18 MARTIN SCHWARZBACH 



i.e. older than 50,000 years. Therefore we will get valuable new results for 

 Quaternary stratigraphy and chronology only with better age determinations 

 and a more sure correlation with continental events. 



The second question concerns the ice-free refugia during Glacial times. They 

 can originate where precipitation is too low to produce glaciers, though 

 temperatures may be sufficiently low; for example, the recent Peary Land in 

 north Greenland. Ice-free refugia can also occur where steep mountain 

 ranges prevent snow accumulation. All regions with pronounced relief, for 

 instance Iceland, had such places. Thorarinsson (1937) has given a map which 

 indicates the rather large areas without inland ice or at best local glaciation. 

 We can suppose that the glacial climate at these places was about the same as 

 it is near the border of recent inland ice areas. 



Finally, the f bird question: Quaternary land-bridges have been demanded 

 as an explanation in certain Ice Age hypotheses or to explain the peculiarities 

 of the recent or Interglacial flora and fauna, especially in Iceland. But the 

 geologist must be skeptical of such suppositions, for he cannot find any 

 indications that at any time in the Quaternary parts of the Wyville-Thompson 

 ridge emerged from the sea. Of course, this ridge was about 100 m shallower 

 during Glacial time because of eustatic fluctuations. But for zoo- or phyto- 

 paleography not the Glacials but, on the contrary, the Interglacials are 

 important — and there we must expect even higher sea levels than today! 



Properly that paleoclimatologist now ought to treat the Post-glacial time 



accordingly, for this period has especially close relations to the recent 



distribution of flora and fauna. But there will be special papers regarding this 



problem in this symposium, and I can forego speaking on this last chapter of 



climatic history. 



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