CI[)l1:721 - Memorial University of Newfoundland DAI

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However, some of the shores of eastern New Brunswick are presently
emerging. This varies at a rale of near zero at Cape Tormentine to near 1 m
per century near Miramichi Bay. Other parts of the eastern coast are
submerging at rates of 25-50 an per century (Bird 1980: 119).
The differential effects of past sea level changes complicates present
paleoenvironmental reconstructions for coastal areas in the Maritime Provinces
and Maine. For example, some present estuaries may well have been created
by sea level rise following the transition between the Archaic and Ceramic
Periods. This may affect the interpretation of settlement patterns in the region,
further complicated by the effects of differential site loss through erosion (e.g.
Simonsen 1978). The rising or lowering sea levels will also affect the gradient
of rivers (Sanger 1975: 3Q(32), resulting in changes in migration for anadromous
and catadromous fish and possibty in the course of the river itsen. An example
of the latter may be seen at the Deadman's Pool site, located on a former
channel of the Tobique River (Sanger 1971b: 7).
Palynological Record
Comparison of fossil pollen profiles does reveal a good degree of
consistency (Figure 4), and from this, trends become apparent. These indicate
that from c. 4000 B.P.to 200 B.P., the profiles are dominated by hardwood and
conifer species, with a decline in hemlock (Tsuga) values at the beginning of
this period (Bradstreet and Davis 1975: 16). This decline may be attributed to