Late Glacial vegetation, sedimentation and ice recession chronology in the surroundings of Lake Prossa, central Estonia

Pollen records from Lake Prossa, located in the Saadjärv Drumlin Field, indicate rather homogeneous pollen spectra in the pre-Allerød period and a thick sediment sequence suggesting high input of mineral matter and erosion. This period is characterized by pioneer vegetation with dwarf-shrubs. At the beginning of the Allerød, Salix, Artemisia and redeposited temperate and thermophilous taxa prevailed in pollen spectra, referring to shrub tundra conditions, followed later by Betula and Pinus(?) arrival. Silt with organic debris deposited. Vegetational set-back and tundra plant species with scattered birches and silty deposits containing abundantly Drepanocladus fragments characterize the Younger Dryas stadial. The sedimentation rate decreased markedly and was followed by a hiatus at the beginning of the Holocene. The AMS 14C dates, and microfossil and sedimentological data show that the ice front receded and stratified sediments started to deposit about 14 200–14 300 cal yr BP, permitting specification of poorly constrained ice recession chronology in central Estonia.