Vegetation response to Early Holocene cooling events in the Moervaart region (northwestern Belgium)

A high-resolution palynological record from northwest Belgium is presented. The record encompasses the second part of the Younger Dryas and the Early Holocene. The basal part of the pollen record reflects a relatively open landscape, characteristic for the Younger Dryas. The transition to the Holocene is marked by an expansion of birch woodland, followed by an expansion of pine in the Late Preboreal (~11.2–10.7 cal. ka BP). Subsequently, the record shows an expansion of mixed deciduous forest with hazel, elm and oak, characteristic for the Boreal (~10.7–8.6 cal. ka BP). Early Holocene forest expansion was interrupted by a number of short-lived fluctuations, presumably driven by climatic changes. The most distinct event is the Rammelbeek phase (~11.4–11.2 cal. ka BP), during which forest development was temporarily interrupted in favour of grasses, while wildfires increased. Following this climatic event, hunter-gatherers returned to the area after a period of almost 1.5 millennia of low population density. They most likely were attracted by the increased temperatures and abundance of edible plants present in the birch-pine forests and on the banks of the river Kale/Durme. A temporary expansion of pine during the Boreal (~10.7–8.6 cal. ka BP) may correspond with the 9.3-ka event. At this time, superimposed on a trend of gradual infilling of the channel, a temporary change to drier conditions is observed. The significant drop in the number of prehistoric sites in the Moervaart region clearly cannot be attributed to this short-term climatic event alone but was most likely caused by a combination of environmental changes, such as the decreasing availability of hazelnuts as well as freshwater and edible (semi-)aquatic plants as the Kale/Durme river gradually turned dry. The study provides insight into, partly climate-driven, Early Holocene environmental changes and the effect this may have had on human occupation.