A new continuous sediment core (PY608W-PC; 3.8 m length) for reconstruction of climatic and environmental changes in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau was taken from the eastern part of Lake Pumoyum Co in August 2006. Sediment layers of the lower part of PY608W-PC (380–300 cm depth) were composed mainly of relatively large plant residues (up to ∼3 cm in length) with an admixture of fine sand and sandy silt. The large plant residues disappeared at ∼300–290 cm depth in core PY608W-PC and were replaced by silt-silty clay. The large plant residues from the lower part of PY608W-PC could be aquatic, because the plant residues were extremely enriched in 13C (up to –3.0‰, −5.6 ± 2.3‰ on average). On the other hand, the plant residue concentrates (PRC fractions) from the upper part of the core (290–0 cm in depth) could be terrestrial C3 plants (δ13C = –21.8 ± 1.7‰ on average). Radiocarbon dating was performed on the large plant residues and PRC fractions from the PY608W-PC sediment core, which represented the chronology from ∼19,000 cal BP to present.

A sediment core (VER99G12; core length, 4.66 m) was taken from the Buguldeika Saddle of Lake Baikal in 1999. Radiocarbon measurements of total organic carbon (TOC) and pollen concentrate fractions from the VER99G12 core were performed by a Tandetron accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) system (Model-4130, HVEE) at Nagoya University. The AMS 14C ages showed that the VER99G12 core spans the past ∼30 cal ka BP (from the MIS 3 to present), and the average sedimentation rate of this core was calculated to be 13.6 cm/kyr based on the calibrated ages. This means that the time resolution of VER99G12 sediment samples in this study is better than ∼70–80 yr/cm. Stable carbon isotope ratios of TOC (δ13CTOC) in the VER99G12 core varied widely from about 26.6‰ to 31.3‰ during the last glacial/post-glacial transition period (about 17–12 cal ka BP). Therefore, a rapid change in the carbon sources in Lake Baikal occurred in the last glacial/post-glacial transition period is concluded.

Soil samples from an 85-cm-long continuous section (PY608ES) were collected from an island in Lake Pumoyum Co (southeastern Tibetan Plateau, ∼5020 m asl) in August 2006. To estimate past environmental conditions of Lake Pumoyum Co during the Holocene, we analyzed radiocarbon ages, stable carbon isotope compositions, and total organic carbon/total nitrogen (TOC/TN) atomic ratios of the soil samples. The 14C measurements were performed with the Tandetron accelerator mass spectrometry system at the Center for Chronological Research, Nagoya University. The 14C concentration in the surface layer (101 pMC; 5–10 cm soil depth) was nearly modern. A 14C chronology of the sequence indicated that continuous soil development began on the island in Lake Pumoyum Co at ∼5800 cal BP (at 63 cm soil depth, the top of a gravel layer). These results may reflect a decrease in the lake level in the middle Holocene. The age of the obvious lithologic boundary (∼5800 cal BP) corresponds to the end of Holocene climate optimum.