Photographer: W.D. Gosling
Dr W.D. (William) Gosling
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Faculty of Science
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics
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Visiting address
Science Park A
Science Park 904 Room number: C3.224
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Postal address:
Postbus 94248
1090 GE Amsterdam
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W.D.Gosling@uva.nl
T: 0205257821
T: 020-525 7821
William is an Associate Professor in Palaeoecology at the University of Amsterdam, and Head of the Department of Ecosystem & Landscape Dynamics within the Institute of Biodiversity & Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED). He has published widely on past environmental change in the tropics and co-ordinates the "Ecology of the past" blog; where details of his current research and teaching activity can be found.
In his research and education William seeks to place current concerns related to on-going, and projected, climate change into a longer term context by examining multiple aspects of the fossil record. He is an expert in tropical pollen and environmental change during the Quaternary (last 2.6 million years). He works closely with other researchers to gain insights into past ecosystem function through the examination of many different lines of evidence, including: fossil charcoal (fire history), phytoliths (local vegetation change), and organic geochemistry (plant response to environmental change).
William has active research projects in the Andes, Amazon, West Africa, and the Netherlands with a particular interests in vegetation-human-climate interactions and biogeography. His teaching is focused on two courses at the University of Amsterdam:
Both courses are taught in English, include a strong practical element (laboratory, field and computer), and are suitable for students with biology, Earth science, physical geography, or archaeology backgrounds.
With his personl research William supports a number of BSc, MSc, PhD and post-doctoral projects. If you are intereted in joining the team please get in contact.
Research and education project updates can be found on the Ecology of the past blog.
Publication list on ORCID.
- Visiting Fellow (2014-present)
- Chair of Education and Careers Committee (elected 2014-present)
- Ordinary Member of Council (elected 2010-2014)
- Secretary of Tropical Ecology Special Interest Group (2006-2009)
Associate Editor
Natural Environmental Research Council
- Peer review college member (2010-present)
Past Global Changes LANDCOVER6K working group (a Future Earth research project)
- Coordinator for land-cover research in the Latin America region (2015-present)
Qualifications
- PhD in Characterization of Neotropical forest and savannah ecosystems by their modern pollen spectra (2000-2004)
Department of Geography, University of Leicester - MPhil in Quaternary Science (1998-1999)
Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Queens' College - BSc (Hons) in Physical Geography (1995-1998)
Department of Geography, University of Hull - Certificate in British Archaeology (1996-1998)
Centre for Life Long Learning, University of Hull
Appointments
- Head of Department of Ecosystem & Landscape Dynamics (2017-present)
Head of Research Group of Palaeoecology & Landscape Ecology (2014-2017)
Associate Professor in Palaeoecology (2014-present)
Institute of Biodiversity & Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam - Senior Lecturer in Earth Science (2013-2014)
Lecturer in Earth Science (2010-2013)
Research Councils UK Academic Fellow in Ecosystem Science (2005-2010)
Department of Environment, Earth & Ecosystems, The Open University - Post-doctoral Research Scholar High resolution trans-glacial cycles of the tropical Andes (2003-2005)
Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology - Technician General/Teaching (1999-2000)
Department of Geography, University of Cambridge
Publications
- Full publication list on ORCID.
