Spelling suggestions: "subject:"tibetan plateau"" "subject:"tibetans plateau""
21 |
Kinematic Evolution, Metamorphism and Exhumation of the Greater Himalayan Sequence, Mount Everest Massif, Tibet/NepalJessup, Micah John 15 May 2007 (has links)
The Himalayan orogen provides an incredible natural laboratory to test models for continent-continent collision. The highest peaks of the Himalayas are composed of the Greater Himalayan Sequence (GHS), which is bound by a north-dipping low angle detachment fault above (South Tibetan detachment; STD) and by a thrust fault below (Main Central thrust; MCT). Assuming simultaneous movement on these features, the GHS can be modeled as a southward extruding wedge or channel. Channel flow models describe the coupling between mid-crustal flow, driven by gradients in lithostatic pressure between the Tibetan Plateau and the Indian plate, and focused denudation on the range front. Although the general geometry and shear sense criteria for these bounding shear zones has been documented, prior to this investigation, relatively few attempts had been made to quantify the spatial and temporal variation in flow path history for rocks from an exhumed section of the proposed mid-crustal channel. Results from this investigation demonstrate that mid-crustal flow at high deformation temperatures was distributed throughout the proposed channel. As these rocks began to exhume to shallower crustal conditions and therefore lower temperatures, deformation began to become partitioned away from the core of the channel and into the bounding shear zones. Based on these results a new method (Rigid Grain Net) to measure the relative contributions of pure and simple shear (vorticity) is proposed. Detailed thermobarometric analysis was conducted on rocks from the highest structural level in the Khumbu region, Nepal to construct pressure-temperature-time-deformation paths during the tectonic evolution of the GHS between ~32-16 Ma. Another aspect of the project suggests that the most active feature of the region is the N-S trending Ama Drime Massif (ADM). By combining new structural interpretation with existing remote sensing data this investigation proposes that the ADM is being exhumed during extension that is coupled with denudation in the trans-Himalayan Arun River gorge. Together these data provide important insights into the dynamic links between regional-scale climate and crustal-scale tectonics. / Ph. D.
|
22 |
Reconstructing climate variability on the Tibetan Plateau : comparing aquatic and terrestrial signalsWischnewski, Juliane January 2011 (has links)
Spatial and temporal temperature and moisture patterns across the Tibetan Plateau are very complex. The onset and magnitude of the Holocene climate optimum in the Asian monsoon realm, in particular, is a subject of considerable debate as this time period is often used as an analogue for recent global warming. In the light of contradictory inferences regarding past climate and environmental change on the Tibetan Plateau, I have attempted to explain mismatches in the timing and magnitude of change.
Therefore, I analysed the temporal variation of fossil pollen and diatom spectra and the geochemical record from palaeo-ecological records covering different time scales (late Quaternary and the last 200 years) from two core regions in the NE and SE Tibetan Plateau. For interpretation purposes I combined my data with other available palaeo-ecological data to set up corresponding aquatic and terrestrial proxy data sets of two lake pairs and two sets of sites. I focused on the direct comparison of proxies representing lacustrine response to climate signals (e.g., diatoms, ostracods, geochemical record) and proxies representing changes in the terrestrial environment (i.e., terrestrial pollen), in order to asses whether the lake and its catchments respond at similar times and magnitudes to environmental changes. Therefore, I introduced the established numerical technique procrustes rotation as a new approach in palaeoecology to quantitatively compare raw data of any two sedimentary records of interest in order to assess their degree of concordance.
Focusing on the late Quaternary, sediment cores from two lakes (Kuhai Lake 35.3°N; 99.2°E; 4150 m asl; and Koucha Lake 34.0°N; 97.2°E; 4540 m asl) on the semi-arid northeastern Tibetan Plateau were analysed to identify post-glacial vegetation and environmental changes, and to investigate the responses of lake ecosystems to such changes. Based on the pollen record, five major vegetation and climate changes could be identified: (1) A shift from alpine desert to alpine steppe indicates a change from cold, dry conditions to warmer and more moist conditions at 14.8 cal. ka BP, (2) alpine steppe with tundra elements points to conditions of higher effective moisture and a stepwise warming climate at 13.6 cal. ka BP, (3) the appearance of high-alpine meadow vegetation indicates a further change towards increased moisture, but with colder temperatures, at 7.0 cal. ka BP, (4) the reoccurrence of alpine steppe with desert elements suggests a return to a significantly colder and drier phase at 6.3 cal. ka BP, and (5) the establishment of alpine steppe-meadow vegetation indicates a change back to relatively moist conditions at 2.2 cal. ka BP. To place the reconstructed climate inferences from the NE Tibetan Plateau into the context of Holocene moisture evolution across the Tibetan Plateau, I applied a five-scale moisture index and average link clustering to all available continuous pollen and non-pollen palaeoclimate records from the Tibetan Plateau, in an attempt to detect coherent regional and temporal patterns of moisture evolution on the Plateau. However, no common temporal or spatial pattern of moisture evolution during the Holocene could be detected, which can be assigned to the complex responses of different proxies to environmental changes in an already very heterogeneous mountain landscape, where minor differences in elevation can result in marked variations in microenvironments.
