Paleoenvironmental Change
Research Group UNCW · Earth & Ocean Sciences · Center for Marine Science
Research

Research projects

I am always looking for good graduate and undergraduate students interested in working on research projects. If you're interested in any of the projects below, or have an idea for a related (or unrelated!) project, get in touch.

Current

Active projects

Stable isotopic compositions of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances as tracers of contaminant origin and fate

NC Collaboratory

Working in collaboration with Drs. Ralph Mead and Paul Wojtal, we are developing methodologies using classical (magnetic sector) stable isotope mass spectrometry alongside cutting-edge orbitrap stable isotope mass spectrometry to measure the stable isotopic composition of PFAS compounds as potential tracers of the origin and fate of these compounds in the environment. This work is primarily funded by the North Carolina Collaboratory.

Diagram of PFAS samples analyzed by orbitrap mass spectrometry to trace stable isotopic composition, source, and environmental fate

Developing a network of n-alkane hydrogen isotope records in Costa Rica to elucidate drivers and impacts of Holocene droughts

NSF‑GSS 1660185

This project addresses patterns and drivers of past droughts and their effects on humans and the biosphere. We analyze lake-sediment cores to develop records of precipitation variability associated with past shifts in major drivers of atmospheric circulation that influenced the broader circum-Caribbean region, including the U.S. Gulf Coast. The precipitation records are compared to evidence of past human activity and biomass burning in lake watersheds, to explore local consequences of regional shifts in atmospheric drivers. The work forms the foundation for an expanded network of precipitation reconstructions across the region, in collaboration with Dr. Sally Horn (University of Tennessee) and Doug Gamble (UNCW).

Full project page →

Map of the NSF Costa Rica project sites

Revisiting the paleoenvironmental records stored in North Carolina's Carolina Bays

These elliptical lakes were cored by some of the pioneers of paleolimnology — David Frey, Donald Whitehead, and William Watts — back in the 1950s–70s, who documented extraordinary changes in pollen assemblages associated with climate change spanning glacial to interglacial periods. Our goal is to apply proxy techniques developed since then to detect more subtle changes in climate, vegetation, and fire history, including isotopic and charcoal analyses.

Aerial view of a Carolina Bay
Publication record

Past projects & publications

Full publication list, most recent first. *Indicates graduate student author; **indicates undergraduate student author; aindicates advisee.

