Responses to climatic changes since the Little Ice Age on Maladeta Glacier (Central Pyrenees)

The evolution of Maladeta Glacier (Maladeta massif, central Spanish Pyrenees) since the Little Ice Age maximum is analyzed in this work. The extent of the glacier was mapped into 10 stages using morainic deposits and graphic documents. Climatic data (temperature and precipitation) were reconstructed by using dendroclimatic techniques complemented by recent instrumental records. The results thus obtained confirm the control of the above mentioned climatic factors, particularly annual temperature and winter precipitation, in the evolution of Maladeta Glacier, which has receded from an extent of 152.3 ha in 1820–1830 to 54.5 ha in 2000, a 35.7% reduction in size. The rate of ice wastage has varied during that period, defining several phases of glacial stabilization (1820–1830 to 1857; 1914–1920 to 1934–1935; 1957 to 1981), moderated glacial depletion (1901–1904 to 1914–1920; 1934–1935 to 1957) and marked glacial depletion (1857 to 1901–1904; 1981 to 2000). The evolution of Maladeta Glacier is also in keeping with trends observed from other alpine Mediterranean glaciers, which have experienced a consistent rise in their equilibrium line altitudes during the 19th and 20th centuries as well as associated and prolonged periods of negative mass balance.