Focusing on the past 200 years, I analysed the sedimentary records (LC6 Lake 29.5°N, 94.3°E, 4132 m asl; and Wuxu Lake 29.9°N, 101.1°E, 3705 m asl) from the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. I found that despite presumed significant temperature increases over that period, pollen and diatom records from the SE Tibetan Plateau reveal only very subtle changes throughout their profiles. The compositional species turnover investigated over the last 200 years appears relatively low in comparison to the species reorganisations during the Holocene. The results indicate that climatically induced ecological thresholds are not yet crossed, but that human activity has an increasing influence, particularly on the terrestrial ecosystem. Forest clearances and reforestation have not caused forest decline in our study area, but a conversion of natural forests to semi-natural secondary forests.
The results from the numerical proxy comparison of the two sets of two pairs of Tibetan lakes indicate that the use of different proxies and the work with palaeo-ecological records from different lake types can cause deviant stories of inferred change. Irrespective of the timescale (Holocene or last 200 years) or region (SE or NE Tibetan Plateau) analysed, the agreement in terms of the direction, timing, and magnitude of change between the corresponding terrestrial data sets is generally better than the match between the corresponding lacustrine data sets, suggesting that lacustrine proxies may partly be influenced by in-lake or local catchment processes whereas the terrestrial proxy reflects a more regional climatic signal. The current disaccord on coherent temporal and spatial climate patterns on the Tibetan Plateau can partly be ascribed to the complexity of proxy response and lake systems on the Tibetan Plateau. Therefore, a multi-proxy, multi-site approach is important in order to gain a reliable climate interpretation for the complex mountain landscape of the Tibetan Plateau. / Die räumlichen und zeitlichen Temperatur- und Feuchtigkeitsmuster auf dem Tibet-Plateau sind sehr komplex. Im Einzugsbereich der asiatischen Monsune sind insbesondere der Beginn und das Ausmaß des Klimaoptimums während des Holozäns von wissenschaftlichem Interesse, da diese Periode oft als Analogie für die derzeitige globale Klimaerwärmung herangezogen wird. In Hinblick auf sich teilweise widersprechende Paläoklima- und Umweltrekonstruktionen für das Tibet-Plateau, ist es mein Ziel, die bestehenden Unstimmigkeiten bezüglich des Zeitpunktes und des Ausmaßes des Umweltwandels zu erklären.
Dafür wurden von mir zeitliche Variationen fossiler Pollen- und Diatomeenspektren und geochemische Untersuchungen an Seesedimenten unterschiedlicher Zeitskalen (Spätquartär und die letzten 200 Jahre) aus zwei Kernregionen auf dem NO und SO Tibet-Plateau analysiert. Zur Unterstützung der Interpretation wurden die hier erhobenen Daten mit bereits vorhandenen paläoökologischen Aufzeichnungen der Lokalitäten kombiniert, um Datensätze der entsprechenden aquatischen und terrestrischen Proxy-Daten (Stellvertreterdaten) zweier Seenpaare aus den beiden Regionen gegenüberstellen zu können. Hierbei konzentrierte ich mich auf den direkten Vergleich von Proxies, die die Seenentwicklung reflektieren (z.B. Diatomeen, Ostracoden, geochemische Eigenschaften), mit Proxies, die Veränderungen der terrestrischen Umgebung des Sees beschreiben (terrestrische Pollen). Durch diesen Vergleich lässt sich beurteilen, ob Veränderungen im See selbst mit Umweltveränderungen in dem jeweiligen Einzugsgebiet zeitlich übereinstimmen. Dafür habe ich die bereits etablierte numerische Methode Procrustes-Rotation als neuen Ansatz in der Paläoökologie eingeführt. Damit ist ein quantitativer Vergleich von Rohdaten zweier beliebiger sedimentärer Datensätze möglich, um den Grad der Übereinstimmung zu prüfen.
