Late Quaternary Environmental Change addresses the interaction between human agency and other environmental factors in the landscapes, particularly of the temperate zone. Taking an ecological approach, the authors cover the last 20,000 years during which the climate has shifted from arctic severity to the conditions of the present interglacial environment.

Holywell Coombe, an embayment in the chalk scarp overlooking Folkestone, Kent, was designated a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1985 because it contains richly fossiliferous Late Quaternary sediments providing a unique archive of the last 13,000 years. The construction of the Channel Tunnel across the Holywell Coombe SSSI brought about a major rescue excavation, funded by Eurotunnel, that set an important precedent in Earth Science conservation. This multidisciplinary investigation has added enormously to our understanding of the environment and natural history of the Late-glacial and Holocene. The climatic complexity of the Late-glacial is recorded in the nature of the sediments, the fossils recovered from them and the soils developed within them. From the Neolithic, and especially during the Early Bronze Age, the slopes were destabilized as a result of forest clearance, leading to the accumulation of hillwash. Archaeological excavations in the hillwash have revealed evidence of prehistoric occupation and agricultural activity in the coombe. Eurotunnel also funded biological surveys of the local terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Combining these with the fossil evidence, it has been possible to document the pedigree of our present fauna and flora, providing one of the most detailed and comprehensive studies of its kind. With contributions from eminent Quaternary scientists from several countries, this work will be an important resource for researchers, lecturers and postgraduate students in Quaternary sciences - geology, geography, biology, ecology and archaeology - as well as for government bodies concerned with nature conservation and environmental protection.

A review of the literature relevant to the Late Quaternary environmental history of the highland region of New South Wales has been undertaken. Studies of Quaternary vegetation history in Australia have been hampered by the difficulty in identifying the pollen of the major family which dominates the south-eastern portion of the continent, the Myrtaceae. Few long palynological records have been published from sites in N.S.W. and thus data over 25 000 years old is sparse. Studies concerning climatic change in the Holocene period are hampered by the small amplitude of possible changes and considerable controversy is revealed in the literature. Pollen analysis of sediment cores from a series of swamps in an altitudinal sequence across the Blue Mountains was undertaken. The altitude change across the study region is associated with a strong climatic gradient and thus these sites were sensitive to small scale climatically induced changes in the vegetation which were recorded in the pollen spectra. The study region is dominated by species of the family Myrtaceae and in order to analyse vegetation change, it was necessary to develop a method to identify dispersed pollen of this family to species level. The reference collection enabled identification of 79% of the dispersed Myrtaceae types of pollen. A vegetation, charcoal and environmental history of the local area immediately surrounding each of the eight swamps in the study has been reconstructed. The information from all of these sites has been combined to produce a climatic history of the study region. One site has a basal date of 34 000 BP and, thus a new long palynological record is included in this study. From this long palynological record it was concluded that temperatures reached a minimum of approximately 7.6 degrees C below modern values in the coldest month and approximately 9.4 degrees C below modern in the hottest month between 34 000 BP and 32 000 BP. A series of small fluctuations in effective precipitation between 11 000 BP and the present have been demonstrated and a model for these oscillations proposed. Some analysis of the relationship between climate and vegetation change and the charcoal record has been undertaken. A discussion concerning the relationship between climate change and vegetation change is included.

Based upon geomorphological analysis of soil samples.

Like a star chart this volume orientates the reader to the key issues and debates in Pacific and Australasian biogeography, palaeoecology and human ecology. A feature of this collection is the diversity of approaches ranging from interpretation of the biogeographic significance of plant and animal distributional patterns, pollen analysis from peats and lake sediments to discern Quaternary climate change, explanation of the patterns of faunal extinction events, the interplay of fire on landscape evolution, and models of the environmental consequences of human settlement patterns. The diversity of approaches, geographic scope and academic rigor are a fitting tribute to the enormous contributions of Geoff Hope. As made apparent in this volume, Hope pioneered multidisciplinary understanding of the history and impacts of human cultures in the Australia- Pacific region, arguably the globe's premier model systems for understanding the consequences of humans colonization on ecological systems. The distinguished scholars who have contributed to this volume also demonstrate Hope's enduring contribution as an inspirational research leader, collaborator and mentor. Terra Australis leave no doubt that history matters, not only for land management, but more importantly, in alerting settler and indigenous societies alike to their past ecological impacts and future environmental trajectories.

The second revised edition of the Encyclopedia of Quaternary Science, Four Volume Set, provides both students and professionals with an up-to-date reference work on this important and highly varied area of research. There are lots of new articles, and many of the articles that appeared in the first edition have been updated to reflect advances in knowledge since 2006, when the original articles were written. The second edition will contain about 375 articles, written by leading experts around the world. This major reference work is richly illustrated with more than 3,000 illustrations, most of them in colour. Research in the Quaternary sciences has advanced greatly in the last 10 years, especially since topics like global climate change, geologic hazards and soil erosion were put high on the political agenda. This second edition builds upon its award-winning predecessor to provide the reader assured quality along with essential updated coverage Contains 357 broad-ranging articles (4310 pages) written at a level that allows undergraduate students to understand the material, while providing active researchers with a ready reference resource for information in the field. Facilitates teaching and learning The first edition was regarded by many as the most significant single overview of Quaternary science ever, yet Editor-in-Chief, Scott Elias, has managed to surpass that in this second edition by securing even more expert reviews whilst retaining his renowned editorial consistency that enables readers to navigates seamlessly from one unfamiliar topic to the next