Picea critchfieldii

Last updated

Picea critchfieldii
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Picea
Species:
P. critchfieldii
Binomial name
Picea critchfieldii
Jackson & Weng [1]

Picea critchfieldii is an extinct species of spruce tree formerly present on the landscape of North America, where it was once widely distributed throughout the southeastern United States. [1] Plant macrofossil evidence reveals that this tree became extinct during the Late Quaternary period of Earth's history. [1] At present, this is the only documented plant extinction from this geologic era. Hypotheses as to what specifically drove the extinction remain unresolved, but rapid and widespread climatic changes coincided with Picea critchfieldii's decline and ultimate extinction. [1]

Contents

History and classification

Picea critchfieldii was first described by Stephen T. Jackson and Chengyu Weng in a 1999 paper titled, "Late Quaternary Extinction of a Tree Species in Eastern North America" published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . [1] They coined the specific epithet critchfieldii as a patronym honoring botanist William B. Critchfield. [1] The plant was named to honor Critchfield and his longstanding "advocacy of understanding the role of Quaternary history in shaping genetic structure of conifer populations." [1]

Extant Picea glauca, to which P. critchfieldii were formerly attributed Picea glauca tree.jpg
Extant Picea glauca , to which P. critchfieldii were formerly attributed

Description

To describe Picea critchfieldii as a new and distinct species, carefully analyzed plant macrofossil specimens of fossilized spruce needles and cones were assessed. [1] After close examination, these specimens could not be assigned to any extant species of Picea given distinctive morphological and anatomical features of their needles and cones. [1] Fossil evidence thus supports the former existence of a distinct species of spruce: Picea critchfieldii. [1]

Plant macrofossils are fossilized deposits that represent the multicellular sporophyte stage in the plant life cycle. [2] Given significant variability among the sporophyte stage for different plant species, macrofossil specimens can exist as seeds, fruits, ovulate cones, needles, leaves, buds, and a host of other forms. [2] The size of macrofossils and the depositional material in which they are preserved can similarly vary. [2] The sporophyte phase of plants is morphologically distinct between different species, which permits species-level identification of macrofossil specimens and thus provides information about past vegetation with "high taxonomic resolution". [2] [1] To glean species-level data, macrofossil specimens must be carefully studied for distinct morphological and anatonomical features that permit their definitive assignment to a particular species, whether extant or extinct. [1] The specificity and distinctiveness of macrofossil deposits of cones, seeds, and needles were paramount to the identification of the not-previously-known spruce Picea critchfieldii.

Cones

Picea critchfieldii had cylindrical ovulate cones with “scales narrowly fan-shaped with rounded margins” that were somewhat irregular. [1] The dimensions of a cone in its entirety varied between approximately 60–100 mm in length and 14–20 mm in diameter. [1] The dimensions of the rounded, fan-shaped cone scales varied between 18–21 mm in length and 11-13.5 mm in width. [1]

Seeds

Picea critchfieldii had ovate, winged seeds. [1] The seeds varied in size from about 3.5-4.5 mm in length and 2.6-2.8 mm in width with wings spanning about 8–11 mm in length. [1]

Needles

The needles of Picea critchfieldii were between 7–9 mm in length and 0.6-1.0 mm in diameter. [1] These needles had a cross-section that was quadrangular, an acute apex, and two resin ducts. [1]