  • (62) Johanson, E.N., S.P. Horn, and C.S. Lane. In Review. Trade wind inversion dynamics and late-Holocene drought in the highlands of Hispaniola. Submitted to Quaternary Science Reviews.
  • (61) Wojtal, P.K., R.N Mead, and C.S. Lane. In Review. Data correction workflow for isotope analysis of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) by orbitrap-IRMS. Submitted to Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry.
  • (60) Wojtal, P.K., C.S. Lane, and R.N. Mead. 2026. Purification and preconcentration of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by HPLC fraction collection for isotope analysis. Accepted for publication in Analytical Chemistry.
  • (59) Moore, C.R., J.A.M. Gingerich, W.A. Childress, M.A. LeCompte, A. West, M. Baalousha, M. Bizimis, T.A. Ferguson, S. Mitra, C.S. Lane, T.R. Them II, M.S. Harris, V. Adedeji, K.A. Langworthy, M. Alam, P.A. Schroeder, A. Thompson, and J. Jeffreys. 2026. A 12.8 ka microspherule and nanoparticle chronostratigraphic datum in stratified paleoamerican deposits at Smith Mountain Lake (44PY152), USA. Submitted to Science Open Research.
  • (58) Moore, C.R., A. West, J.P. Kennett, M. Baalousha, W.S. Wolbach, M. Alam, M.A. LeCompte, C.S. Lane, T.R. Them II, T.A. Ferguson, V. Adedeji, M.D. Young, J.J. Razink, B. van Devener, J.P. Perez, R. Polson, and T. Witwer. 2026. Impact-related proxies, environmental change, and faunal extinctions across the Younger Dryas Boundary in Hall’s Cave,Texas. Airbursts and Cratering Impacts 4, 1–33. DOI: 10.14293/ACI.2026.0006
  • (57) Moore, C.R., M.A. LeCompte, A. West, M. Baalousha, M. Bizimis, D.J. Mallinson, M.J. Brooks, A.C. Goodyear, T.A. Ferguson, S. Mitra, C.S. Lane, T.R. Them II, S. Pyne-O’Donnell, W.S. Wolbach, V. Adedeji, M.S. Harris, M. Alam, G. Kletetschka, M. Defant, M. Martinez-Colon, S.G. Taylor, P.A. Stone, D.H. Abbott, and T. Witwer. 2026. Microspherules, meltglass, and nanoparticles from the Younger Dryas boundary layer at White Pond, USA. Airbursts and Cratering Impacts 4, 1–24. DOI: 10.14293/ACI.2026.0003
  • (56) Horn, S.P., K.A. Haberyan, E.N. Johanson, M.M. Herrera, *aA. Tomlinson, C.S. Lane, T. Friedel, and M. Steckler. 2026. A 1500-year paleolimnological record from an ancient debris avalanche landscape in west central Costa Rica. Physical Geography 47 (3) , 246–277. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723646.2026.2634482
  • (55) Wojtal, P.K., B. Davidheiser-Kroll, C.S. Lane, and R.N. Mead. 2025. Stable carbon isotope analysis of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) by microflow-high pressure liquid chromatography-orbitrap mass spectrometry. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 39:e10139. https://doi.org/10.1002/rcm.10139
  • (54) Taylor, Z.P., C.N. Anderson, C.S. Lane, G.X. Pleasant, and *aE. Yanuskiewicz. 2025. A 7500-year record of fire and precipitation dynamics from Clear Pond, South Carolina. Journal of Quaternary Science 40(5), 764–777. DOI: 10.1002/jqs.3711.
  • (53) *aDombrowski, A., P.K. Wojtal, H. Pan, C.S. Lane, and R.N. Mead. 2025. Stable carbon and sulfur isotopic compositions of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Environmental Science and Technology Letters 12, 216–221. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.5c00021.
  • (52) *Chaffin, A., L. Cahoon, M. Mallin, C.S. Lane, and K. Mapes. 2025. Long-term increase in aquatic organic nitrogen loading in North Carolina: Source elucidation using stable isotope analysis. Journal of Environmental Quality DOI: 10.1002/jeq2.20669.
  • (51) *aKho, P.Y.Y., C.S. Lane, S.P. Horn, J.C. Rodgers III, and D.W. Gamble. 2024. Multi-proxy stable isotope analyses of late-Holocene precipitation variability and vegetation change at Laguna María Aguilar, Costa Rica. Quaternary International 708, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2024.07.017
  • (50) *Kerr, M.T., S.P. Horn, and C.S. Lane. 2024. Holocene hydroclimate in highland Costa Rica: new evidence from hydrogen and carbon isotopes in n-alkanes of terrestrial leaf waxes in a 10,000-year sediment profile. Journal of Quaternary Science 39 (4), 665–681. DOI: 10.1002/jqs.3616.
