Jia Cuihua, Yu Li, Du Naiqiu, Kong Zhaochen
Based on the information of the sporo-pollen assemblages of 117 samples obtained from the Zk-16 core near Xuezijing,Qian’an County,seven pollen zones are divided in ascending order.Pollen zones 1--3 belong to the Late Tertiary,dominated by arboreal pollen,mainly consisting of Pinus,Tsuga, Jutlans,Ulmus,Quercus,Castanea,Carya,Liquidamer,Symplocos and little Abies and Picea,indicating that the area was covered by mixed conifer and broadleaf deciduous forest,climate was humid and warm.Pollen zone 4 is represented by herbaceous and semi-shrub plants,such as Graminene, Chenopodiaceae,Artemisia and Humulus,indicating it was covered by cool-temperate grassland or desert,with cold-temperate climate.According to the temperature decreasing at this zone,the Late Tertiary-Early Pleistocene boundary shound be about 2.4 million years ago.In the Zk-16 core lower boundary of the Pleistocene is in the depth of about 113 meters.