Um die in dieser Arbeit rekonstruierten Umwelt- und Klimaereignisse des nordöstlichen Tibet-Plateaus in einen größeren Zusammenhang hinsichtlich holozäner Klimaentwicklung des gesamten Plateaus setzen zu können, und um schlüssige zeitliche und räumliche Klimatrends auf dem Plateau erkennen zu können, habe ich auf alle vorhandenen Paläoklimadatensätze einen Fünf-Skalen Feuchtigkeitsindex und eine Clusteranalyse angewandt. Es konnten jedoch keine einheitlichen zeitlichen und räumlichen Trends der holozänen Klimaentwicklung nachgewiesen werden, was meiner Analyse entsprechend, auf die komplexen Reaktionen verschiedener Proxies auf Umweltveränderungen in einer ohnehin sehr heterogen Berglandschaft, zurückgeführt werden kann.
Die Ergebnisse des numerischen Proxy-Vergleichs beider Seenpaare zeigen, dass die Verwendung von verschiedenen Proxies und die Arbeit mit paläo-ökologischen Datensätzen unterschiedlicher See-Typen zu abweichenden Klimaableitungen führen können. Unabhängig vom untersuchten Zeitraum (Holozän oder die letzten 200 Jahren) oder der Region (SO oder NO Tibet-Plateau), ist die Übereinstimmung zweier Datensätze hinsichtlich der Richtung, des Zeitpunktes und des Ausmaßes der abgeleiteten Paläo-Umweltverhältnisse in der Regel zwischen den entsprechenden terrestrischen Datensätzen besser als zwischen den entsprechenden lakustrinen Datensätzen. Die derzeitige Uneinigkeit über stimmige zeitliche und räumliche Klimatrends auf dem Tibet-Plateau kann daher teilweise der Komplexität der verschieden Proxies und ihrer individuellen Empfindlichkeiten gegenüber Umweltveränderungen sowie der unterschiedlichen Reaktionsweise verschiedenartiger See-Systeme auf dem Plateau zugeschrieben werden. Meine Ergebnisse zeigen, dass ein „Multi-Proxy-Multi-Site-Ansatz“ für zuverlässige Paläoklimaableitungen für das Tibet-Plateau von zentraler Bedeutung ist.
|
23 |
Late glacial to Holocene climate and vegetation changes on the Tibetan Plateau inferred from fossil pollen records in lacustrine sedimentsWang, Yongbo January 2011 (has links)
The past climate in central Asia, and especially on the Tibetan Plateau (TP), is of great importance for an understanding of global climate processes and for predicting the future climate. As a major influence on the climate in this region, the Asian Summer Monsoon (ASM) and its evolutionary history are of vital importance for accurate predictions. However, neither the evolutionary pattern of the summer monsoon nor the driving mechanisms behind it are yet clearly understood.
For this research, I first synthesized previously published Late Glacial to Holocene climatic records from monsoonal central Asia in order to extract the general climate signals and the associated summer monsoon intensities. New climate and vegetation sequences were then established using improved quantitative methods, focusing on fossil pollen records recovered from Tibetan lakes and also incorporating new modern datasets. The pollen-vegetation and vegetation-climate relationships on the TP were also evaluated in order to achieve a better understanding of fossil pollen records.
The synthesis of previously published moisture-related palaeoclimate records in monsoonal central Asia revealed generally different temporal patterns for the two monsoonal subsystems, i.e. the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) and East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM). The ISM appears to have experienced maximum wet conditions during the early Holocene, while many records from the area affected by the EASM indicate relatively dry conditions at that time, particularly in north-central China where the maximum moisture levels occurred during the middle Holocene. A detailed consideration of possible driving factors affecting the summer monsoon, including summer solar insolation and sea surface temperatures, revealed that the ISM was primarily driven by variations in northern hemisphere solar insolation, and that the EASM may have been constrained by the ISM resulting in asynchronous patterns of evolution for these two subsystems. This hypothesis is further supported by modern monsoon indices estimated using the NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis data from the last 50 years, which indicate a significant negative correlation between the two summer monsoon subsystems. By analogy with the early Holocene, intensification of the ISM during coming decades could lead to increased aridification elsewhere as a result of the asynchronous nature of the monsoon subsystems, as can already be observed in the meteorological data from the last 15 years.
A quantitative climate reconstruction using fossil pollen records was achieved through analysis of sediment core recovered from Lake Donggi Cona (in the north-eastern part of the TP) which has been dated back to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). A new data-set of modern pollen collected from large lakes in arid to semi-arid regions of central Asia is also presented herein. The concept of "pollen source area" was introduced to modern climate calibration based on pollen from large lakes, and was applied to the fossil pollen sequence from Lake Donggi Cona. Extremely dry conditions were found to have dominated the LGM, and a subsequent gradually increasing trend in moisture during the Late Glacial period was terminated by an abrupt reversion to a dry phase that lasted for about 1000 years and coincided with the first Heinrich Event of the northern Atlantic region. Subsequent periods corresponding to the warm Bølling-Allerød period and the Younger Dryas cold event were followed by moist conditions during the early Holocene, with annual precipitation of up to about 400 mm. A slightly drier trend after 9 cal ka BP was then followed by a second wet phase during the middle Holocene that lasted until 4.5 cal ka BP. Relatively steady conditions with only slight fluctuations then dominated the late Holocene, resulting in the present climatic conditions.