Pollen

Fossil pollen data was also important to the description and documentation of Picea critchfieldii. Fossil pollen evidence reveals that Picea was once dominant in the region surrounding the macrofossil collection sites now known to represent the extinct Picea critchfieldii. [1] Given Picea critchfieldii's presence, it is thought that the Picea pollen found to dominate in locations that coincide with fossil collection sites is likely attributable to the extinct spruce and thus reveals that Picea critchfieldii was once widespread in the region. [3] Evidence from morphometric analyses of pollen collected from the Picea critchfieldii fossil site known as Tunica Hills reveals that pollen collected here is morphologically distinct from, and thus not attributable to, that of the extant Picea glauca , Picea mariana , and Picea rubens . [4] Given the distinctiveness of fossil pollen grains collected from this site of known former Picea critchfieldii presence, scientists suggest that "the morphologically distinctive Tunica Hills Picea pollen was probably produced by the extinct spruce species Picea critchfieldii." [4] It remains difficult to conclude this definitively because Picea critchfieldii pollen has yet to be collected specifically within fossilized reproductive structures of the plant to confirm association; scientists nonetheless hypothesize that the pollen is most likely that of Picea critchfieldii given its distinctiveness from pollen of other extant taxa. [4]

Fossil pollen data, used in the field of palynology, represents fossilized deposits of plant pollen grains reflecting the gametophyte stage in the plant life cycle and ranges in size from 5-150 micrometers. [2] Fossil pollen data is used to infer past vegetation, but pollen grains, unlike macrofossils, are often unable to be distinguished beyond the genera level given morphological similarities among pollen grains of distinct species within the same genus. [2] In some cases, pollen grains are morphologically indistinct even among different genera within the same plant family. [2] As a result, fossil pollen often results in "taxonomic smoothing" that inhibits fine-scale resolution of past vegetation to the species level. [2] However, examples of Picea pollen being identified as morphologically distinct, species-level units exist. Pollen from Picea glauca, Picea rubens, and Picea mariana has been characterized, classified, and assessed with relative accuracy based on distinct morphological attributes of each species. [5] [6] Similarly, close analysis of hypothesized Picea critchfieldii pollen demonstrates a species-level analysis of spruce pollen granules. [4]

Pollen data remains one of the primary mechanisms by which paleoecologists glean insight into past vegetation to catalog the historical presence of taxa on the landscape. [2] Picea pollen identifiable to the species level is particularly useful. [5] [6] In the case of Picea critchfieldii, the careful analysis of plant macrofossils was paramount to the description of the species and the documentation of its extinction. [1] The interpretation of morphologically distinct pollen, in conjunction with this fossil evidence, has helped further characterize its former presence and distribution on the landscape. [1] [4]

Distribution, habitat, and environmental context

Map of approximate fossil collection site locations of Picea critchfieldii specimens, based on Figure 1 of Jackson and Weng, 1999. Approximate localities of fossil sites of Picea critchfieldii.png
Map of approximate fossil collection site locations of Picea critchfieldii specimens, based on Figure 1 of Jackson and Weng, 1999.

Geographic distribution

Many of the fossils documenting Picea critchfieldii have been collected from the Tunica Hills region in Louisiana and Mississippi, which maps to 31°N, 91°29'W. [1] The fossil specimens that aided in the discovery and description of P. critchfieldii mostly originate from stream cut exposures composed of fluvial silt and clay soils from the Late Quaternary. [1] Other documented collection sites occur in western Tennessee, southwestern Georgia, and northwestern Georgia. [1] The geographic range of P. critchfieldii spanned the southeastern United States, where it was once widespread. [1] The species has been recorded from several sites dating to the Last Glacial Maximum in the Lower Mississippi Valley and in Georgia. [3] Considering all fossil collection sites together, paleoecologists suspect the former range of P. critchfieldii spanned over 240,000 km (150,000 mi) in the region. [1]

Ecology

Co-occurring species

At the Tunica Hills sites where many fossil specimens of Picea critchfieldii have been discovered, collections of Quercus , Juglans nigra , Acer, Carpinus caroliniana , Fagus grandifolia , Carya , Ulmus americana , and Juniperus americana have also been made at these same sites. [1] These species are all temperate hardwood taxa. Fossil pollen data from the Tunica Hills region dates to between 24,670 and 17,530 years ago and suggests that Picea was the dominant species in the regional uplands surrounding this area, where smaller populations of Quercus and other hardwood species also occurred. [1] The former species assemblages revealed by macrofossil and pollen collections have no-analog to present plant communities in eastern North America. [1]

In other collection sites where Picea critchfieldii has been found, it is documented as co-occurring with various species of Pinus and with Picea glauca. [1] These are cool-temperate conifer taxa.