  • (49) Moore, C.R., M.A. LeCompte, J.P. Kennett, M.J. Brooks, R.B. Firestone, A.H. Ivester, T.A. Ferguston, C.S. Lane, K.A. Duernberger, J.K. Feathers, C.B. Mooney, V.Adedeji, D. Batchelor, M. Salmon, K. Langworthy, J.J. Raznik, V. Brogden, B. van Devener, J.P. Perez, R. Polson, M. Martinez-Colon, B.N. Rock, M.D. Young, T.E. Bunch, and A. West. 2024. Platinum, shock-fractured quartz, microspherules, and meltglass widely distributed in Eastern USA at the Younger Dryas onset (12.8 ka). Airbursts and Cratering Impacts Vol. 2(1). DOI: 10.14293/ACI.2024.0003.
  • (48) *Olinger, L.K., B. McClenaghan, M. Hajibabaei, N. Fahner, L. Berghuis, H. Rajabi, P. Erwin, C.S. Lane, and J. R. Pawlik. 2024. Looking for the sponge loop: Analyses of detritus on a Caribbean forereef using stable isotope and eDNA metabarcoding techniques. PeerJ 12:e16970 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.16970
  • (47) Horn, S.P., E.N. Johanson, M. M. Herrera, K.A. Haberyan, T. Friedel, and C.S. Lane. 2023. Initial limnology of Laguna Pozo Verde, Costa Rica: bathymetry, water, sediments, and diatoms. Cuadernos de Investigación. https://doi.org/10.22458/urj.v15i2.4835.
  • (46) *aYanuskiewicz, E.A., C.S. Lane, S.P. Horn, E.N. Johanson, and D.W. Gamble. 2022. Compound-specific stable carbon and hydrogen isotope analyses of late-Holocene vegetation and precipitation change at Laguna Los Mangos, Costa Rica. Quaternary International 607, 22–34.
  • (45) Lane, C.S., *aE.A. Yanuskiewicz, R.N. Mead, and S.P. Horn. 2021. Anomalously low radiocarbon content of modern n-alkanes. Organic Geochemistry 152, doi.org/10.1016/j.orggeochem.2020.104170.
  • (44) Taylor, Z.P., C.S. Lane, and S.P. Horn. 2020. A 3,600-year record of drought in southern Pacific Costa Rica. Quaternary Research 98, 36–48. https://doi.org/10.1017/qua.2020.37.
  • (43) Shimizu, M.S., S.L. Summerlin, J.D. Felix, J. Halls, G.B. Avery, R.J. Kieber, C.S. Lane, R.N. Mead, and J.D. Willey. 2020. Variable ethanol concentrations and stable carbon isotopes reveal anthropogenic ethanol contributions to rainwater. Atmospheric Environment 234 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2020.117578.
  • (42) Reber, E.A., E. Boswell, J. Kelly, and C.S. Lane. 2020. Molecular evidence of changing foodways across the Mississippian transition at the George Reeves Site (11S650). Southeastern Archaeology 39 (2), 71–88.
  • (41) *Johanson, E.N., S.P. Horn, C.S. Lane, M. Sánchez, and J. Cecil. 2020. Fire history across the Little Ice Age in southern Pacific Costa Rica. Journal of Paleolimnology 64, 1-23.
  • (40) Li, J., S. Jian, C.S. Lane, C. Guo, Y.-H. Lu, X. He, G. Wang, M.A. Mayes, K.E. Dzantor, and D. Hui. 2020. Effects of nitrogen fertilization and bioenergy crop type on soil organic carbon and total nitrogen contents in middle Tennessee USA. PlosOne https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230688.
  • (39) Li, J., S. Jian, C.S. Lane, C. Guo, Y-H Lu, Q. Deng, M.A. Mayes, K.E. Dzantor, and D. Hui. 2020. Nitrogen fertilization restructured spatial patterns of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen in switchgrass and gamagrass croplands in Tennessee USA. Scientific Reports (2020) 10:1211 https://doi.org/10.1030/s41598-020-58217-x.
  • (38) **aTaylor, A.K., M.M. Benedetti, J.A. Haws, and C.S. Lane. 2019. Hydrogen isotopic compositions of sedimentary n-alkanes record ecological change at a Portuguese paleowetland. Quaternary International 532, 23–33.
  • (37) Moore, C.R., M.J. Brooks, A.C. Goodyear, T.A. Ferguson, A.G. Perrotti, S. Mitra, A. Listecki, B. King, D.J. Mallinson, C.S. Lane, B. Shapiro, J. Knapp, A. West, D.L. Carlson, W. Wolbach, T.R. Them, S.M. Harris, and S. Pyne-O’Donnell. 2019. Sediment Cores from White Pond, South Carolina, contain a platinum anomaly, pyrogenic carbon peak, and coprophilous spore decline at 12.8 ka. Scientific Reports (2019) 9:15121 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-51552-8.
  • (36) *Kerr, M.T., S.P. Horn, and C.S. Lane. 2019. Stable isotope analysis of vegetation history and land-use change at Laguna Santa Elena in southern Pacific Costa Rica. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany https://doi.org/10.1007/s00334-019-00755-0.
  • (35)*Johanson, E.N., S.P. Horn, and C.S. Lane. 2019. Pre-Columbian agriculture, fire, and Spanish contact: A 4200-year record from Laguna Los Mangos, Costa Rica. The Holocene 29 (11), 1743-1757.