In order to investigate the relationship between vegetation and climate, temporal variations in the possible driving factors for vegetation change on the northern TP were examined using a high resolution late Holocene pollen record from Lake Kusai. Moving-window Redundancy Analyses (RDAs) were used to evaluate the correlations between pollen assemblages and individual sedimentary proxies. These analyses have revealed frequent fluctuations in the relative abundances of alpine steppe and alpine desert components, and in particular a decrease in the total vegetation cover at around 1500 cal a BP. The climate was found to have had an important influence on vegetation changes when conditions were relatively wet and stable. However, after the 1500 cal a BP threshold in vegetation cover was crossed the vegetation appears to have been affected more by extreme events such as dust storms or fluvial erosion than by the general climatic trends. In addition, pollen spectra over the last 600 years have been revealed by Procrustes analysis to be significantly different from those recovered from older samples, which is attributed to an increased human impact that resulted in unprecedented changes to the composition of the vegetation.
Theoretical models that have been developed and widely applied to the European area (i.e. the Extended R-Value (ERV) model and the Regional Estimates of Vegetation Abundance from Large Sites (REVEALS) model) have been applied to the high alpine TP ecosystems in order to investigate the pollen-vegetation relationships, as well as for quantitative reconstructions of vegetation abundance. The modern pollen–vegetation relationships for four common pollen species on the TP have been investigated using Poaceae as the reference taxa. The ERV Submodel 2 yielded relatively high PPEs for the steppe and desert taxa (Artemisia Chenopodiaceae), and low PPEs for the Cyperaceae that are characteristic of the alpine Kobresia meadows. The plant abundances on the central and north-eastern TP were quantified by applying these PPEs to four post-Late Glacial fossil pollen sequences. The reconstructed vegetation assemblages for the four pollen sequences always yielded smaller compositional species turnovers than suggested by the pollen spectra, indicating that the strength of the previously-reported vegetation changes may therefore have been overestimated.
In summary, the key findings of this thesis are that (a) the two ASM subsystems show asynchronous patterns during both the Holocene and modern time periods, (b) fossil pollen records from large lakes reflect regional signals for which the pollen source areas need to be taken into account, (c) climate is not always the main driver for vegetation change, and (d) previously reported vegetation changes on the TP may have been overestimated because they ignored inter-species variations in pollen productivity. / Das Paläoklima in Zentralasien, besonders in der Hochebene von Tibet (HT), ist von großer Bedeutung um globale Klimaprozesse zu verstehen und mögliche Voraussagung für die zukunft zu treffen. Als wichtigstes Klimaphänomen nehmen der asiatische Sommermonsun (ASM) und seine Entwicklungsgeschichte eine Schlüsselposition ein. Dennoch sind derzeit weder das Entwicklungsschema noch der antreibende Vorgang ausreichend verstanden. Dies gilt insbesondere für das Holozän, für welches große Kimaschwankungen und regionale Diskrepanzen weithin belegt sind.
Deshalb habe ich zuerst holozäne Klimadaten zusammengefasst. Bereits veröffentlichte Publikationen aus den Monsungebieten Zentralasiens dienten als Grundlage, um die wichtigsten Klimasignale und die zugehörigen Intensitäten des Sommermonsuns heraus zu arbeiten. Anhand von Pollensequenzen aus tibetischen Seen erzeugte ich neue Klima- und Vegetationssequenzen, welche auf verbesserten quantitativen Methoden und rezenten Datensätzen beruhen. Außerdem wurden die Verhältnisse Pollen-Vegetation und Vegetation-Klima bewertet, um Schlussfolgerungen fossiler Pollensequenzen zu verbessern.
Die Zusammenfassung der zuvor veröffentlichten, niederschlagsbezogenen Paläoklimadaten im Monsungebiet Zentralasiens ergab generell unterschiedliche Muster für die zwei Teilsysteme des ASMs, den Indischen Sommermonsun (ISM) und den Ostasiatischen Sommermonsun (OASM). Der ISM weist maximale feuchte Bedingungen während des frühen Holozöns auf, während viele Datensätze aus dem Gebiet des OASMs einen relativ trockenen Zustand anzeigen, besonders im nördlichen Zentralchina, wo maximale Niederschläge während des mittleren Holozäns registriert wurden. Genaue Betrachtungen der Antriebsfaktoren des Sommermonsuns ergaben, dass der ISM hauptsächlich durch Veränderungen der Sonneneinstrahlung auf der Nordhemisphäre angetrieben wird, während der OASM potentiell durch den ISM beherrscht wird - dies führt zu asynchronen Entwicklungen. Diese Hypothese wird durch rezente Monsunindizes gestützt. Sie weisen eine signifikant negative Korrelation zwischen den beiden Sommermonsun-Teilsystemen auf.