Environmental and habitat tolerances

The species with which Picea critchfieldii has been found to co-occur reveal information about its presumed environmental and habitat tolerances. The fossil collections that demonstrate an association between Picea critchfieldii and temperate hardwood tree species suggests Picea critchfieldii could tolerate warmer climate conditions than other, extant Picea species. [1] Though thought to have an affinity for warmer conditions than other Picea species given past assemblages, other fossil collection sites where the plant has been found to occur with cool-temperate conifers suggests some degree of overlap in the environmental tolerances of Picea critchfieldii and extant members of the genus. [1]

Eastern North American spruce species that remain extant have boreal and montane affinities and are entirely confined to cool climates. [1] However, the affinities of extinct Picea critchfieldii likely differ from those of extant spruce given the environmental tolerances of the species with which it has been found to co-occur. Picea critchfieldii is presumed to have had warmer but still overlapping temperature tolerances as compared to extant Picea. [1]

Late Quaternary context

The Late Quaternary is a time in geologic history, within the broader Quaternary Period, that encompasses approximately the last 25,000 years of Earth's history. [7] During this time, continuous climate change has occurred across varying timescales with different degrees of magnitude. [7]

The Late Quaternary is well-represented in the geologic record at globally-distributed sites. [7] Sites representative of the Late Quaternary that contain records of flora, fauna, and climates past can be dated with high degrees of accuracy through a variety of methods that allow observational inferences to be made at timescales between 10 and 10,000 years. [7]

As is true for Picea critchfieldii, pollen and macrofossil specimens from a variety of species present during the Late Quaternary have been collected and studied across the globe. [7] Such specimens are tied to specific locations that can be assigned accurate historical dates, which can then be linked to past climate data that has been independently gleaned from other sources such as ice cores or tree rings. [7] Pairing records of past biota with climate data allows paleoecologists to reconstruct past vegetational landscapes. Given the rich spatial and temporal data embedded in the geologic record of the Late Quaternary, changes in the vegetational composition and structure of the landscape can be studied with great detail. [7]

Picea critchfieldii existed on the landscape of North America during and directly preceding the Last Glacial Maximum of the Late Quaternary. [1] Picea critchfieldii is currently the only plant extinction documented from the Late Quaternary period. [8] [9]

Extinction

Timing of extinction

The extinction of Picea critchfieldii is dated to approximately 15,000 years ago and represents the only documented tree species extinction of the Late Quaternary. [8] This extinction dates to approximately the time when the Earth was transitioning out of the Last Glacial Maximum and into the Holocene period of the Quaternary. [8]

Environmental change

During the transition between the Last Glacial Maximum and the Holocene, the Earth was experiencing exceptional warming. [8] During this deglaciation, the climate underwent rapid and abrupt changes. [1] The discovery of Picea critchfieldii's extinction at the time of this rapid and continuous climate change suggests that such changes may have contributed to its demise. [1]

Hypothesized causes of extinction

The definitive root cause of the extinction of Picea critchfieldii remains largely unresolved and is not currently tied to a specific, historical event or cause. [1] There is no known linkage between human exploitation and the extinction of Picea critchfieldii, which differs from the presumed cause of contemporaneous mammal extinctions. [1] Given dramatic climatic changes occurring during the Late Quaternary at the time the plant extinction was recorded, it is postulated that the extinction is at least broadly linked to changing climatic regimes. [1]

Within the context of broader climatic changes, hypothesized factors potentially contributing to the decline and extinction of Picea critchfieldii include a pathogen, an inhibited dispersal ability, or a complete loss of suitable habitat. [1]

