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Non-linear connections between dune activity and climate in the High Plains, Kansas and Oklahoma, USA

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Corey M. Werner ,
Joseph A. Mason  and
Paul R. Hanson
Corey M. Werner*
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg, MO 64093, USA
Joseph A. Mason
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
Paul R. Hanson
Affiliation:
School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA
*
⁎Corresponding author. Department of Geography and Interdisciplinary Studies, Wood 6b, University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg, MO 64093, USA. Fax: + 1 660 543 4048.
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Abstract

Discrete dune fields are found throughout much of the Great Plains of North America, and the timing of past dune activity is often used as a proxy for paleoclimate because of the intuitive link between dune activity and a more arid climate. This research suggests that feedbacks in the soil-geomorphic system create a relationship between dune activity and climate that varies both spatially and temporally. Older eolian landforms are more resistant to activation because of the long-term accumulation of finer soil particles in a Bt horizon which retain moisture and anchor the deposit even during more arid times. Conversely, younger deposits lack these fines and are more easily reactivated. This spatially variable relationship is supported by soil stratigraphy, particle size analysis, and optical age control. Additionally, the water retention of the Bt horizons is quantifiably greater than that of the soils found in the younger dunes of the area. This complication in the relationship between eolian activity and climate is important because it suggests that caution is needed when using past dune activity as the lone proxy for paleoclimate.

Keywords

PaleoclimateEolian chronologyCimarron BendHoloceneDunes
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 75 , Issue 1 , January 2011 , pp. 267 - 277
Copyright
University of Washington

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