Late Quaternary dynamics of Spodosols, vegetation and climate at the northeastern region of Espírito Santo state

This study was carried out at the northeastern region of the Espírito Santo State, Brazil. It is organized in two main parts. The first one is related to the characterization of the modern pollen rain of the \"tabuleiros\" forest vegetation and of two distinct physiognomies of mussununga vegetation. The second part consists of the late Quaternary paleoenvironment reconstruction, based on interdisciplinary study applied in Spodosols and lake sediment. The modern pollen rain of the \"tabuleiros\" forest is characterized by the highest pollen accumulation rates, highest frequencies of Urticaceae/Moraceae, and the presence of less frequent and rare taxa as Glycydendron, Rinorea, Hydrogaster, Virola, and others. The wooded mussununga vegetation is characterized by intermediate pollen accumulation rates, high frequencies of Byrsonima, and high frequencies of Araliaceae, Doliocarpus and Lundia when compared with the other vegetation types. The grassland mussununga vegetation is characterized by the lowest pollen accumulation rates, and the highest frequencies of Poaceae, Cyperaceae and Asteraceae. The comparison of these results with the pollen assemblage from lake sediment surface sample shows that in sediment samples the \"tabuleiros\" forest signal may be masked by high frequencies of semi aquatic herbs, mainly Poaceae and Cyperaceae, and pioneer species, especially Cecropia. The paleoenvironment reconstruction study allowed the development of a model for the evolution of Spodosol spots in the region, which sustain the distinct physiognomies of the mussununga vegetation. According to this model, these Spodosol spots originate from the transformation of the Ultisol due to factors related to the relief and more humid paleoclimate events. However, some of these Spodosol spots may have evolved on intrinsically sandy Post-Barreiras sediments. The paleoenvironment study also allowed some inferences about late Quaternary climate fluctuations. Based on the beginning of the podsolization process and on the evolution of some Spodosol spots, the climate during the interval from ~31,000-23,000 cal yr BP may have been humid, without dry period along the year. The next interval, from ~23,000 to 8000 cal yr BP is inferred less humid than the previous one, based on the spatially restricted expansion of C4 plants, observed in the soil organic matter, and on the absence of the \"tabuleiros\" forest pollen signal, from ~11,000 to 8000 cal yr BP, in the lake sediment. The climate of the last interval, from ~7000 yr cal BP to the present, is inferred more humid than the previous one, based on the beginning of the pollen record in a flooded Spodosol site, and on the expansion of the \"tabuleiros\" forest in the pollen record of the lake sediment. Geographically disjunct taxa between Amazonia and Atlantic Forest biomes are present in the pollen record from the lake sediment since ~8500 cal yr BP to the present. Pollen records, and sediment and soil organic matter do not show the expansion of grasslands or savannas dominated by C4 plants during the last 17,000 cal yr BP, which may indicate that the region probably was a forest refuge during the less humid intervals of late Pleistocene and Holocene (AU)