Contemporaneous extinctions

Not only is Picea critchfieldii the only plant extinction documented during the Late Quaternary, but it is one of very few plant extinctions known from the entire Quaternary Period. [1]

In contrast to this one known plant extinction during the Late Quaternary, significant numbers of mammalian extinctions took place during the same period in what is known as the Quaternary Extinction Event. [1] These extinctions are largely attributed to a complementary role of human exploitation and rapid environmental change during the last deglaciation. [10] A myriad of hypotheses have been proposed to explain these mammalian extinctions, but the current scientific consensus ascribes a role for both climate and human impacts as driving large numbers of mammalian genera and species to extinction during the Late Quaternary. [10]

Though it remains possible that Picea critchfieldii is the only species to go extinct during the Late Quaternary, scientists suggest that “taxonomic smoothing” within collected pollen data and insufficient collections of plant macrofossils could be camouflaging other potential plant extinctions. [1] Further discovery and examination of plant macrofossils is needed to determine whether other plant extinctions have occurred in addition to the loss of Picea critchfieldii. [1]

Biodiversity implications

Species' responses to change in the late Quaternary

The Late Quaternary was a time of continuous climatic changes of varying rates and magnitudes. [7] As Late Quaternary climates changed, plant species responded as individuals in a variety of ways, including toleration, migration, habitat shift, extinction, and altered population densities. [7]

Paleoecological evidence supports a tendency for plant species to historically pursue the ‘migration’ route. [8] The fossil record and the general lack of documented plant extinctions suggests that plant species have migrated far distances across continents in response to past environmental changes. [1] Data from the fossil record also provides evidence that plant species have been able to respond to changing conditions by altering their population densities, transitioning between phases of rarity and abundance while nonetheless persisting on the landscape. [1]

Despite paleoecological support for migration, toleration, and population density changes as past responses to environmental change, the discovery of Picea critchfieldii reveals that extinction is another possible response. [1]

Relation to modern climate change

With the discovery of Picea critchfieldii and its presumed linkage to climatic changes during the Last Glacial Maximum, ecologists conjecture that consideration of this species “is potentially sobering in view of the likelihood of future climate changes, which could be of similar or greater rapidity, abruptness, and magnitude as those of the last glacial/interglacial”. [1]

Patterns of vegetational change are commonly used to infer future scenarios. Fossil records from the Late Quaternary, when the magnitude and rate of climate change mirrored that which is predicted for the future, are often used to inform how biota of the present might respond to ongoing global changes. [7] However, scientists suggest that “history is better suited to providing cautionary tales rather than specific images of future climate and vegetation change.” [7] The demise and discovery of Picea critchfieldii is one such cautionary tale.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conifer</span> Group of cone-bearing seed plants

Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta, also known as Coniferophyta or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extant conifers are perennial woody plants with secondary growth. The great majority are trees, though a few are shrubs. Examples include cedars, Douglas-firs, cypresses, firs, junipers, kauri, larches, pines, hemlocks, redwoods, spruces, and yews. As of 2002, Pinophyta contained seven families, 60 to 65 genera, and more than 600 living species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spruce</span> Genus of evergreen, coniferous tree

A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea, a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. Picea is the sole genus in the subfamily Piceoideae. Spruces are large trees, from about 20 to 60 m tall when mature, and have whorled branches and conical form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinaceae</span> Family of conifers

The Pinaceae, or pine family, are conifer trees or shrubs, including many of the well-known conifers of commercial importance such as cedars, firs, hemlocks, piñons, larches, pines and spruces. The family is included in the order Pinales, formerly known as Coniferales. Pinaceae have distinctive cones with woody scales bearing typically two ovules, and are supported as monophyletic by both morphological trait and genetic analysis. They are the largest extant conifer family in species diversity, with between 220 and 250 species in 11 genera, and the second-largest in geographical range, found in most of the Northern Hemisphere, with the majority of the species in temperate climates, but ranging from subarctic to tropical. The family often forms the dominant component of boreal, coastal, and montane forests. One species, Pinus merkusii, grows just south of the equator in Southeast Asia. Major centres of diversity are found in the mountains of southwest China, Mexico, central Japan, and California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dire wolf</span> Extinct species of canine mammal

