A 75,000-y-old Scandinavian Arctic cave deposit reveals past faunal diversity and paleoenvironment

During the last glacial period (~118 to 11.7 ka), the Arctic has been characterized by a major redistribution of flora and fauna as a consequence of extreme climatic fluctuations, with associated glacial advances and retreats, sea-level changes, and shifting sea ice extent. In the high-latitude regions of Northern Europe that are currently subject to rapid climate warming, we lack a comprehensive understanding of faunal biodiversity in the last glacial period due to the extreme rarity of preserved organic remains. Here, we present a stratified sediment deposit with a diverse faunal composition preserved in a bone-bearing layer in Arne Qvamgrotta, part of the Storsteinhola cave system (68.10° N 16.38° E) in Northern Norway. Chronological analyses of sediments and bones including radiocarbon, optically stimulated luminescence, uranium-thorium, and phylogenetic dating place the faunal assemblage in Marine Isotope Stage 5a (MIS 5a, Odderade interstadial, ~85 to 71 ka). Combining comparative osteology and bulk-bone metabarcoding, we identify 46 taxa, including mammals, birds, and fish, with several species not previously found in Fennoscandia. The fauna implies a nonanalogous cold-adapted coastal community, with close proximity to sea ice and nearby freshwater bodies. Mitogenome analyses of a subset of taxa identify extinct lineages which attest to a lack of habitat tracking and the absence of a local refugium during the subsequent fully glaciated periods. This faunal record demonstrates long-term faunal dynamics and coastal environmental conditions during MIS 5a in the European Arctic.

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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Published
2025-08-04
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2415008122
Primary Topic
Environmental DNA in Biodiversity Studies
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article
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article

A 75,000-y-old Scandinavian Arctic cave deposit reveals past faunal diversity and paleoenvironment

Sanne Boessenkool, Aurélie Boilard, Samuel J. Walker, Trond Klungseth Lødøen et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Environmental DNA in Biodiversity Studies
article

A 75,000-y-old Scandinavian Arctic cave deposit reveals past faunal diversity and paleoenvironment

Sanne Boessenkool, Aurélie Boilard, Samuel J. Walker, Trond Klungseth Lødøen, Lene Synnøve Halvorsen, Anne Karin Hufthammer, Stein‐Erik Lauritzen, Love Dalén, Jenny Maccali, Edana Lord, Inger Greve Alsos, Bastiaan Star, Jesper Olsen, Gábor Újvári, Christopher A. Cockerill, Jan‐Pieter Buylaert, Thijs van Kolfschoten, Liselotte M. Takken Beijersbergen, László Palcsu, Mona Henriksen, Marius Robu, Henriette Linge, Marjan Temovski, Sverre Aksnes, Anastasia Bertheussen, Emma Katrin Onshuus, Ola Lygre, Adriana M. Cintrón-Santiago
article en

Abstract

During the last glacial period (~118 to 11.7 ka), the Arctic has been characterized by a major redistribution of flora and fauna as a consequence of extreme climatic fluctuations, with associated glacial advances and retreats, sea-level changes, and shifting sea ice extent. In the high-latitude regions of Northern Europe that are currently subject to rapid climate warming, we lack a comprehensive understanding of faunal biodiversity in the last glacial period due to the extreme rarity of preserved organic remains. Here, we present a stratified sediment deposit with a diverse faunal composition preserved in a bone-bearing layer in Arne Qvamgrotta, part of the Storsteinhola cave system (68.10° N 16.38° E) in Northern Norway. Chronological analyses of sediments and bones including radiocarbon, optically stimulated luminescence, uranium-thorium, and phylogenetic dating place the faunal assemblage in Marine Isotope Stage 5a (MIS 5a, Odderade interstadial, ~85 to 71 ka). Combining comparative osteology and bulk-bone metabarcoding, we identify 46 taxa, including mammals, birds, and fish, with several species not previously found in Fennoscandia. The fauna implies a nonanalogous cold-adapted coastal community, with close proximity to sea ice and nearby freshwater bodies. Mitogenome analyses of a subset of taxa identify extinct lineages which attest to a lack of habitat tracking and the absence of a local refugium during the subsequent fully glaciated periods. This faunal record demonstrates long-term faunal dynamics and coastal environmental conditions during MIS 5a in the European Arctic.

Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesVol. 122(32)
Leiden University (NL), University of Bucharest (RO), Stockholm University (SE), University of Oslo (NO), HUN-REN Institute for Nuclear Research (HU), Aarhus University (DK), Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research (NO), Swedish Museum of Natural History (SE), Institute for Geological and Geochemical Research (HU), Emil Racovita Institute of Speleology (RO), Centre for Palaeogenetics (SE), Department of Archaeology (LK), University of Bergen (NO), Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NO), Bournemouth University (GB), Technical University of Denmark (DK)
Norwegian Sequencing Centre, British Academy, European Commission, Vetenskapsrådet, Universitetet i Bergen, Universitetet i Oslo, Norges Forskningsråd, Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies, HORIZON EUROPE European Research Council
Life below water
Openalex Percentile: Top 81%
Environmental DNA in Biodiversity Studies
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