Für die quantitative Klimarekonstruktion von Pollensequenzen wurde ein Sedimentkern aus dem See Donggi Cona im Nordosten der HT analysiert, der bis zum letzten glazialen Maximum (LGM) zurückdatiert wurde. Aufgrund der Tatsache, dass Donggi Cona ein relativ großer See ist, wird hiermit ein neuer Pollen-Klima-Kalibrierungsdatensatz auf Grundlage großer Seen in ariden und semiariden Regionen Zentralasiens vorgelegt. Das Konzept des Pollenherkunftsgebietes wurde in diese rezente, pollenbasierte Klimakalibrierung eingebracht und auf die Pollensequenz von Donggi Cona angewendet. Die Auswertung ergab, dass extrem trockene Bedingungen während des LGM (ca. 100 mm/yr) vorherrschten. Ein ansteigender Trend von Niederschlägen während des späten Glazials wurde durch einen abrupten Rückgang zu einer etwa 1000-jährigen Trockenphase beendet, welche mit Heinrich-Ereignis 1 in der Nordatlantik-Region übereinstimmt. Danach entsprechen die Klimaperioden dem warmen Bølling/Allerød und dem Kälteereignis der Jüngeren Dryas. Anschließend herrschten feuchte Bedingungen im frühen Holozän (bis zu 400 mm/yr). Ein etwas trockenerer Trend nach dem Holozänen Klimaoptimum wurde dann von einer zweiten Feuchtphase abgelöst, welche bis 4,5 cal. ka vor heute andauerte. Relativ gleichmäßige Bedingungen dominierten das späte Holozän bis heute. Die Klimadynamik seit dem LGM wurde vor allem durch Entgletscherung und Intensitätsschwankungen des ASM bestimmt.
Bei der Betrachtung des Vegetation-Klima-Verhältnisses habe ich die zeitlichen Variationen der bestimmenden Faktoren hinsichtlich der Vegetationsdynamik auf der nördlichen HT untersucht. Dabei wurden hochauflösende holozäne Pollendaten des Kusai-Sees verwendet. Eine Redundanzanalyse (RDA) wurde angewendet um die Korrelation zwischen Pollenvergesellschaftungen und individuellen sedimentären Klimaanzeigern als auch die damit verbundene Signifikanz zu bewerten. Es stellte sich heraus, dass das Klima einen wichtigen Einfluss auf den Veränderungen in der Vegetation besaß, wenn die Bedingungen relativ warm und feucht waren. Trotzdem scheint es, dass, dass die Vegetation bei zu geringer Bedeckung stärker durch Extremereignisse wie Staubstürme oder fluviale Erosion beeinflusst wurde. Pollenspektren der vergangen 600 Jahre erwiesen sich als signifikant unterschiedlich verglichen mit den älterer Proben, was auf verstärkten anthropogenen Einfluss hindeutet. Dieser resultierte in einem beispiellosen Wandel in der Zusammensetzung der Vegetation.
In Hinsicht auf das Pollen-Vegetation-Verhältnis und der quantitativen Rekonstruktion der Vegetationshäufigkeit habe ich theoretische Modelle, welche für europäische Regionen entwickelt und weithin angewendet wurden, respektive die Modelle "Extended R-Value" (ERV) sowie "Regional Estimates of Vegetation Abundance from Large Sites" (REVEALS), auf die hochalpinen Ökosysteme der HT überführt. Dafür wurden rezente Pollen-Vegetations-Verhältnisse von vier weit verbreiteten Pollen-Arten der HT überprüft. Poaceae wurden als Referenztaxa verwendet. Bei der Anwendung dieser Verhältnisse auf vier Pollensequenzen, welche die Paläoumweltbedingungen seit dem letzten Glazial widerspiegeln, wurden die Häufigkeiten von Pflanzen auf der zentralen und nordöstlichen HT quantifiziert. Anteile von Artimisia und Chenopodiaceae waren dabei im Vergleich zu ihren ursprünglichen Pollenprozenten deutlich verringert. Cyperaceae hingegen wies eine relative Zunahme in dieser Vegetationsrekonstruktion auf. Die rekonstruierten Vegetationsvergesellschaftungen an den Standorten der vier Pollensequenzen ergaben stets geringere Umwälzungen in der Artenzusammensetzung, als durch die Pollenspektren zu vermuten gewesen wäre. Dies kann ein Hinweis darauf sein, dass die Intensität der bislang angenommenen Vegetationsveränderungen überschätzt worden ist.
