Holocene glacial landscapes of the Atlas Mountains, Morocco

While Pleistocene glaciation was extensive in the Atlas Mountains, there are no glaciers today in Morocco, although snowpack usually survives the year in some niche settings. Numerous sites associated with late-lying snow contain niche glacier moraines and pronival ramparts, often with little or no soil development indicating recent formation. The climate history of Morocco makes the Little Ice Age the prime candidate for any Holocene expansion of snowpack and niche glaciers. While multicentennial cool and wet episodes did occur in the Early and Middle Holocene, overall climate was warmer and unfavourable for sustained snowpack and glacier development, although the implications for snowpack and glacier development in this interval are not yet well known. Fluctuations in snow cover and its persistence in the Atlas Mountains have not only important geomorphological implications but are of vital hydrological and socioeconomic significance. Snow is a strategic resource in Morocco with the Atlas Mountains, providing a sustained supply of water to the neighbouring lowlands through snowmelt through the spring and summer months. Climate change is likely to reduce snow cover duration in the Atlas Mountains. Climate is becoming warmer and drier, which also has the potential to increase atmospheric dust flux. Dust cover increases ablation rates on snow reducing the duration of snow cover further. While niche snowpatches appear to be decoupled from regional climate, exhibiting remarkable resilience, their future is in doubt.