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Annual laminations in the sediments of Loe Pool, Cornwall

Nature volume 290, pages 238–241 (1981)Cite this article

Abstract

Annually laminated freshwater lacustrine sediments have been recorded at several sites in central Europe1–5, North America6–13 and Fennoscandia14–24. The presence of laminations may reflect either (1) regular changes within the lake ecosystem itself or (2) variation in the intensity of erosion and transport of material from the catchment, particularly where instability in the lake–watershed system has occurred as a result of human activities22. The principal cause of lamination is, therefore, seasonal variation of environmental conditions, particularly climate. Lakes with laminated sediments tend to be physically deep, exhibit a strong seasonal stratification, and be situated in areas of continental climate. We describe here what we believe to be the first reported instance of a long sequence of laminated lake sediments from Great Britain. Unlike most of the previous examples, these have been formed in a shallow, polymictic lake, in an oceanic climate.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Karelian Institute, University of Joensuu, SF-80101, Joensuu, 10, Finland

    H. L. K. Simola

  2. Department of Environmental Sciences, Plymouth Polytechnic, Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devon, PL4 8AA, UK

    M. A. Coard & P. E. O'Sullivan

Authors
  1. H. L. K. Simola
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  2. M. A. Coard
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  3. P. E. O'Sullivan
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Simola, H., Coard, M. & O'Sullivan, P. Annual laminations in the sediments of Loe Pool, Cornwall. Nature 290, 238–241 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/290238a0

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