Holocene environmental changes in the Northern Khibiny mountains (Kola Peninsula) inferred by diatom analysis of lake sediments

The article presents the results of diatom analysis of bottom sediment cores of Lake Shchuchye located in the northern part of the Khibiny Mountains. Data of radiocarbon dating of lacustrine sediments and comparison with previously published sections of lake sediments in the Kola Peninsula suggest that the accumulation of sediments in Shchuchye Lake began during the final stages of deglaciation in the early Holocene and continued uninterruptedly until the present time. Changes in the composition of diatom associations in sediments reflect alterations in the hydrodynamic regime of the lake associated with the isolation from the Goltsovoye Lake, influence of Kunyok River runoff, evolution of vegetation and weathering processes in the catchment area. We used concentration, variety and composition of species and distinguished 8 separate zones of diatoms. Climate changes in the Holocene are reflected directly in the change of the percentage of indicator species, and indirectly through changes in pH, etc. The early Holocene rise of temperature began in this region later than in the sea coastal area. It may reflect the pecularities of deglaciation, namely — late melting of alpine glaciers. Along with the evolutionary environmental changes some catastrophic events are reflected in the sediments of the Shchuchye Lake. For example, in early stages, there the yield of big quantity of terrigenous deposits into the lake was revealed produced by mud flows and erosion from slopes covered by scarce vegetation at that time. Mudflow processes probably led to the formation of a clear interlayer of terrigenous material in the biogenic sediments in the upper part of the section.