Eurasia since the 1920s. Initially changes in chironomid assemblages were largely interpreted as a response to changes in trophic status or water depth. It was only with the advent of chironomid-temperature inference models in the early 1990s that their potential as palaeoclimatic indicators was fully exploited. This paper provides a brief review of the pioneering studies but focuses on the most recent advances. Better taxonomic resolution of fossil midges, expansion of modern training sets, use of air temperature data derived from meteorological stations rather than surface-water temperature data, and Bayesian statistical approaches have lead to improvements in the performance of chironomid-temperature transfer functions. Applications of these transfer functions to derive chironomid-inferred temperature estimates from Lateglacial (ca 15,000–11,200 cal. yr BP) and Holocene (11,200 cal. yr BP to Present) sequences from throughout Eurasia are reviewed in this paper. Chironomid-inferred Lateglacial reconstructions closely reflect oxygen isotope records from Greenland ice cores. Holocene reconstructions are less consistent. Some closely follow instrumental records or corroborate other proxy data, while other reconstructions are less successful. As a result of soil development during the Holocene, changes in pH, nutrients, DO and DOC had a greater influence than temperature on the composition of some midge assemblages. One way to mitigate this is through consensus temperature reconstructions from several sites in the same region. The challenge for future workers is for further improvement in taxonomic resolution of sub-fossil chironomid larvae, to improve further the performance of chironomid-temperature inference models, to develop training sets for southern Europe and Russia and to improve our understanding of the ecological responses of chironomids.

This paper presents a new review of our knowledge of the ancient forest beetle fauna from Holocene archaeological and palaeoecological sites in Great Britain and Ireland. It examines the colonisation, dispersal and decline of beetle species, highlighting the scale and nature of human activities in the shaping of the landscape of the British Isles. In particular, the paper discusses effects upon the insect fauna, and examines in detail the fossil record from the Humberhead Levels, eastern England. It discusses the local extirpation of up to 40 species in Britain and 15 species in Ireland. An evaluation of the timing of extirpations is made, suggesting that many species in Britain disappear from the fossil record between ca 3000 and 1000 cal BC (ca 5000–3000 cal BP), although some taxa may well have survived until considerably later. In Ireland, there are two distinct trends, with a group of species which seem to be absent after ca 2000 cal BC (ca 4000 cal BP) and a further group which survives until at least as late as the medieval period. The final clearance of the Irish landscape over the last few hundred years was so dramatic, however, that some species which are not especially unusual in a British context were decimated. Reasons behind the extirpation of taxa are examined in detail, and include a combination of forest clearance and human activities, isolation of populations, lack of temporal continuity of habitats, edaphic and competition factors affecting distribution of host trees (particularly pine), lack of forest fires and a decline in open forest systems. The role of climate change in extirpations is also evaluated. Consideration is given to the significance of these specialised ancient forest inhabitants in Ireland in the absence of an early Holocene land-bridge which suggests that colonisation was aided by other mechanisms, such as human activities and wood rafting. Finally, the paper discusses the Continental origins of the British and Irish fauna and its hosts and the role played by European glacial refugia.

Isotope geochemistry is increasingly an essential part of environmental and climate change research and now routinely contributes to our understanding of many critical environmental problems, which span the whole of Earth system science and not least in palaeolimnology and limnogeology. The International Association of Limnogeology (http://www.ohio.edu/geology/ial/index.html) organizes an international conference every four years. The fifth International Limnogeology Congress, ILIC V, was held in Konstanz, Germany, from August 31st – September 3rd, 2011. During this congress we identified several papers where isotope methodologies were used in a particularly novel way, or provided an ‘added value’ data set. Many of these are brought together here in a series of state-of-the-art papers dealing with various aspects of isotopes in lake sediment archives.