Conifer stomate analysis as a paleoecological tool: an example from the Hudson Bay Lowlands

Abstract

The identification of conifer stomata in fossil pollen preparations of peat cores from the Hudson Bay Lowlands is used to determine the local presence of conifers in lieu of macrofossil analyses. The differentiation of eight conifer stomate types (Picea type, Larix laricina, Pinus sp., Abies sp., Tsuga mertensiana, Tsuga heterophylla, Chamaecyparis nootkatensis, and Thuja type) is accomplished with a key, diagrammatic stomate illustrations, photographs, and measurements. Results of fossil conifer-stomate analyses indicate that both Picea and Larix arrived locally in the Albany River area of the Hudson Bay Lowlands about 4800 BP. In the Old Man Bog area, Larix arrived earlier, about 6000 BP, but Picea arrived more than 2000 years later (3700 BP). Fossil stomate and pollen results are compared. Key words: conifer stomata, local conifer presence, Hudson Bay Lowlands.