Zusammengefasst sind die Hauptresultate dieser Dissertation, dass (a) die zwei ASM Teilsysteme asynchrone Muster während des Holozäns und heute aufweisen, dass (b) fossile Pollensequenzen großer Seen regionale Klimasignale widerspiegeln sofern die Herkunftsgebiete der Pollen berücksichtigt werden, dass (c) Klima nicht immer der Haupteinflussfaktor für Vegetationswandel ist und dass (d) das Ausmaß von Vegetationsveränderungen in zuvor veröffentlichten Studien auf der Hochebene von Tibet überschätzt worden sein kann, weil Diskrepanzen der Pollenproduktivität zwischen den Arten nicht einbezogen wurden.
|
24 |
Pikas, Grasslands, and Pastoralists: Understanding the Roles of Plateau Pikas in a Coupled Social-Ecological SystemJanuary 2016 (has links)
abstract: The plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae), a small burrowing lagomorph that occupies the high alpine grassland ecosystems of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in western China, remains a controversial subject among policymakers and researchers. One line of evidence points to pikas being a pest, which has led to massive attempts to eradicate pika populations. Another point of view is that pikas are a keystone species and an ecosystem engineer in the grassland ecosystem of the QTP. The pika eradication program raises a difficult ethical and religious dilemma for local pastoralists, and is criticized for not being supported by scientific evidence. Complex interactions between pikas, livestock, and habitat condition are poorly understood. My dissertation research examines underpinning justifications of the pika poisoning program leading to these controversies. I investigated responses of pikas to habitat conditions with field experimental manipulations, and mechanisms of pika population recovery following pika removal. I present policy recommendations based on an environmental ethics framework and findings from the field experiments. After five years of a livestock grazing exclusion experiment and four years of pika monitoring, I found that grazing exclusion resulted in a decline of pika habitat use, which suggests that habitat conditions determine pika population density. I also found that pikas recolonized vacant burrow systems following removal of residents, but that distances travelled by dispersing pikas were extremely short (~50 m). Thus, current pika eradication programs, if allowed to continue, could potentially compromise local populations as well as biodiversity conservation on the QTP. Lethal management of pikas is a narrowly anthropocentric-based form of ecosystem management that has excluded value-pluralism, such as consideration of the intrinsic value of species and the important ecological role played by pikas. These conflicting approaches have led to controversies and policy gridlock. In response, I suggest that the on-going large-scale pika eradication program needs reconsideration. Moderation of stocking rates is required in degraded pika habitats, and Integrated Pest Management may be required when high stocking rate and high pika density coexist. A moderate level of livestock and pika density can be consistent with maintaining the integrity and sustainability of the QTP alpine steppe ecosystem. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Biology 2016
|
25 |
Tibetan pasture degradation under the impact of global change: Consequences for carbon and nutrient cycles and recovery strategiesLiu, Shibin 13 July 2017 (has links)
No description available.
|
26 |
Geological structural control on landslide and gravitational slope deformation in response to fluvial incision along the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, China / 河川侵食によって生じる地すべりと重力斜面変形:中国チベット高原東縁部における地質構造規制Zhao, Siyuan 25 March 2019 (has links)
京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(理学) / 甲第21577号 / 理博第4484号 / 新制||理||1644(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院理学研究科地球惑星科学専攻 / (主査)教授 千木良 雅弘, 教授 釜井 俊孝, 准教授 松四 雄騎 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Science / Kyoto University / DGAM
|
27 |
Petrological and stable isotopic study of lacustrine and paleosol carbonates: Implications for paleoelevation and tectonic evolution of the Tibetan PlateauLi, Shanying 25 April 2016 (has links)
No description available.
|
28 |
An integrated metamorphic and geochronological study of the south-eastern Tibetan plateauWeller, Owen M. January 2014 (has links)
The Tibetan plateau is a vast, elevated region located in central Asia, which is underlain by the thickest crust known on Earth (up to 90 km). An outstanding question of importance to many fields within geology is how and why did the Tibetan plateau form? Models attribute the growth of the plateau to a consequence of the ongoing India-Asia continental collision, but differ in the details of how the crustal thickening was accommodated: was it by underplating of Indian lower crust or by homogeneous shortening? High-grade metamorphic rocks sampled from the region potentially hold the key to answering this question, as they contain a record of past tectonic events that can discriminate between the various proposed models. This record can be decoded by integrating field, thermobarometric and geochronological techniques, to elucidate a detailed thermotectonic understanding of a region. This methodology was applied to three case studies, each of which targeted rare tectonic windows into the mid-crust of the plateau. These regions comprise Danba in eastern Tibet, Basong Tso in south-eastern Tibet and the Western Nyainqentanglha in southern Tibet. Each case study documents previously unreported metamorphic events that have allowed original interpretations to be made regarding tectonic evolution: in Danba, all metamorphism is shown to be early Jurassic; in Basong Tso, two metamorphic belts are documented that reveal a late Triassic--early Jurassic orogenic event; and in the Western Nyainqengtanglha, Cretaceous--Neogene magmatism is shown to overprint late Triassic metamorphism. Integration of the results has enabled commentary on the large scale evolution of the Tibetan plateau from the Permian until the present day, and even hinted at its future. The results indicate that the closure of the Paleotethys played an important role in the construction of the Tibetan plateau, and suggest that homogeneous crustal thickening is not a viable model for the documented exposure levels.
