The Loch Lomond Advance limits and raised marine shorelines in N. W. Argyll have been mapped and surveyed. Radiocarbon dated Lateglacial and Postglacial pollen sites at Salen and Loch Shiel provide the vegetational history and chronology for the area. 14 Loch Lomond Advance glacier termini and associated limits were mapped using the distribution of hummocky and fluted moraine, together with a survey of erratic boulders. 83% of the reconstructed former glaciers had a southerly aspect relating to southerly snow-bearing winds. The average firnline gradient was 7.5m/km increasing in altitude towards the north-east; the average firnline height for the area was 369m. The Main Lateglacial Shoreline, formed during the Loch Lomond Stadial, slopes towards 270 with a gradient of 0.15m/km from 9m in the east to Om in the west of the area. It was formed by freeze-thaw action operating under exceptional conditions, and its formation was influenced by rock type. Two Postglacial shorelines are recognized : the Main Postglacial shoreline that slopes towards 270, from 14m to 8m with a gradient of 0.06m/km, and a lower shoreline at approximately 5m which has no definite gradient. An absolute Lateglacial pollen site at Salen, Ardnamurchan, shows an early pioneer community of Rumex, Salix, Gramineae and Cyperaceae species being replaced by an Empetrum heath during the Lateglacial Interstadial. Subsequent stadial conditions are reflected by open herb communities and the onset of coarse minerogenic sedimentation. This minerogenic influx ceased around 10,000 to 9,700 B.P. with a rapid recolonization of the surrounding area by pioneer herbs, then dwarf shrub and finally deciduous woodland. Middle and Late Postglacial vegetational development is recorded by lacustrine sediments from Loch Shiel where the fossil pollen record shows that a mixed deciduous woodland of Quercus, Alnus, Betula and Corylus was progressively cleared by man. Palaeomagnetic and chemical records were obtained from the site. The Main Postglacial Transgression flooded Loch Shiel resulting in the deposition of shells of the marine bivlave Thyasira flexonosa.

<p> An open Quercus-dominated vegetation association, known locally as the oak plains, was found at a number of locations in southern Ontario until disturbance by European settlers in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Two contrasting theories have been suggested in the literature regarding the origin of the oak plains. One suggests they developed as the result of burning by pre-European natives, while the other considers them to be relics of a warmer, drier mid-Holocene climate. In this paper, the factors which led to the development of the oak plains are examined. The hypothesis that the oak plains resulted from native burning of the natural vegetation was tested by pollen analysis of a 5 m sediment core from Decoy Lake, a small kettle basin near Paris, Ontario located in an area mapped by early surveyors as oak plains. The Decoy Lake record was then compared to those of two nearby lakes supporting mesic forests. This palaeoecological analysis was supported by an investigation of physical factors controlling the historical distribution of the oak plains in a study area between Cambridge and Long Point on Lake Erie. </p> <p> The distribution of the oak plains and other vegetation associations in pre-settlement times, reconstructed from early survey records, correlated fairly well with the texture of soils and underlying Quaternary parent materials. Within the defined study area, the oak plains were restricted almost exclusively to well-drained soils overlying coarse-textured till and sandy outwash and deltaic deposits. Climatic factors and topography varied within the study area, but showed little correlation with the distribution of vegetation associations. <p> <p> The fossil pollen record at Decoy Lake indicates that a QuercusPinus- herb pollen assemblage, unique to southern Ontario, was found from 4000 yr BP until pre-settlement times. This suggests that the oak plains have existed in the area for at least 4000 years. The oak plains replaced an assemblage dominated by Pinus strobus. The warm, dry Hypsithermal appears to have allowed Pinus strobus to remain dominant on the well drained soils around Decoy Lake until after 5000 yr BP, 2000 to 3000 years longer than at other southern Ontario sites. The Picea zone (11,800 yr BP to 10,100 yr B P), Pin us banksiana/resinosa zone ( 10,100 yr BP to c. 9000 yr BP), and the replacement of Pinus banksiana/resinosa by Pinus strobus (c. 9000 yr BP) occurred contemporaneously with other records from southern Ontario. </p> <p> The hypothesis that anthropogenic factors resulted in the development of the oak plains was rejected since this association developed 2500 years before the onset of agricultural activity by natives in southern Ontario. Instead, it appears post-Hypsithermal increases in moisture, perhaps coupled with an amelioration of winter temperatures, led to the replacement of Pinus strobus by the oak plains in some areas of well-drained soils between 6300 yr BP and 4000 yr BP. The pollen record from Decoy Lake provides the first evidence from southern Ontario for substantial vegetation response to mid to late Holocene climatic change. </p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Postglacial activity on the Askja volcanic system, north Iceland, has been dominated by basaltic volcanism. Over 80% of Askja's postglacial basalts fall within a relatively narrow compositional range containing between 4 and 8 wt.