Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1998, Qupperneq 207

HÁLENDISVINDBORIN SETLØG í FØROYUM
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Scotland, and thus they may also partly be
niveo-aeolian in origin. The ages of the ae-
olian deposits are not yet determined in de-
tail, but the existence of early to mid
Holocene peat layers below some of the
sheets of these windblown sediments indi-
cates that some of them are of mid to late
Holocene age. Probably they might to a
large extent be accumulated due to late
Holocene climatic deterioration, such as
occurred e.g. in the Little Ice Age, but also
due to the general cooling following the
early to mid Holocene climatic optimum.
Implications and perspectives
Further detailed studies of the aeolian de-
posits are expected to significantly increase
knowledge of environmental changes in the
Faroe Islands. More detailed reconstruc-
tions of the dominating palaeo-wind direc-
tions, and periods of high wind activity will
be possibie, just as information on Holo-
cene flora presumably will be available
from pollen analyses. Likewise studies of
these deposits should be able to contribute
to determine the effect of human settlement
on landscape development and thus on the
ecological balance. This is because the ae-
olian deposits occur both in areas of the
landscape that can have been influenced by
man, but also in remote parts most likely
not affected very much by settlement.
Acknowledgements
The present study forms part f a post.doc. project on
periglacial landscapa analysis with particular emphasis
on sediment flux in the Scottish and Faroese part of the
North Atlantic area, funded by the Danish Natural Sci-
ence Research Council. Fieldwork was carried out dur-
ing a half year stay at the Faroese Museum of Natural
History, Tórshavn.
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