The Evolution of an Ancient Coastal Lake (Lerna, Peloponnese, Greece)
Efterpi Koskeridou,
Danae Thivaiou,
Christos Psarras,
Evangelia Rentoumi,
Niki Evelpidou,
Giannis Saitis,
Alexandros Petropoulos,
Chryssanthi Ioakim,
George Katopodis,
Konstantinos Papaspyropoulos,
Spyros Plessas
Affiliations
Efterpi Koskeridou
Department of Historical Geology and Palaeontology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Danae Thivaiou
Department of Historical Geology and Palaeontology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Christos Psarras
Department of Historical Geology and Palaeontology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Evangelia Rentoumi
Department of Historical Geology and Palaeontology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Niki Evelpidou
Department of Geography and Climatology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Giannis Saitis
Department of Geography and Climatology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Alexandros Petropoulos
Department of Geography and Climatology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15774 Athens, Greece
Chryssanthi Ioakim
Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration (IGME), Mitseon Street 4, 11742 Athens, Greece
George Katopodis
Institute of Marine Biological Sciences and Inland Waters, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, 19013 Anavissos, Greece
Konstantinos Papaspyropoulos
Department of Dymanic, Tectonic and Applied Geology, Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, University Campus, 15774 Athens, Greece
Degradation of coastal environments is an issue that many areas in Europe are facing. In the present work, an ancient coastal lake wetland is investigated, the so-called Lake Lerna in NE Peloponnese, Greece. The area hosted early agricultural populations of modern Greece that started modifying their environment as early as the early–middle Neolithic. Two drill cores in the area of the ancient lake were analysed to establish the sedimentological succession and the depositional environments using sub-fossil assemblages (molluscs and ostracods). Three lithological and faunal units were recovered, the latter being confirmed by the statistical ordination method (non-metric multidimensional scaling). The usage of sub-fossil mollusc species for the first time in the region enriched the dataset and contributed significantly to the delimitation of the faunas. These consist of environments characterised by various levels of humidity (from stagnant waters to freshwater lake) and salinity, with ephemeral intrusions of salt water to the lake, documented by mollusc and ostracod populations. We conclude that the lake and its included fauna and flora were mostly affected by climatic fluctuations rather than human intervention in the area.