% MgO. The 'main series' is further divided into two groups separated by a distinct compositional gap evident in major and trace element concentrations. The most evolved basalts formed by fractional crystallisation within shallow magma reservoirs, followed by the extraction of residual liquid from a semi-rigid, interconnected crystal network. This process is analogous to the formation of melt segregations within single lava flows, and was responsible for generating several small-volume, aphyric basaltic lavas erupted along caldera ring fractures surrounding the Oskjuvatn (Askja lake) caldera in the early 20th century. Further examples of evolved basalt are found throughout Askja's postglacial volcanic record. However, Askja's early postglacial output is dominated by more primitive compositions. Some of the most primitive basalts erupted within the Askja caldera are found in phreatomagmatic tuff cone sequences which crop out in the walls of Oskjuvatn caldera. one such tuff sequence has been dated at between 2.9 and 3.6 ka. This tuff cone shares geochemical source characteristics, such as Nb/La and Nb/Zr, with basaltic tephras erupted during precursory activity to the Plinian-phreatoplinian eruption of 28th-29th March 1875. It may therefore be considered to be compositionally representative of the primitive basaltic magmas supplied to Askja during the postglacial period. The predominance of relatively primitive basalt (6.8 wt.% MgO) within Askia's postglacial lava succession suggests that it did not have a permanent shallow magma chamber during the postglacial period. It is envisaged that the postglacial Askja magmas evolved by a process of polybaric factionation in transient, sill-like magma storage zones located at various levels in the crust. The most primitive magmas erupted directly from deeper reservoirs, while the more evolved magmas experienced longer crustal residence times. The buoyant rise of volatile-enriched melt from these sill-like bodies, without mobilising phenocryst phases, explains the observation that almost all lavas on Askja's eastern and southern lava aprons are essentially aphyric. The 28th-29th March 1975 eruption marked the climax of a volcanotectonic episode on the Askja volanic system lasting from late 1874 to early 1876. Fissure eruptions also occurred at the Sveinagja graben, 45-65 km north of Askja, between February and October 1875, producing the Nyjahraun lava. A strong similarity exists between whole-rock major element concentrations from Myjahraun and the Askja 20th century basalts. This has led to the suggestion that these basalts originated from a common shallow magma reservoir beneath Askja central volcano, with the Nyjahraun eruptions being fed by a lateral dyke extending northwards from Askja. This theory also offers an explanation for the observation that the volume of phyolitic ejecta from 28th-29th March 1875 is significantly less than the volume of Oskjuvatn caldera, which was formed as a result of this eruption. New major and trace element data from whole-rock and glass samples indicated that Nyjahraun and the Askja 20th century basalts did not share a common parental magma. A detailed investigation of historical accounts from explorers and scientists who visited Askja between 1875 and 1932 reveals that Oskjuvatn caldera took over 40 years to reach its current form, and that its size in 1876 was equal to the volume erupted on 28th-29th March 1875. Small injections of magma into an igneous intrusion complex beneath Askja, coupled with background deflation, are sufficient to provide the required accommodation space for continued caldera collapse after 1876. Lateral flow is therefore not required to explain the volume of Oskjuvatn caldera, nor the eruption of evolved basaltic magma on the Askja volcanic system in 1875. It has been conjectured that the Holuhraun lava, located at the southern tip of the Askja volcanic system, was also connected with the 1874-76 Askja volcanotectonic episode. However, major and trace element data from whole-rock samples, glass and melt inclusions receal the Holuhraun is geochemically more similar to basalts erupted on the Bardarbunga-Veidivotn volcanic system than to postglacial basalts from Askja. The division between the 'Askja' and 'Veidivotn' geochemical signatures appears to be linked to east-west-striking lineations in the region south of Askja. This indicates that a particular geochemical signature is not necessarily confined to the tectonic expression of a single volcanic system, and has important implications for the identification and delineation of individual volcanic systems beneath the northwest sector of Vatnajokull.

