中英德三國(guó)科學(xué)家密切合作，選擇山東山旺中新世古生物地層中產(chǎn)出的化石植物為研究對(duì)象,，對(duì)該地區(qū)1500萬年以前的古環(huán)境進(jìn)行了定量研究,，提出了定量研究古氣候與古海拔的新方法——植物分布區(qū)交疊分析法（ODA）。該成果通過三維（經(jīng)度,、緯度和海拔）古環(huán)境分析所獲得的古氣候和古海拔數(shù)值較為客觀,，特別對(duì)古山地的氣候與海拔重建具有獨(dú)特的優(yōu)越性和準(zhǔn)確性。
利用生物學(xué)的思想和方法,，通過植物材料定量研究全球氣候環(huán)境的變化過程是當(dāng)前國(guó)際學(xué)術(shù)界的研究熱點(diǎn),。人類很早就已經(jīng)認(rèn)識(shí)到不同氣候帶上生存的綠色植物是地球環(huán)境變化的敏感指示物。早在中國(guó)北宋時(shí)期,，沈括便利用“竹筍”化石推斷古代延州的氣候比當(dāng)時(shí)潮濕而溫暖,，體現(xiàn)了“將今論古”的創(chuàng)新性科學(xué)思想。
國(guó)際科學(xué)界現(xiàn)已廣泛利用現(xiàn)代植物和化石植物作為環(huán)境變化的敏感指示物,，定量研究全球氣候的歷史變化,。目前，在利用“將今論古”原理,，通過植物材料定量研究古氣候與古海拔的研究領(lǐng)域,，已形成了國(guó)際上認(rèn)可的兩種重要方法，即：共存分析法和葉相分析法,。但這兩種方法在中國(guó)地區(qū)的應(yīng)用具有明顯的局限性,，主要原因是共存分析和葉相分析的數(shù)據(jù)庫(kù)均缺乏中國(guó)地區(qū)的植被與氣候數(shù)據(jù)，而且沒有考慮海拔因素。
針對(duì)中國(guó)地區(qū)的實(shí)際問題,，由中國(guó)科學(xué)院植物研究所研究員李承森領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的植物演化生物學(xué)研究組與英國(guó)開放大學(xué)地球行星空間和天文研究中心教授R. A. Spicer領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的研究組,，以及德國(guó)森肯堡研究所教授V. Mosbrugger領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的研究組進(jìn)行了合作。他們通過ODA分析發(fā)現(xiàn)：山旺中新世時(shí)期年均溫為10.9℃～14.5℃,，年降雨量1107.3～1880.0mm,，年較差為21.1℃～22.7℃，最冷月溫度為-0.5℃～3.3℃,，最熱月溫度為21.9℃～25.0℃,，年降雨量為1107.3～1880.0mm。山旺地區(qū)中新世的海拔遠(yuǎn)高于目前的海拔（約為250米）,，這個(gè)結(jié)果表明當(dāng)?shù)刂行率罆r(shí)期為山地氣候,合理地解釋了當(dāng)時(shí)亞熱帶與溫帶植物共存的原因,。
與此同時(shí)，研究人員采用生物學(xué)的其他方法定量恢復(fù)山旺地區(qū)1500萬年前的古氣候,。這是世界上第一次針對(duì)同一個(gè)化石產(chǎn)地,、同一套化石植物資料和同一套現(xiàn)代氣象數(shù)據(jù)，采用多種方法同時(shí)進(jìn)行古氣候重建的嘗試,。研究人員對(duì)不同方法所獲結(jié)果進(jìn)行對(duì)比和交互驗(yàn)證,，從而將山旺地區(qū)古氣候和古海拔的定量研究推向一個(gè)嶄新的高度。
據(jù)悉,，該項(xiàng)成果已在《美國(guó)植物學(xué)報(bào)》上發(fā)表,。（科學(xué)時(shí)報(bào)）
原始出處:
American Journal of Botany. 2007;94:599-608.
Climatic reconstruction at the Miocene Shanwang basin, China, using leaf margin analysis, CLAMP, coexistence approach, and overlapping distribution analysis1
Jian Yang, Yu-Fei Wang7, Robert A. Spicer, Volker Mosbrugger, Cheng-Sen Li7 and Qi-Gao Sun
2State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, P. R. China; 4Department of Earth Sciences, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK; 5Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum, Senckenberganlage 25, 60325, Frankfurt, Germany; 3State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710075, P. R. China; 6Graduate University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100039, P. R. China
ABSTRACT
The reconstruction of the climate in the Miocene Shanwang basin is an important link in understanding past climate and environmental changes in East Asia. A recent study showed that the mean annual temperature (MAT) estimates derived from leaf margin analysis (LMA) and the Climate Leaf Analysis Multivariate Program (CLAMP) conflicted with and were remarkably lower than those estimated by the coexistence approach (CA). Overlapping distribution analysis (ODA), a new method introduced here, is used to reconstruct the Shanwang Miocene climate based explicitly on local plant distribution data and associated meteorological stations. The Shanwang flora (17–15.2 Ma) suggests a MAT of 10.9–14.5°C and a mean annual precipitation (MAP) of 1107.3–1880.0 mm. This result is closer to the values derived from CLAMP and LMA than that obtained by CA. This report is the first comprehensive intercomparison of foliar physiognomic and nearest living relative climate proxies in a Chinese context and provides important cross validation of results.
Key Words: climate • Climate Leaf Analysis Multivariate Program (CLAMP) • coexistence approach • leaf margin analysis • Miocene • overlapping distribution analysis • Shanwang basin
