Earth’s Cryosphere, 2022, Vol. XXVI, No. 6, p. 3-12.
REGIONAL AND HISTORICAL GEOCRYOLOGY
SOURCES OF POLLEN GRAINS IN WINTER PRECIPITATION OF THE ALTAI TERRITORY
Kuryatnikova N.A.*, Malygina N.S.
Institute for Water and Environmental Problems, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Molodezhnaya St. 1, Barnaul, 656038 Russia
*Corresponding author; e-mail: ryabchinnatalia@gmail.com
The results of microscopic analysis of 118 samples of solid precipitation (snow) collected during the cold season of 2019/2020 at three key points located in the Altai Territory in the neighboring Altai–Sayan and Tobol–Irtysh glaciological regions and on their border are presented. In 45 samples (38%), advective pollen grains of trees (Betula sp., Pinus sp.) and herbs (Artemisia sp., family Asteraceae, Amranthaceae s.l. (incl. Chenopodiaceae), Fabaceae, Poaceae) were identified. Territories were identified from which pollen grains arrived with air masses that caused precipitation during the cold season. Advective pollen of wormwood (Artemisia sp.) was brought from the territory of the Kazakh Upland and was determined in the snow of both glaciological regions and on their border. Pollen grains of Amaranthaceae s.l. (incl. Chenopodiaceae) were introduced from the plains of Kazakhstan and, partially, from the snow-free slopes of the Altai Mountains and from the Middle Ob Lowland. Pollen grains of Fabaceae family were only found in the snow of the Altai–Sayan glaciological region, while pollen grains of Poaceae family were found in the snow of the Tobol–Irtysh region; in the border zone of these two glaciological regions, pollen grains of these taxa were not found.
Keywords: pollen, winter precipitation (snow), Altai Territory, Altai–Sayan glaciological region, Tobol–Irtysh glaciological region
Recommended citation: Kuryatnikova N.A., Malygina N.S., 2022. Sources of pollen grains in winter precipitation of the Altai Territory. Earth’s Cryosphere 26 (6), 3–12.