  • (34)*aGrochocki, K.K., C.S. Lane, J. Stager. 2019. An 1800-year multi-proxy paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Piseco Lake, southern Adirondack Mountains, New York, U.S.A. Journal of Paleolimnology 62 (3), 301–314.
  • (33) Sánchez, M., S.P. Horn, and C.S. Lane. 2019. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios of surface food residues in Precolumbian ceramics from the southern Pacific region of Costa Rica as evidence of prehistoric human diets. Cuadernos de Investigación 11, 89–97.
  • (32) Felix, J.D., *R. Thomas, *M. Casas, M. Shimizu, G.B. Avery, R.J. Kieber, R.N. Mead, C.S. Lane, J.D. Willey, A. Guy, and M.L.A. de Moura Campos. 2019. Compound-specific carbon isotope composition of ethanol in Brazil and US vehicle emissions and wet deposition. Environmental Science and Technology 53, 1698–1705.
  • (31) Bergamino, L., L. Rodriguez-Gallego, A.P.-Parada, M.R Chialanza, V. Amaral, L. Perez, F. Scarabino, C. Lescano, C. Garcia-Sposito, S. Costa, C.S. Lane, A. Tuduri, N. Venturini, and F. Garcia-Rodriguez. 2018. Autochthonous organic carbon contributions to the sedimentary pool: A multi-analytical approach in Laguna Garzón. Organic Geochemistry 125, 55–56.
  • (30) Li, J., S. Jian, J.P. de Koff, C.S. Lane, G. Wang, M.A. Mayes, and D. Hui. 2018. Differential effects of warming and N fertilization on soil respiration and microbial dynamics in switchgrass croplands. Global Change Biology-Bioenergy, doi: 10.1111/gcbb.12515.
  • (29) **Taylor, A.K., M.M. Benedetti, J. Haws, and C.S. Lane. 2018. Mid-Holocene Iberian hydroclimate variability and paleoenvironmental change: Molecular and isotopic insights from Praia Rei Cortiço, Portugal. Journal of Quaternary Science 33, 79–92
  • (28) Lane, C.S., **aA.K. Taylor, *aJ. Spencer, and *aK. Jones. 2018. Compound-specific isotope records of late-Quaternary environmental change in southeastern North Carolina. Quaternary Science Reviews 182, 48–64.
  • (27) *aSpencer, J., *aK. Barket, D.W. Gamble, M.M. Benedetti, **aA.K. Taylor, and C.S. Lane. 2017. Late-Quaternary records of fire and vegetation in southeastern North Carolina from Jones Lake and Singletary Lake. Quaternary Science Reviews 174, 33–53.
  • (26) *LeBlanc, A., L.M. Kennedy, K-b Liu, and C.S. Lane. 2017. Linking hurricane landfalls, precipitation variability, fires, and vegetation response over the past millennium from analysis of coastal lagoon sediments, southwestern Dominican Republic. Journal of Paleolimnology 58(2), 135–150.
  • (25) Lane, C.S., **aB. Hildebrandt, L.M. Kennedy, A. LeBlanc, K-B. Liu, A.J. Wagner, and A.D. Hawkes. 2017. Verification of tropical storm deposits with oxygen isotope analyses of coeval ostracod valves. Journal of Paleolimnology 57(3), 245–255. -Highlighted article in the 30th anniversary celebration of the journal
  • (24) Lane, C.S. 2017. Modern n-alkane abundances and isotopic values in vegetation of a gymnosperm-dominated ecosystem of the southeastern U.S. coastal plain. Organic Geochemistry 105, 33–36.
  • (23) Stager, J.C., B.F. Cumming, K. Laird, A. Garrigan-Piela, N. Pederson, B. Wiltse, C.S. Lane,*aJ. Nester, and A. Rusmaikin. 2017. A 1600-year diatom record of hydroclimate variability from Wolf Lake, New York. The Holocene 27(2), 246–257.
  • (22) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, Z.P. Taylor, and **aM. Kerr. 2016. Correlation of bulk sedimentary and compound-specific δ13C values indicates minimal pre-aging of n-alkanes in a small tropical watershed. Quaternary Science Reviews 145, 238–242.
  • (21) *aReidhaar, P., C.S. Lane, C.R. Benitez-Nelson, and D.W. Gamble. 2016. Spatial and temporal variations in Pyrodinium bahamense cyst concentrations in the sediments of bioluminescent Mangrove Lagoon, St. Croix, U.S.V.I. Estuaries and Coasts 39(3), 682–694.
  • (20) Tanner, B.R., C.S. Lane, **L. Martin, R.S. Young, and B.S. Collins. 2015. Sedimentary proxy evidence of a mid-Holocene hypsithermal event in the location of a current warming hole, North Carolina, USA. Quaternary Research 83, 315–323.
  • (19) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, and **aM. Kerr. 2014. Beyond the Mayan Lowlands: Impacts of the Terminal Classic Drought in the Caribbean Antilles. Quaternary Science Reviews 86, 89–98.
  • (18) Lane C.S., and S.P. Horn. 2013. Terrestrially derived n-Alkane δD evidence of shifting paleohydrology in highland Costa Rica. Journal of Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research 45, 342–349.