The dire wolf is an extinct canine. The dire wolf lived in the Americas during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene epochs. The species was named in 1858, four years after the first specimen had been found. Two subspecies are recognized: Aenocyon dirus guildayi and Aenocyon dirus dirus. The largest collection of its fossils has been obtained from the Rancho La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palynology</span> Study of acid-resistant microorganisms

Palynology is the study of microorganisms and microscopic fragments of mega-organisms that are composed of acid-resistant organic material and occur in sediments, sedimentary rocks, and even some metasedimentary rocks. Palynomorphs are the microscopic, acid-resistant organic remains and debris produced by a wide variety of plants, animals, and Protista that have existed since the late Proterozoic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mammoth steppe</span> Prehistoric biome

The mammoth steppe, also known as steppe-tundra, was once the Earth's most extensive biome. During glacial periods in the later Pleistocene it stretched east-to-west, from the Iberian Peninsula in the west of Europe, across Eurasia to North America, through Beringia and northwest Canada; from north-to-south, the steppe reached from the Arctic southward to southern Europe, Central Asia and northern China. The mammoth steppe was cold and dry, and relatively featureless, though climate, topography, and geography varied considerably throughout. Certain areas of the biome—such as coastal areas—had wetter and milder climates than others. Some areas featured rivers which, through erosion, naturally created gorges, gulleys, or small glens. The continual glacial recession and advancement over millennia contributed more to the formation of larger valleys and different geographical features. Overall, however, the steppe is known to be flat and expansive grassland. The vegetation was dominated by palatable, high-productivity grasses, herbs and willow shrubs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interglacial</span> Geological interval of warmer temperature that separates glacial periods within an ice age

An interglacial period is a geological interval of warmer global average temperature lasting thousands of years that separates consecutive glacial periods within an ice age. The current Holocene interglacial began at the end of the Pleistocene, about 11,700 years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Late Pleistocene</span> Third division (unofficial) of the Pleistocene Epoch

The Late Pleistocene is an unofficial age in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, also known as the Upper Pleistocene from a stratigraphic perspective. It is intended to be the fourth division of the Pleistocene Epoch within the ongoing Quaternary Period. It is currently defined as the time between c. 129,000 and c. 11,700 years ago. The late Pleistocene equates to the proposed Tarantian Age of the geologic time scale, preceded by the officially ratified Chibanian. The beginning of the Late Pleistocene is the transition between the end of the Penultimate Glacial Period and the beginning of the Last Interglacial around 130,000 years ago. The Late Pleistocene ends with the termination of the Younger Dryas, some 11,700 years ago when the Holocene Epoch began.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macrofossil</span>

Macrofossils, also known as megafossils, are the preserved remnants of organic beings and their activities that are large enough to be visible without a microscope. The term macrofossil stands in opposition to the term microfossil. Microfossils, by contrast, require substantial magnification for evaluation by fossil-hunters or professional paleontologists. As a result, most fossils observed in the field and most specimens are macrofossils. Macrofossils come in many varieties and form in various ways depending on their environment and what is being fossilized including plant, fungi and animal remnants.

<i>Banksia kingii</i> Extinct species of tree or shrub in the family Proteaceae found in Tasmania

Banksia kingii is an extinct species of tree or shrub in the plant genus Banksia. It is known only from fossil leaves and fruiting "cones" found in Late Pleistocene sediment at Melaleuca Inlet in western Tasmania. These were discovered by Deny King in the workings of his tin mine. The climate was most likely as cool as or cooler than it is at Melaleuca now , and possibly wetter, over 2400 mm annually.