2018
Montoya, E., Keen, H., Luzuriaga, C. X., & Gosling, W. D. (2018). Long-term vegetation dynamics in a megadiverse hotspot: The ice-age record of a pre-montane forest of central Ecuador. Frontiers in Plant Science, 9, [196]. DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2018.00196 [details]
Bush, M. B., & Gosling, W. D. (2018). In search of the ice age tropics, a tribute to Prof. Daniel Livingstone and Prof. Paul Colinvaux. Quaternary Research, 89(1), 1-6. DOI: 10.1017/qua.2017.109 [details]
Loughlin, N. J. D., Gosling, W. D., & Montoya, E. (2018). Identifying environmental drivers of fungal non-pollen palynomorphs in the montane forest of the eastern Andean flank, Ecuador. Quaternary Research, 89(1), 119-133. DOI: 10.1017/qua.2017.73 [details]
Loughlin, N. J. D., Gosling, W. D., Coe, A. L., Gulliver, P., Mothes, P., & Montoya, E. (2018). Landscape-scale drivers of glacial ecosystem change in the montane forests of the eastern Andean flank, Ecuador. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 489, 198-208. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.10.011 [details]
- Valencia, B. G., Bush, M. B., Coe, A. L., Orren, E., & Gosling, W. D. (2018). Polylepis woodland dynamics during the last 20,000 years. Journal of Biogeography. DOI: 10.1111/jbi.13209
2017
Matthews-Bird, F., Brooks, S. J., Gosling, W. D., Gulliver, P., Mothes, P., & Montoya, E. (2017). Aquatic community response to volcanic eruptions on the Ecuadorian Andean flank: evidence from the palaeoecological record. Journal of Paleolimnology, 58(4), 437-453. DOI: 10.1007/s10933-017-0001-0 [details]
- Gosling, W. D., Julier, A. C. M., Adu-Bredu, S., Djagbletey, G., Fraser, W. T., Jardine, P. E., ... Moore, S. (2017). Pollen-vegetation richness and diversity relationships in the tropics. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. DOI: 10.1007/s00334-017-0642-y
- Cuesta Camacho, F. X., Muriel, P., Llambí, L. D., Halloy, S., Aguirre, N., Beck, S., ... Gosling, W. D. (2017). Latitudinal and altitudinal patterns of plant community diversity on mountain summits across the tropical Andes. Ecography, [40: 001–014]. DOI: 10.1111/ecog.02567
- Gosling, W. D., de Kruif, J., Norder, S., de Boer, E., Hooghiemstra, H., Rijsdijk, K. F., & McMichael, C. N. H. (2017). Mauritius on fire: Tracking historical human impacts on biodiversity loss. Biotropica. DOI: 10.1111/btp.12490
- Jardine, P., Abernethy, F. A. J., Lomax, B. H., Gosling, W. D., & Fraser, W. T. (2017). Shedding light on sporopollenin chemistry, with reference to UV reconstructions. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 238, 1-6. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2016.11.014
- Julier, A. C. M., Jardine, P. E., Adu-Bredu, S., Coe, A. L., Duah-Gyamfi, A., Fraser, W. T., ... Gosling, W. D. (2017). The modern pollen–vegetation relationships of a tropical forest–savannah mosaic landscape, Ghana, West Africa. Palynology. DOI: 10.1080/01916122.2017.1356392
- Sánchez Goñi, M. F., Desprat, S., Daniau, A-L., Bassinot, F. C., Polanco-Martínez, J. M., Harrison, S. P., ... Yamamoto, M. (2017). The ACER pollen and charcoal database: a global resource to document vegetation and fire response to abrupt climate changes during the last glacial period. Earth System Science Data, 9, 679-695. DOI: 10.5194/essd-9-679-2017
2016
Jardine, P. E., Fraser, W. T., Lomax, B. H., Sephton, M. A., Shanahan, T. M., Miller, C. S., & Gosling, W. D. (2016). Pollen and spores as biological recorders of past ultraviolet irradiance. Scientific Reports, 6, [39269]. DOI: 10.1038/srep39269 [details]