  • (17) Li, J., S.E. Ziegler, C.S. Lane, and S. A. Billings. 2013. Legacies of native climate regime govern responses of boreal soil microbes to litter stoichiometry and temperature. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 66, 204–213.
  • (16) Ziegler, S.E., S.A Billings, C.S. Lane, J. Li, and M.L. Fogel. 2013. Warming alters the routing of labile and slower-turnover carbon through distinct microbial groups in boreal forest organic soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 60, 23–32.
  • (15) Lane, C.S., D. Lyon, and S. Ziegler. 2013. Cycling of two carbon substrates of contrasting lability by heterotrophic biofilms across a nutrient gradient of headwater streams. Aquatic Sciences 75, 235–250.
  • (14) Lane, C.S., J. J. Clark, A. Knudsen, and **aJ. McFarlin. 2013. Paleoenvironmental history of bioluminescent Laguna Grande, Puerto Rico. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, and Palaeoecology 369, 99–113.
  • (13) Power, M.J., F.E. Mayle, P.J. Bartlein, J.R. Marlon, R.S. Anderson, H. Behling, K.J. Brown, C. Carcaillet, D. Colombaroli, D.G. Gavin, D.J. Hallett, S.P. Horn, L.M. Kennedy, C.S. Lane, C. Long, P.I. Moreno, C. Paitre, G. Robinson, Z. Taylor, and M. Walsh. 2013. Climatic control of the biomass-burning decline in the Americas after AD 1500. The Holocene 23, 3–13.
  • (12) Li, J., S.E. Ziegler, C.S. Lane, and S. Billings. 2012. Warming-enhanced preferential microbial mineralization of humified boreal forest soil organic matter: Interpretation of soil profiles along a climate transect using laboratory incubations. Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences 117, G02008, doi: 10.1029/2011JG001769.
  • (11) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, K.H. Orvis, and **J. Thomason. 2011. Oxygen isotope evidence of Little Ice Age aridity on the Caribbean slope of the Cordillera Central, Dominican Republic. Quaternary Research 75, 461–470.
  • (10) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, C.I. Mora, K.H. Orvis, and D.B. Finkelstein. 2011. Sedimentary compound-specific stable carbon isotope evidence of late Quaternary environmental change in the Chirripó Páramo of Costa Rica. Journal of Paleolimnology 45, 323–338.
  • (9) Lane, C.S., **aK.E. Cummings, and J.J. Clark. 2010. Maize pollen deposition patterns in modern lake sediments: A case study from northeastern Wisconsin. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 159, 177–187.
  • (8) Tanner, B.R., M.E. Uhle, C.I. Mora, J.T. Kelley, P.J. Schuneman, C.S. Lane, E.S. Allen. 2010. Comparison of bulk and compound-specific δ13C analyses and determination of carbon sources to salt marsh sediments using n-alkane distributions (Maine, USA). Estuarine, Coastal, and Shelf Science 86, 283–291.
  • (7) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, C.I. Mora, and K.H. Orvis. 2009. Late-Holocene paleoenvironmental change in the mid-elevations of the Dominican Republic: A multi-site, multi-proxy analysis. Quaternary Science Reviews 28, 2239–2260.
  • (6) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, Z.P. Taylor, and C.I. Mora. 2009. Assessing the scale of prehistoric human impact in the Neotropics using stable carbon isotope analyses of lake sediments. Latin American Antiquity 20, 120–133.
  • (5) Lane, C.S., C.I. Mora, S.P. Horn, and K.H. Orvis. 2008. Sensitivity of sedimentary stable carbon isotope signatures to prehistoric forest clearance and agriculture in the Neotropics. Journal of Archaeological Science 35, 2119–2132.
  • (4) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, K.H. Orvis, and C.I. Mora. 2008. The earliest botanical evidence of Ostionoid maize agriculture from the interior of Hispaniola. Caribbean Journal of Science 44, 43–52.
  • (3) Lane, C.S. 2007. A reanalysis of the applicability of Rapoport’s Rule in the United States and its criticisms. The Professional Geographer 59, 115–130.
  • (2) Orvis, K.H., C.S. Lane, and S.P. Horn. 2005. Laboratory production of vouchered reference charcoal from small wood samples and non-woody plant tissues. Palynology 29, 1–11.
  • (1) Lane, C.S., S.P. Horn, and C.I. Mora. 2004. Stable carbon isotope ratios in lake and swamp sediments as a proxy for prehistoric forest clearance and crop cultivation in the Neotropics. Journal of Paleolimnology 32, 375–381.