Sprecher
Beschreibung
The vegetation history of Lake Srebarna in northeastern Bulgaria spans the Holocene period, tied to climate fluctuations and millennia of human land use. Pollen analyses provide a detailed timeline of regional flora and landscape changes. Today, Lake Srebarna is a shallow freshwater lake that transitions into the Danube River floodplain. The aquatic and wetland flora is highly distinct. The vegetation is dominated by massive rcommunities of Phragmites australis and Typha species. Open water sections support Nymphaea, Hydrocharis, and Potamogeton. Adjacent wet meadows support rare, protected aquatic plants like Salvinia natans and Stratiotes aloides.
Throughout the Holocene, climate and landscape in this area were shaped by a complex interplay of natural climate variability, Danube flooding regimes, and human activity. The Danubian Dobrudza and Ludogorie districts were dominated by extensive oak woods, hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), lime (Tilia), elm (Ulmus), and hazel (Corylus) in the Atlantic Period (ca. 8,000–5,000 BP). Later (ca. 5,000–2,500 BP), mixed oak woods persisted, with lime and elm decreasing, and hornbeam and beech (Fagus) becoming prominent. Pollen records show the first significant anthropogenic impact (ca. 2,900–1,600 BP), marking early pastoralism and cereal cultivation. Woodlands began to degrade and open up due to agricultural clearing. The Modern Period is characterized by extensive woodland clearance and the introduction of non-native species (such as Pinus nigra, poplar, and black locust) into abandoned agricultural lands surrounding the lake.
Acknowledgments: The authors thank Horizon Europe and the DANUBE4all Project (GA no. 101093985) for financial support.