Ecology and paleoenvironmental application of testate amoebae in peatlands of the high-elevation Colombian páramo

Bibliographic Data

ID24085024
AuthorsBing Liu (0000-0003-2874-2746, Lehigh University), Robert K Booth (0000-0002-9264-4959, Lehigh University, corresponding author), Jesús Escobar (0000-0001-7775-7130, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute), Jaime Escobar, Zhiqiang Wei (0000-0003-2092-8925, Lehigh University), Broxton W Bird (0000-0003-2665-2528, Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis), Andrés Pardo (University of Caldas), Jason H Curtis (0000-0003-0884-9941, University of Florida), Jun Ouyang (0000-0002-1909-2166, South China Normal University)
Year2019
Volume92
Issue1
Pages14-32
Publication date2019-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueQuaternary Research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0033-5894 • E-ISSN: 1096-0287
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/qua.2018.143
OpenAlexW2917597463
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited68

We investigated the ecology and paleoecology of testate amoebae in peatlands of the Colombian páramo to assess the use of testate amoebae as paleoenvironmental indicators. Objectives were to (1) identify environmental controls on testate amoebae, (2) develop transfer functions for paleoenvironmental inference, and (3) examine testate amoebae in a Holocene peat core and compare our findings with other proxy records. Results from 96 modern samples indicate that testate amoebae are sensitive to pH and surface moisture, and cross-validation of transfer functions indicates potential for paleoenvironmental applications. Testate amoebae from the Triunfo Peatland in the Central Cordillera provided a proxy record of pH and water-table depth for the late Holocene, and inferred changes were correlated with peat C/N measurements during most of the record. Comparison with a lake-level reconstruction suggests that at least the major testate amoeba–inferred changes were driven by climate. Our work indicates that testate amoebae are useful paleoenvironmental indicators in high-elevation tropical peatlands.

Biology · Holocene · Paleoecology · Peat · Testate amoebae · Ecology · Geological and Geophysical Studies Worldwide · Geological formations and processes · Geology · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research · Paleontology