- Valencia, B. G., Matthews-Bird, F., Urrego, D. H., Williams, J. J., Gosling, W. D., & Bush, M. (2016). Andean microrefugia: Testing the Holocene to predict the Anthropocene. New Phytologist, 212(2), 510–522. DOI: 10.1111/nph.14042 [details]
Shanahan, T. M., Hughen, K. A., McKay, N. P., Overpeck, J. T., Scholtz, C. A., Gosling, W. D., ... Heil, C. W. (2016). CO2 and fire influence tropical ecosystem stability in response to climate change. Scientific Reports, 6, [29587]. DOI: 10.1038/srep29587 [details]
Matthews-Bird, F., Gosling, W. D., Coe, A. L., Bush, M., Mayle, F. E., Axford, Y., & Brooks, S. J. (2016). Environmental controls on the distribution and diversity of lentic Chironomidae (Insecta: Diptera) across an altitudinal gradient in tropical South America. Ecology and Evolution, 6(1), 91-112. DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1833 [details]
Flantua, S. G. A., Hooghiemstra, H., Vuille, M., Behling, H., Carson, J. F., Gosling, W. D., ... González-Arango, C. (2016). Climate variability and human impact in South America during the last 2000 years: synthesis and perspectives from pollen records. Climate of the Past, 12(2), 483-523. DOI: 10.5194/cp-12-483-2016 [details]
Julier, A. C. M., Jardine, P. E., Coe, A. L., Gosling, W. D., Lomax, B. H., & Fraser, W. T. (2016). Chemotaxonomy as a tool for interpreting the cryptic diversity of Poaceae pollen. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 235, 140-147. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2016.08.004 [details]
Hoogakker, B. A. A., Smith, R. S., Singarayer, J. S., Marchant, R., Prentice, I. C., Allen, J. R. M., ... Tzedakis, C. (2016). Terrestrial biosphere change over the last 120 kyr. Climate of the Past, 12(1), 51-73. DOI: 10.5194/cp-12-51-2016 [details]
Matthews-Bird, F., Brooks, S. J., Holden, P. B., Montoya, E., & Gosling, W. D. (2016). Inferring late-Holocene climate in the Ecuadorian Andes using a chironomid-based temperature inference model. Climate of the Past, 12(5), 1263-1280. DOI: 10.5194/cp-12-1263-2016 [details]
- Miller, C. S., Gosling, W. D., Kemp, D. B., Coe, A. L., & Gilmour, I. (2016). Drivers of ecosystem and climate change in tropical West Africa over the past ~540,000 years. Journal of Quaternary Science. DOI: 10.1002/jqs.2893
2015
Flantua, S. G. A., Hooghiemstra, H., Grimm, E. C., Behling, H., Bush, M. B., González-Arrango, C., ... van Boxel, J. H. (2015). Updated site compilation of the Latin American Pollen Database. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 233, 104-115. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2016.07.006 [details]
Jardine, P. E., Fraser, W. T., Lomax, B. H., & Gosling, W. D. (2015). The impact of oxidation on spore and pollen chemistry. Journal of Micropalaeontology, 34(2), 139-149. DOI: 10.1144/jmpaleo2014-022 [details]
- Downloads
- The impact of oxidation on spore
- Supplementary files
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 1
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 2
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 3
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 4
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 5
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 6
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 7
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 8
- The impact of oxidation on spore suppl. 9
- Downloads
2014
- Bush, M. B., De Oliveira, P. E., Raczka, M. F., Gosling, W. D., Mayle, F. E., McMichael, C. H., & Urrego, D. H. (2014). Paleoclimates of Amazonia: An ice-age view. In I. de Souza Carvalho, M. J. Garcia, C. Cunha Lana, & O. Strohschoen Jr. (Eds.), Paleontologia: Cenários de Vida - Paleoclimas Volume 5 (pp. 353-367). Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Editora Interciência Ltda.. [details]
