top of page
עמק החולה.jpg
< Back

Late Pleistocene environmental reconstruction in the northern Levant: a multiproxy study from Lake Hula, Israel

Waldmann, N.1, Yassine, A-A.2, Parth, S.3, Mazzini, I.4, Taha, N.1, Weinstein-Evron, M.5

(1) The Dr. Moses Strauss Department of Marine Geosciences, Leon H.Charney School of marine sciences. University of Haifa, Mt. Carmel, Haifa 3498838

(2) Department of Geography and Environment, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, 52900, Israel

(3) Other Institute (insert manually)

(4) Other Institute (insert manually)

(5) Other Institute (insert manually)

3) Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. 4) Institute of Environmental Geology and Geoengineering, Rome, Italy. 5) Zinman Institute of Archaeology, University of Haifa, Israel

The Levant is highly sensitive to hydro-climate variability, with past changes exerting strong controls on regional ecosystems and water resources. Understanding long term environmental responses to climate forcing is particularly relevant given the increasing frequency of droughts and temperature extremes, override by constant augmentation in anthropogenic impacts. Terrestrial sedimentary archives from the Levant provide valuable insights into these long-term environmental changes and their ecological consequences. In this study we present a multi-proxy reconstruction of Late Pleistocene environmental conditions based on a ~160 m long sediment core retrieved from Lake Hula, in northern Israel. The dataset integrates sedimentological (grain size), elemental and isotope geochemical, mineralogical, total organic matter content, and biological (ostracod) proxies to reconstruct lake processes and catchment-scale environmental change. These data are further combined with previously published pollen and vegetation records to strengthen regional interpretations. Our results identify two major intervals of increased wetness and enhance lake runoff at approximately ~100-120 ka and ~50-60 ka reflecting intensified precipitation in the northern Levant. Ostracod assemblages offer key insights into past limnic conditions, particularly salinity fluctuations and associated lake levels (hypsometric) changes, which are linked with environmental and precipitation intensity changes over the region. The sedimentary record captures millennial-scale climate consistent with orbital-scale climate forcing. By reconstructing the long-term behavior of the Lake Hula system in response to hydro-climate variability over time, this study provides critical context for evaluating the magnitude of current anthropogenic stress and serves as a tool for anticipating future natural climate trends. Overall, our study offers a robust, high resolution perspective on the different mechanisms driving abrupt climate changes in the Levant and highlight their relevance for understanding future climate trajectories in this environmentally vulnerable region.

bottom of page