|
29 |
Déformation polyphasée et importance de l'héritage structural dans les longmen shan (sichuan, chine) : apports d'une approche couplée entre géophysique et géologie / Polyphased deformation and importance of the structural inheritance in the Longmen Shan (Sichuan, China) : contributions from a coupled study between geophysics and geologyRobert, Alexandra 01 September 2011 (has links)
L'objectif de cette thèse est de comprendre la formation, la structuration et les processus de réactivation d'une chaîne de montagne intracontinentale atypique : les Longmen Shan, situés dans la province du Sichuan, en Chine. Localisés à la limite entre le craton du Yangtze où s'est déposé le bassin du Sichuan (au Sud-Est) et le bloc du Songpan Garze appartenant au plateau tibétain (au Nord-Ouest), les Longmen Shan se sont majoritairement structurés lors de l'orogénèse indosinienne, à la fin du Trias et ont ensuite subit plusieurs réactivations.Cette chaîne de montagne est donc un endroit privilégié pour étudier la réactivation et l'héritage structural et thermique d'une structure intracontinentale, en relation étroite avec la formation et l'évolution du plateau tibétain. Tout d'abord, pour contraindre les paramètres crustaux, une imagerie crustale détaillée le long d'une coupe à travers cette chaîne est proposée. Une réseau sismologique de 35 stations a été déployé pendant plus de 2 ans le long d'un profil dense. La technique des fonctions récepteurs a été appliquée et les données gravimétriques ont été utilisées conjointement pour renforcer l'imagerie obtenue. Un saut de Moho abrupt de 20km a été imagé, entre une croûte tibétaine épaisse d'environ 63km et la croûte du craton du Yangtze , épaisse de 45km. Ce résultat traduit la confrontation de deux lithosphères d'épaisseurs et de propriétés physiques contrastées. Les rapports Vp/Vs ainsi que les mesures d'anisotropie crustale et mantellique ont montré l'absence d'une zone à faible vitesse ou d'une zone de fluage important au sein de la croûte, ce qui réfute les modèles de déformation de la croûte tibétaine impliquant un chenal de déformation au sein de la croûte tibétaine. L'imagerie crustale a donc mis en évidence un important contraste à l'échelle lithosphérique. Le second axe de ce travail a consisté à étudier cette région à plus long terme en menant une étude stratigraphique, tectonique et métamorphique afin de déduire l'importance de l'héritage géologique dans sa structuration actuelle. Dès le début du Paléozoïque, la marge passive qui sera ensuite inversée présentait déja probablement une variation abrupte de l'épaisseur crustale. Un premier contraste d'épaisseur lithosphérique au niveau des Longmen Shan se situaient donc à la limite entre deux domaines paléogéographiques différents. A la fin du Trias, lors de la fermeture de la Paléotéthys, l'épais prisme sédimentaire du Songpan Garze a débordé sur la marge passive de la bordure Ouest du craton du Yangtze, dans la région des Longmen Shan. Cependant, il n'y a aucune évidence de subduction dans cette chaîne et le métamorphisme associé à cette phase de déformation correspond à des moyennes températures (jusqu'à plus de 600°C) pour des pressions relativement modestes. Les données métamorphiques ont montré un pic de pression (relativement faible, inférieur à 8kbar) suivi d'un pic de température pouvant conduire à une migmatisation associée à une exhumation variable en fonction de la localisation au sein de la chaîne. Les variations latérales de l'exhumation sont interprétées comme directement associées à la dynamique de la mise en place de la nappe du Songpan Garze sur la marge Ouest du craton du Yangtze. L'apex des Longmen Shan correspond donc au front de la nappe du Songpan Garze et délimite deux domaines structuraux et métamorphiques contrastés.Cette étude met en évidence une phase de réactivation à la fin du Crétacé de la chaîne, probablement associée à la rotation dans le sens horaire du craton du Yangtze. Enfin, la dernière phase de déformation affectant les Longmen Shan est une répercussion de la collision entre l'Inde et l'Eurasie qui fini de structurer cette chaîne.Nous avons donc montré qu'une limite paléogéographique majeure, héritée d'une structure en marge passive transtensive peut subir le débordement de nappes sédimentaires provenant d'un prisme distant de très grande taille. Ce débordement a provoqué une inversion de relief et un surépaississement crustal en conséquence de la superposition de ces épaisses nappes. Une fois cette limite tectonique formée, la région va subir plusieurs réactivations liées à des déformations annexes comme l'orogénèse Yanshanienne ou la collision entre l'Inde et l'Eurasie. Cette chaîne est encore active aujourd'hui comme l'a démontré le séisme du Sichuan