The Coast Mountains in British Columbia contain over 10,000 km2 of glacial ice. While these glaciers have lost significant mass since the Little Ice Age (LIA; around 300 years before present), the melting rate has significantly increased over the past decade, likely due to the effects of climate change. The purpose of this study was to develop an approach to quantifying the isostatic response to LIA glacier change and investigate how it can further our understanding of the Earth’s rheology through GIA modelling. The Coast Mountains in southwestern British Columbia were chosen due to their significant ice mass loss since the LIA, their location in a tectonically active region, which includes a volcanic arc, and the presence of information of vertical land motion. The GIA models in this study use a wide range of Earth rheological parameters that are then constrained through comparison to observations of vertical land motion in the region. The study used available Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) vertical velocity data as the observable from seven GNSS sites in southwestern BC, using a combination of Western Canada Deformation Array (WCDA) and British Columbia Active Control System (BCACS) GNSS stations. Raw data were analyzed using the GIPSY 6.4 software following the Precise Point Positioning processing strategy. Two ice load histories were developed based on gridded estimates of present-day ice thicknesses in the region in order to simulate the change in the surface loading as the glacial ice mass fluctuates over time. Ice Load A used a simple uniform thickness change profile over 3 time-steps based on extrapolated modern melt rates. Ice Load B is more complex and utilized a published profile of glacier change through time basing the magnitude of volume changes on the volume-area scaling relationship with a range of coefficient values. This allowed for a range of ice change magnitudes to be tested. The Earth models used were spherically symmetric Preliminary Reference Earth Models (PREM). Their viscosity structure is based on VM5a for the transition zone and lower mantle, but with variable lithospheric thickness and asthenospheric viscosity. The goodness of fit for the modeled velocities were compared to the observed velocities using a normalized RMS (NRMS) statistic. Ice Load A models had a best fitting lithospheric thickness of 50 km and an asthenospheric viscosity of 2×1019 Pa s. For all variations of Ice Load B, the best fitting model parameters had lithospheric thicknesses ranging from 45 km to 55 km and asthenospheric viscosities between 6×1018 Pa s and 3×1019 Pa s. Corrected GNSS vertical velocity observations were tested to check the effects of interseismic vertical signal and assumed residual GIA from the Cordilleran Ice Sheet. However, the corrections did not improve the NRMS fit. Overall, the asthenospheric viscosity results from this study overlap with all the ranges found in the previous studies while lithospheric thicknesses agree with some past studies. The results of this study generally align with previous work and the current understanding of the Coast Mountains region and can inform a future round of sea-level projections for the region as ice mass loss continues in the Coast Mountains. This study serves to further refine constraints on Earth rheology and can be used to guide future work on GIA in the region. / Graduate

I detta examensarbete har en geoteknisk utredning utförts för att bedöma ifall grundläggning aven bro över Fyrisån i Uppsala kan utföras på enklaste sätt, genom plattgrundläggning. Arbetethar grundats på att undersöka hur grundläggningen styrs av den postglaciala lerans tekniskaegenskaper. Problemformuleringen har varit, att undersöka hur den geotekniska projekteringenav bron, dels skulle kunna genomföras, dels ska genomföras utifrån beaktande och värderingav tekniska och i viss mån ekonomiska aspekter. De frågeställningar som behandlas är: Vilkautmaningar finns det med att bygga bron på den aktuella platsen? Vilka svårigheter finns detmed att bygga bron enligt enklaste sätt, Vilka ytterligare grundläggningsmetoder kan användasför att grundlägga bron samt hur ska dessa tillämpas? Arbetet har utförts med en inledandelitteraturstudie via Malmö Universitetsbibliotek, sökmotorn Libsearch och SGI:s bibliotek. Enfallstudie har utförts av jordlagerförhållandena vid Fyrisån, där