<i>Simosthenurus</i> Extinct genus of marsupials

Simosthenurus, also referred to as the short-faced kangaroo, is an extinct genus of megafaunal macropods that existed in Australia, specifically Tasmania, during the Pleistocene. Analysis of Simosthenurus fossils has contributed to the finding that there are three lineages of macropods: Sthenurinae, Macropodinae, and Lagostrophinae. The genus Simosthenurus was among the sthenurines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Late Pleistocene extinctions</span> Extinctions of large mammals in the Late Pleistocene

The Late Pleistocene to the beginning of the Holocene saw the extinction of the majority of the world's megafauna, which resulted in a collapse in faunal density and diversity across the globe. The extinctions during the Late Pleistocene are differentiated from previous extinctions by its extreme size bias towards large animals, and widespread absence of ecological succession to replace these extinct megafaunal species, and the regime shift of previously established faunal relationships and habitats as a consequence. The timing and severity of the extinctions varied by region and are thought to have been driven by varying combinations of human and climatic factors. Human impact on megafauna populations is thought to have been driven by hunting ("overkill"), as well as possibly environmental alteration. The relative importance of human vs climatic factors in the extinctions has been the subject of long-running controversy.

<i>Palaeolama</i> Extinct genus of mammals

Palaeolama is an extinct genus of laminoid camelids that existed from the Late Pliocene to the Early Holocene. Their range extended from North America to the intertropical region of South America.

<i>Tilia johnsoni</i> Extinct species of flowering plant

Tilia johnsoni is an extinct species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae that, as a member of the genus Tilia, is related to modern lindens. The species is known from fossil leaves found in the early Eocene deposits of northern Washington state, United States and a similar aged formation in British Columbia, Canada.

In paleoecology and ecological forecasting, a no-analog community or climate is one that is compositionally different from a baseline for measurement. Alternative naming conventions to describe no-analog communities and climates may include novel, emerging, mosaic, disharmonious and intermingled.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snowmastodon site</span>

The Snowmastodon site, also known as the Ziegler Reservoir fossil site, is the location of an important Ice Age fossil excavation near Snowmass Village, Colorado. Fossils were first discovered on October 14, 2010, during the construction of a 5 hectares reservoir to supply Snowmass Village with water. Over the subsequent weeks, after an agreement had been reached to allow paleontological excavation, crews from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and the U.S. Geological Survey worked along with the construction crews as more fossil material was uncovered. The site closed for five months over the winter, reopening May 15, 2011. Between May 15 and July 4, 2011, crews from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science conducted a large scale fossil excavation alongside construction crews building a dam for the reservoir. In total over 36,000 vertebrate fossils, more than 100 species of fossil invertebrates and over 100 species of fossil plants were found in sediments deposited by an alpine lake during the last interglacial period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Postglacial vegetation</span>

Postglacial vegetation refers to plants that colonize the newly exposed substrate after a glacial retreat. The term "postglacial" typically refers to processes and events that occur after the departure of glacial ice or glacial climates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beringian wolf</span> Extinct type of wolf that lived during the Ice Age in Alaska, Yukon, and northern British Columbia

The Beringian wolf is an extinct population of wolf that lived during the Ice Age. It inhabited what is now modern-day Alaska, Yukon, and northern British Columbia. Some of these wolves survived well into the Holocene. The Beringian wolf is an ecomorph of the gray wolf and has been comprehensively studied using a range of scientific techniques, yielding new information on their prey species and feeding behaviors. It has been determined that these wolves are morphologically distinct from modern North American wolves and genetically basal to most modern and extinct wolves. The Beringian wolf has not been assigned a subspecies classification and its relationship with the extinct European cave wolf is not clear.

