Publication
Environmental change since the Last Glacial Maximum: palaeo‐evidence from the Nee Soon Freshwater Swamp Forest, Singapore
Publisher:
Wiley
Date:
15-12-2021
DOI:
10.1002/JQS.3403
Abstract: Our examination of pollen, microcharcoal, and sediment material in Nee Soon Freshwater Sw Forest in Singapore revealed the following regarding its more than 20 000‐year history: (1) the pollen record supports the presence of a savanna corridor in this part of South‐East Asia during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (2) a high abundance of charcoal at depths greater than 1.5 m supports the existence of a dryer climate and/or more frequent fires until about 18 000 cal bp (3) missing sedimentary material in the upper 30–40 cm, ranging in age from 64 to 7500 cal bp , was likely removed during recent construction work in the 1950s (4) there is evidence of sea‐level influences on the site from the presence of mangroves from 9000 cal bp to present but it is difficult to determine whether this impacted the site because of the missing sediments and (5) the low organic carbon content throughout the stratigraphy indicates that the sw is not a peatland. The results indicate that the forest in this protected area of Singapore developed from a grassland‐dominated landscape after the LGM as the climate warmed and became wetter, and therefore, may not be as resilient to long‐term drought conditions as previously believed. Further, the stratigraphy contains evidence that the sw and stream system have been highly dynamic, both naturally and in response to anthropogenic disturbance.