- Cárdenas, M. L., Gosling, W. D., Pennington, R. T., Poole, I., Sherlock, S. C., & Mothes, P. (2014). Forests of the tropical eastern Andean flank during the middle Pleistocene. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 393, 76-89. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2013.10.009 [details]
Fraser, W. T., Lomax, B. H., Jardine, P. E., Gosling, W. D., & Sephton, M. A. (2014). Pollen and spores as a passive monitor of ultraviolet radiation. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 2, 12. DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2014.00012 [details]
Fraser, W. T., Watson, J. S., Sephton, M. A., Lomax, B. H., Harrington, G., Gosling, W. D., & Self, S. (2014). Changes in spore chemistry and appearance with increasing maturity. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 201, 41-46. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2013.11.001 [details]
Keen, H. F., Gosling, W. D., Hanke, F., Miller, C. S., Montoya, E., Valencia, B. G., & Williams, J. J. (2014). A statistical sub-sampling tool for extracting vegetation community and diversity information from pollen assemblage data. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 408, 48-59. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2014.05.001 [details]
Miller, C. S., & Gosling, W. D. (2014). Quaternary forest associations in lowland tropical West Africa. Quaternary Science Reviews, 84, 7-25. DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2013.10.027 [details]
- Sayer, E. J., Featherstone, H. C., & Gosling, W. D. (2014). Sex & Bugs & Rock ‘n Roll - Getting creative about public engagement. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 29(2), 65-67. DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2013.12.008 [details]
2013
- Gosling, W. D., & Williams, J. J. (2013). Ecosystem service provision sets the pace for pre-Hispanic societal development in the central Andes. Holocene, 23, 1617-1622. DOI: 10.1177/0959683613496296
- Gosling, W. D., Miller, C. S., & Livingstone, D. A. (2013). Atlas of the tropical West African pollen flora. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 199, 1-135. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2013.01.003
- Roucoux, K. H., Lawson, I. T., Jones, T. D., Baker, T. R., Coronado, E. N. H., Gosling, W. D., & Lahteenoja, O. (2013). Complex vegetation succession in an Amazonian peatland. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 374, 242-255. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2013.01.023
2012
- Bush, M. B., & Gosling, W. D. (2012). Environmental change in the humid tropics and monsoonal regions. In J. A. Matthews (Ed.), The Handbook of Environmental Change (Volume 1) (pp. 113-140). London: Sage.
- Mosblech, N. A. S., Bush, M. B., Gosling, W. D., Hodell, D. A., Thomas, L., van Calsteren, P., ... van Woesik, R. (2012). North Atlantic forcing of Amazonian precipitation during the last ice age. Nature Geoscience, 5, 817-820. DOI: 10.1038/NGEO1588
- Williams, J. J., Brooks, S. J., & Gosling, W. D. (2012). Response of chironomids to late Pleistocene and Holocene environmental change in the eastern Bolivian Andes. Journal of Paleolimnology, 48(3), 485-501. DOI: 10.1007/s10933-012-9626-1
2011
- Gosling, W. D., & Holden, P. B. (2011). Precessional forcing of tropical vegetation carbon storage. Journal of Quaternary Science, 26(5), 463-467. DOI: 10.1002/jqs.1514
- Bush, M. B., Gosling, W. D., & Colinvaux, P. A. (2011). Climate and vegetation change in the lowlands of the Amazon Basin. In M. B. Bush, J. R. Flenley, & W. D. Gosling (Eds.), Tropical rainforests responses to climatic changes (2nd edition) (pp. 61-84). Chichester: Springer/Praxis.