du 12 Mai 2008 qui a eu lieu dans les Longmen Shan avec des caractéristiques atypiques. / The aim of this study is to understand formation, evolution and reactivation processes of an atypic intracontinental mountain range : the Longmen Shan (Sichuan, China). The Longmen Shan are located at the boundary between the Yangtze craton and the tibetan crust and were mostly formed during the indosinian orogeny, at the end of the Triassic. After this orogeny, the Longmen Shan were reactivated by several deformation phases. This mountain range is a key area to study reactivation processes and structural and thermal inheritance. Furthermore, the Longmen Shan tectonic history is linked with the formation and the evolution of the Tibetan Plateau.At first, a detailed seismological imagery was performed along a cross-section through the Longmen Shan, passing by the epicenter of the Sichuan earthquake. 35 seismological stations were deployed during more than 2 years with a small interstation distance. Using the receiver function method and gravimetric data, a steep Moho step of about 20km between the 63km-thick Tibetan crust and the 45km-thick Yangtze craton was imaged. This geometry is the result of the confrontation between the thick and soft tibetan lithosphere abutting the resistant Yangtze lithosphere. Vp/Vs ratio and crustal and mantellic anisotropic measurements indicate that there is no extensive zone of partial melting inside the tibetan crust, which is in disagreement with models that proposed the occurence of a channel flow inside the crust. The second part of this word was focused on the long-term study of the deformation in the Longmen Shan using stratigraphic, tectonic and metamorphic data. This part highlights the importance of the geological inheritance in the present-day crustal geometry of the mountain range. Since the beginning of the Paleozoïc, the Western passive margin of the Yangtze crust was probably already associated with a crustal thickness step, as a consequence of the transtensive openning context. The Longmen Shan were located at a paleogeographic boundary. At the end of the Triassic, the closure of the Paleotethys is responsible of the formation of the thick Songpan Garze accretionary wedge which overflowed on the Western part of the Yangtze craton margin, in the Longmen Shan area. There is no evidence of subduction in this belt and the associated metamorphism consists of middle temperatures and relatively low pressures. Metamorphic data indicates that a pressure maximum (lower than 8kbar) was followed by a temperature maximum which could be associated with partial melting, as observed in Danba metamorphic complexe. Lateral variations of the recorded exhumation are interpreted as a consequence of the dynamics of the setting up of the Songpan Garze nappe on the Yangtze craton margin. The Longmen Shan are located at the front of the Songpan Garze nappe and marks a transition zone between two contrasted tectonic and metamorphic provinces.This study highlights a cretaceous reactivation phase probably associated with the clockwise rotation of the Yangtze craton. At the end, the last deformation phase is a consequence of the India/Eurasia collision.The Longmen Shan were a major paleogeographic boundary at the end of the Paleozoïc which were subject to the overflow of the thick Songpan Garze accretionary wedge. This overflow is responsible of a relief inversion and a crustal thickenning as a consequence of superposition of the sedimentary pile. After this episode, the region will be reactivated by the distant Yanshanian and the Himalayan orogenies.
|
30 |
Ecology of alpine plants in NW Himalaya. / Ecology of alpine plants in NW Himalaya.DVORSKÝ, Miroslav January 2014 (has links)
The westernmost spur of the Tibetan Plateau stretches to Eastern Ladakh in India. It is a region which remains poorly explored because of challenging conditions and long periods of political instability. At the same time, it is one of the highest places on earth supporting angiosperm life, which goes beyond 6000 m a.s.l. here. The whole region, due its remoteness, is practically unaffected by plant invasions and direct human activities. Thus, Ladakh represents a kind of "natural experiment", providing very long gradient of elevation suitable for comparative functional ecology as well as for testing various hypotheses concerning limitations of vascular plants. Arid climate and extreme elevations are the common factors. Our team pursued the goal of systematic botanical and ecological exploration of Ladakh, started by late Leoš Klimeš. This thesis provides insight into the main vegetation types, clonality in plants, plant-plant interactions and soil phototroph communities.
|
Page generated in 0.0763 seconds