utvärderingen baseras påanalyser av data från tillgängliga fältundersökningar i området. Handberäkningar hargenomförts för att överslagsmässigt kontrollera de geotekniska förutsättningarna i brott- ochbruksgränstillståndet. Handberäkningarna har jämförts med datorberäkningar från Plaxis 2D.Teorin som ligger till grund för beräkningarna baseras på etablerade standarder somkontrolleras mot flertalet källor. Undersökningarna visar att djupet till berg är ca 55 m underbefintlig markyta. Jordlagerföljden består generellt av fyllning på siltig torrskorpelera påsulfidlera på lera/silt på friktionsjord. Utmaningen med grundläggningen av bron kansammanfattas till den potentiellt miljöfarliga sulfidhaltiga leran som leder till svårigheter ibruksgränstillståndet, eftersom den har en benägenhet att ge stora sättningar vid belastning,kombinerat med det stora djupet till berg.Handberäkningar visar att bron inte kan grundläggas på platta på mark eftersom jorden går ibrott när den belastas av fundamentet för odränerade förhållanden, dvs. korttidstillståndet. Ävenberäkningar med Plaxis 2D indikerar att jorden går i brott. Handberäkningar ochplaxisberäkningar har också genomförts för att undersöka de sättningar som kan utbildas vidgrundläggning på platta på mark. Det tillåtna värdet för sättningar är 0,050 m medanhandberäkningarna ger en sättning på 0,52 m och Plaxis 2D 0,41 m. För att bron ska kunnagrundläggas på den postglaciala leran används istället pålar med en geoteknisk bärförmåga på725 kN. Pålarnas knäcklast har beräknats till 5254 kN. Totalt krävs 18 pålar för att grundläggabrofundamentet. Pålning används då det råder osäkerhet hur användningen av övrigagrundläggningsmetoder interagerar med sulfidhaltig lera, bland annat hur reaktionen mellankalk/cement och sulfidjorden fungerar, om t ex kalk-cement-pelare skulle ha använts istället förpålar, samt resultaten av en eventuell försurning av omkringliggande miljö. Sulfidhaltig lerasänker pH-värdet i jord vid exponering för syre.Handberäkningarna och datorberäkningarna visar liknande resultat, vilket tyder på att deterhållna resultatet är rimligt. Förutsättningarna som används för beräkningarna är baserade påempiriska samband, som vid jämförelse med resultat från genomförda sonderingar visar på engod överensstämmelse. Avvikelser i sonderingarna bedöms vara ett resultat bl. a av deskalrester som finns i jorden, vilket beaktas vid värdering av resultatet. Resultatet från denutförda studien visar, att grundläggning av platta på mark inte är möjlig, främst på grund av destora sättningar som kan förväntas utbildas. Grundläggning med pålning väljs utifrånmiljömässiga och tekniska krav. / In this thesis, a geotechnical investigation has been performed to assess if the foundation of abridge over Fyrisån, Uppsala, can be founded by plate foundation. The work has been based oninvestigating how the postglacial clay affects the construction based on the current groundconditions. Questions being answered are: what challenges there are in building the bridge atthe current location, what difficulties there are in building the bridge according to conventionalmethods and what foundation methods can be used to construct the bridge and how these shouldbe applied. The work has been carried out through a literature study. A case study has beenperformed of the soil conditions in Fyrisån which shows that the soil consists in general offilling on silty dry clay crust on sulfide clay on clay/silt on friction soil. The depth to rock is 55meters.The main challenge with this specific soil are the large compression, which is a result of largedepth and the fact that the soil consists of sulfide clay. The calculations by hand correspond thecalculation done in Plaxis 2D where the results show that the soil breaks in the undrained stateand the compression is 0,41m, 0,52 m by hand, compared to the maximum requirement of 50mm. The choice of foundation is piling due to the uncertainty of reaction betweenlimestone/cement and sulfide and the risk of acidification.The condition on which the calculations are based on is compared to completed probes whichshows a good correspondence. Any abnormalities are concluded to be a result of the soil’scontent of residual of shell. In conclusion the study shows that the foundation cannot be donewith a plate foundation and the soil has to be reinforced due to the large compression of thesoil.

Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) together with the sister species Siberian spruce (P. obovata Ledeb.) form a vast continuous distribution over Eurasia. The present distribution of P. abies in Europe was formed recently, after the last glacial maximum. Theories about the colonization routes and history of this species differ depending on the datasets examined to date. This thesis aims to investigate the genetic structure and diversity of P. abies and establish its glacial refugia and postglacial migration. A range-wide sampling was performed of both P. abies and P. obovata, and a genotyping-by-sequencing approach was used to obtain whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data. Two major genetic lineages of P. abies were found; northern and central Europe. The northern lineage was further divided into a Scandinavian and a north-east European cluster; the Scandinavian cluster being more closely related to P. obovata and the north-east European cluster to the central European lineage. Introgression from P. obovata was detected far into northern Fennoscandia. The central European lineage was divided into an Alpine and a Carpathian cluster, originating from different glacial refugia. Genetic diversity was higher in the northern part of the range, which can be attributed to the relatively large refugium that recolonized this area, as well as introgression from P. obovata. Genetic diversity was also somewhat elevated where the two central European clusters meet, as is expected in areas where two previously isolated lineages admix. This study is the first range-wide investigation of P. abies using whole-genome SNP information, and shows how the genetic structure of the species has been shaped by the last glacial maximum and postglacial recolonization.

<p> In this thesis, the postglacial spread of three ecologically distinct species, Picea mariana (black spruce), Picea glauca (white spruce), and Pinus banksiana (jack pine), across the western interior of Canada are presented. The fossil pollen records from the sediments of thirteen lakes are used in reconstructing the population expansions of the three tree taxa. The objectives of this study are to examine temporal and spatial patterns in the growth of the populations and to determine if intraspecific and interspecific variations exist across a range of latitudes and elevations.</p> <p> Pollen accumulation rates (PAR) are calculated from pollen grain counts and sedimentation rates throughout the early-to mid-Holocene, and are used to represent the population level at the time of pollen deposition. Exponential equations are used to calculate population growth rates. Three dimensional diagrams (time, space, abundance) are constructed to illustrate the spread of the populations.</p> <p> The rates of population growth varied from south to north for all three species. Jack pine, on average had slower population growth rates, and its expansion across the region began over 3,000 years later than, and lasted approximately 1,000 years longer than the two spruce species. All three tree taxa experienced reduced rates of population growth at high elevation sites in the north. These variations are examined in light of the changing and static physical and botanical environmental conditions occurring during expansion.</p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Au cours de la première moitié de l’Holocène les conditions climatiques, eustatiques et anthropiques connaissent de nombreuses et importantes modifications. Parmi celles-ci, les données. Parmi celles-ci, les données régionales relatives au quart nord-ouest du bassin méditerranéen révèlent plusieurs variations pluriscalaires et significatives des conditions d’humidité ainsi que des températures. Parallèlement, la hausse du niveau marin enregistre des vitesses très élevées et la région de l’arc Liguro-Provençal voit l’installation des premières communautés agro-pastorales de la culture « Impressa », en l’occurrence dès le début du 6ème millénaire cal. BCE. Afin de qualifier la réponse de la végétation alluviale côtière, entre la fin du 8ème et le 5ème millénaire, face à l’évolution de ces conditions, l’analyse pollinique à haute résolution de deux séquences sédimentaires alluviales (bassin du Loup et de la Cagne) à été réalisée. Grâce à une approche pluridisciplinaire (carpologie, ostracologie, sédimentologie…) et méthodologique inédite (analyse du transport pollinique fluviatile) les résultats montrent une évolution précise des écosystèmes végétaux côtiers et alluviaux. Au sein de cette évolution, la remontée du niveau marin joue un rôle fondamental comme en témoigne l’expansion littorale des aulnaies marécageuses. Le forçage climatique joue également un rôle important. Les étés plus humides du 6ème millénaire participe à la diffusion du sapin à basse altitude, alors que l’augmentation de la fréquence des sécheresses estivales enregistrées à partir du 5ème millénaire favorise le développement d’une végétation sclérophylle à bruyère arborescente. La néolithisation de la région participe également au façonnage des paysages littoraux. La récurrence du type pollinique Cerealia (gr. Hordeum) dès les premières décennies du 6ème millénaire atteste de l’importance des plaines alluviales côtières dans l’économie de production des premiers groupes néolithiques. / This study investigates the impact of climate and sea level changes and the anthropogenic perturbations on the alluvial vegetation in the Mediterranean French coastal plains during the early to mid Holocene. Between 7000 and 3700 BCE, the combination of different type of regional proxy records reveal significant changes in the humid conditions and temperatures. These records also reveal rapid sea level changes and the first Neolithic settlement (5800 caL. BCE) in Southeastern France (« Impressed ware culture »). High resolution pollen data from two cores sampled in the alluvial plains of the Cagne and the Loup Rivers enable to study the vegetation responses to these changes. Thisstudy employed a pluridisciplinary approach (carpology, study of ostracods, sedimentology…) and developed a new ethodology for the assessment of the fluvial pollen transport. The results reveal a significant connection between the vegetation structure from the coastal area and the sea level changes. This relationship explains the alder expansion in the swamp area. Moreover the results also reveal the effects of the humid summer conditions on the vegetation dynamics and explain the spruce expansion during the sixth millennium BCE as well as the expansion of the sclerophyllous vegetationduring the fifth millennium BCE. The impact of the Neolithic agriculture on the alluvial land cover started with the first ecades of the sixth millennium BCE. Thanks to the frequencies of the pollen grains of cereals (Hordeum gr.) and the pollen vidence of forest decline between 6000 and 3700 BCE, the results show the significance of the Mediterranean coastal area in the Neolithic economy.