- Cárdenas, M. C., Gosling, W. D., Sherlock, S. C., Poole, I., Pennington, R. T., & Mothes, P. (2011). The response of vegetation on the Andean flank in western Amazonia to Pleistocene climate change. Science, 331, 1055-1058. DOI: 10.1126/science.1197947
- Hanselman, J. A., Bush, M. B., Gosling, W. D., Collins, A., Knox, C., Baker, P. A., & Fritz, S. C. (2011). 370,000-year record of vegetation and fire history around Lake Titicaca (Bolivia/Peru). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 305, 201-214. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2011.03.002
- Williams, J. J., Gosling, W. D., Brooks, S. J., Coe, A. L., & Xu, S. (2011). Vegetation, climate and fire in the eastern Andes (Bolivia) during the last 18,000 years. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 312(1-2), 115-126. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2011.10.001
- Williams, J. J., Gosling, W. D., Coe, A. L., Brooks, S. J., & Gulliver, P. (2011). Four thousand years of environmental change and human activity in the Cochabamba Basin, Bolivia. Quaternary Research, 76, 58-68. DOI: 10.1016/j.yqres.2011.03.004
2010
- Bush, M. B., Hanselman, J. A., & Gosling, W. D. (2010). Non-linear climate change and Andean feedbacks: An imminent turning point? Global Change Biology, 16(12), 3223-3232. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02203.x
2009
- Gosling, W. D., Hanselman, J. A., Knox, C., Valencia, B. G., & Bush, M. B. (2009). Long term drivers of change in Polylepis woodland distribution in the central Andes. Journal of Vegetation Science, 20, 1041-1052. DOI: 10.1111/j.1654-1103.2009.01102.x
- Gosling, W. D., Mayle, F. E., Tate, N. J., & Killeen, T. J. (2009). Differentiation between Neotropical rainforest, dry forest, and savannah ecosystems by their modern pollen spectra and implications for the fossil pollen record. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 153(1-2), 70-85. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2008.06.007
Marchant, R., Cleef, A., Harrison, S. P., Hooghiemstra, H., Markgraf, V., van Boxel, J., ... Wille, M. (2009). Pollen-based biome reconstructions for Latin America at 0, 6000 and 18 000 radiocarbon years ago. Climate of the Past, 5(4), 725-767. DOI: 10.5194/cp-5-725-2009 [details]
2008
- Gosling, W. D., & Bunting, M. J. (2008). A role for palaeoecology in anticipating future change in mountain regions? Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 259(1), 1-5. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2007.10.017
- Gosling, W. D., Bush, M. B., Hanselman, J. A., & Chepstow-Lusty, A. (2008). Glacial-interglacial changes in moisture balance and the impact on vegetation in the southern hemisphere tropical Andes. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 259(1), 35-50. DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2007.02.050
2015
Flantua, S. G. A., Hooghiemstra, H., Vuillle, M., Behling, H., Carson, J. F., Gosling, W. D., ... González-Arango, C. (2015). Climate variability and human impact on the environment in South America during the last 2000 years: synthesis and perspectives. Climate of the Past Discussions, 11(4), 3475-3565. DOI: 10.5194/cpd-11-3475-2015 [details]
- Downloads
- cpd-11-3475-2015 reducedsize
- Supplementary files
- Climate variability and human impact
- Downloads
2014
- Bush, M. B., Raczka, M. F., de Oliveira, P., Gosling, W. D., Mayle, F. E., Urrego, D. H., & McMichael, C. N. H. (2014). Amazonia: an ice-age view. In Paleoclimas - Série Paleontologia: Cenários de Vida. (pp. 341-356). Sao Paulo, Brazil: Interciência.
2011
- Cárdenas, M. C., Gosling, W. D., Sherlock, S. C., Poole, I., Pennington, R. T., & Mothes, P. (2011). Response to comment on "The response of vegetation on the Andean flank in western Amazonia to Pleistocene climate change". Science, 333, 1825. DOI: 10.1126/science.1207888
2009
Marchant, R., Harrison, S. P., Hooghiemstra, H., Markgraf, V., van Boxel, J. H., Ager, T., ... Wille, M. (2009). Pollen-based biome reconstructions for Latin America at 0, 6000 and 18 000 radiocarbon years. Climate of the Past Discussions, 5(1), 369-461. DOI: 10.5194/cpd-5-369-2009 [details]
2010
- Gosling, W. D. (2010). Evolutions Atlas. In J. A. Silvertown (Ed.), Fragile Web: What's next for nature? (pp. 31-41). Natural History Museum & University of Chicago Press.
Book editor
- Bush, M. B., Flenley, J. R., & Gosling, W. D. (2011). Tropical Rainforest Responses to Climatic Change. -2nd edition. (Springer-Praxis books in environmental sciences). Berlin: Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-05383-2
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British Ecological Society
Chair of Education, Taining and Careers Committee -
The Open University
Visiting Fellow