Paraconcavistylon is an extinct genus of flowering plant in the family Trochodendraceae comprises a single species, Paraconcavistylon wehrii. The genus is known from fossil fruits and leaves found in the early Eocene deposits of northern Washington state, United States, and southern British Columbia, Canada. The species was initially described as a member of the related extinct genus Concavistylon as "Concavistylon" wehrii, but subsequently moved to the new genus Paraconcavistylon in 2020 after additional study.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mid-Holocene hemlock decline</span>

The mid-Holocene hemlock decline was an abrupt decrease in Eastern Hemlock populations noticeable in fossil pollen records across the tree's range. It has been estimated to have occurred approximately 5,500 calibrated radiocarbon years before 1950 AD. The decline has been linked to insect activity and to climate factors. Post-decline pollen records indicate changes in other tree species' populations after the event and an eventual recovery of hemlock populations over a period of about 1000-2000 years at some sites.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 Jackson, Stephen T.; Weng, Chengyu (1999-11-23). "Late Quaternary extinction of a tree species in eastern North America". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 96 (24): 13847–13852. Bibcode:1999PNAS...9613847J. doi: 10.1073/pnas.96.24.13847 . ISSN   0027-8424. PMC   24153 . PMID   10570161.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 JACKSON, S; BOOTH, R (2007), "Validation of Pollen Studies", Encyclopedia of Quaternary Science, Elsevier, pp. 2413–2422, doi:10.1016/b0-444-52747-8/00225-8, ISBN   978-0-444-52747-9
  3. 1 2 Jackson, Stephen T.; Webb, Robert S.; Anderson, Katharine H.; Overpeck, Jonathan T.; Webb III, Thompson; Williams, John W.; Hansen, Barbara C.S. (February 2000). "Vegetation and environment in Eastern North America during the Last Glacial Maximum". Quaternary Science Reviews. 19 (6): 489–508. Bibcode:2000QSRv...19..489J. doi:10.1016/s0277-3791(99)00093-1. ISSN   0277-3791.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 MANDER, L.; RODRIGUEZ, J.; MUELLER, P. G.; JACKSON, S. T.; PUNYASENA, S. W. (October 2014). "Identifying the pollen of an extinct spruce species in the Late Quaternary sediments of the Tunica Hills region, south-eastern United States". Journal of Quaternary Science. 29 (7): 711–721. Bibcode:2014JQS....29..711M. doi:10.1002/jqs.2745. ISSN   0267-8179.
  5. 1 2 Birks, H. J. B.; Peglar, Sylvia M. (1980-10-01). "Identification of Picea pollen of Late Quaternary age in eastern North America: a numerical approach". Canadian Journal of Botany. 58 (19): 2043–2058. doi:10.1139/b80-237. ISSN   0008-4026.
  6. 1 2 Lindbladh, M.; O'Connor, R.; Jacobson, G. L. (2002-09-01). "Morphometric analysis of pollen grains for paleoecological studies: classification of Picea from eastern North America" (PDF). American Journal of Botany. 89 (9): 1459–1467. doi: 10.3732/ajb.89.9.1459 . ISSN   0002-9122. PMID   21665747.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Jackson, Stephen T.; Overpeck, Jonathan T. (2000). "Responses of plant populations and communities to environmental changes of the late Quaternary". Paleobiology. 26 (S4): 194–220. Bibcode:2000Pbio...26S.194J. doi:10.1017/s0094837300026932. ISSN   0094-8373. S2CID   232398484.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Davis, M. B. (2001-04-27). "Range Shifts and Adaptive Responses to Quaternary Climate Change". Science. 292 (5517): 673–679. Bibcode:2001Sci...292..673D. doi:10.1126/science.292.5517.673. ISSN   0036-8075. PMID   11326089.
  9. St George, Zach (14 February 2021). "The enduring mystery of Critchfield's spruce". Salon. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  10. 1 2 Koch, Paul L.; Barnosky, Anthony D. (December 2006). "Late Quaternary Extinctions: State of the Debate". Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics. 37 (1): 215–250. doi:10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.34.011802.132415. ISSN   1543-592X.