<p>The common shrew, <i>Sorex araneus</i>, has one of the most variable karyotypes among mammals, displaying numerous chromosomes races throughout its distribution, which can be categorized into different karyotypic groups. The objective of this thesis was to examine the postglacial population history of Fennoscandian common shrews using autosomal microsatellites, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and a Y chromosome specific microsatellite (L8Y).</p><p>Autosomal microsatellites and mtDNA revealed weak genetic structure over a hybrid zone between the karyotypically divergent Northern and Western karyotypic groups. However, the genetic structure displayed by the Y chromosome microsatellite was orders of magnitude higher. Hence, considerable chromosomal differences between the groups do not prevent female gene flow, while male gene flow is reduced (cf. Haldane's rule). Further, the results suggest that the Haldane effect may be caused by the chromosomal differences between the karyotypic groups.</p><p>No mtDNA differentiation was observed either between chromosome races or between the Northern and Western karyotypic groups in Fennoscandia. The combined pattern of karyotypic and mtDNA variation of Fennoscandian common shrews, suggest bi-directional postglacial recolonisation from a single refugium in Europe. The variation of the Y-linked microsatellite supported this conclusion. In contrast, significant mtDNA structure, discordant with the karyotypic variation, revealed that common shrews in southern Finland belong to a different lineage than remaining Fennoscandian regions, implying postglacial recolonisation from a different source.</p><p>MtDNA variation of the chromosome races in Sweden supports the hypothesis that three races of the Western karyotypic group have been formed through whole arm reciprocal translocations (WARTs), as suggested by their mutual karyotypic variation. The variation of the molecular markers supports the theory of rapid karyotypic evolution in the common shrew.</p>

The common shrew, Sorex araneus, has one of the most variable karyotypes among mammals, displaying numerous chromosomes races throughout its distribution, which can be categorized into different karyotypic groups. The objective of this thesis was to examine the postglacial population history of Fennoscandian common shrews using autosomal microsatellites, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and a Y chromosome specific microsatellite (L8Y). Autosomal microsatellites and mtDNA revealed weak genetic structure over a hybrid zone between the karyotypically divergent Northern and Western karyotypic groups. However, the genetic structure displayed by the Y chromosome microsatellite was orders of magnitude higher. Hence, considerable chromosomal differences between the groups do not prevent female gene flow, while male gene flow is reduced (cf. Haldane's rule). Further, the results suggest that the Haldane effect may be caused by the chromosomal differences between the karyotypic groups. No mtDNA differentiation was observed either between chromosome races or between the Northern and Western karyotypic groups in Fennoscandia. The combined pattern of karyotypic and mtDNA variation of Fennoscandian common shrews, suggest bi-directional postglacial recolonisation from a single refugium in Europe. The variation of the Y-linked microsatellite supported this conclusion. In contrast, significant mtDNA structure, discordant with the karyotypic variation, revealed that common shrews in southern Finland belong to a different lineage than remaining Fennoscandian regions, implying postglacial recolonisation from a different source. MtDNA variation of the chromosome races in Sweden supports the hypothesis that three races of the Western karyotypic group have been formed through whole arm reciprocal translocations (WARTs), as suggested by their mutual karyotypic variation. The variation of the molecular markers supports the theory of rapid karyotypic evolution in the common shrew.