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Faculty of Graduate Studies

Taryn Neligan

  • BSc (University of Victoria, 2024)

Notice of the Final Oral Examination for the Degree of Master of Science

Topic

Reconstructing Late-Glacial Ice Caps in northern Alberta through Geomorphic Mapping and Numerical Modelling

Department of Geography

Date & location

  • Monday, August 24, 2026

  • 10:30 A.M.

  • Clearihue Building

  • Room B021

Reviewers

Supervisory Committee

  • Dr. Sophie Norris, Department of Geography, University of Victoria (Co-Supervisor)

  • Dr. Edwin Nissen, School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, UVic (Co-Supervisor) 

External Examiner

  • Dr. Rod Smith, Natural Resources Canada, Geological Survey of Canada 

Chair of Oral Examination

  • Dr. Brian Starzomski, School of Environmental Studies, UVic

     

Abstract

The response of paleo ice masses to abrupt climate change is central to understanding the future behaviour of modern ice masses, yet the behaviour of past local ice caps most analogous to present-day glacial ice across the continental interior of North America remains understudied. Following rapid retreat of the southwestern Laurentide Ice Sheet during the Bølling–Allerød interstadial, northern Alberta is widely reconstructed as ice-free by the onset of the Younger Dryas. Several uplands in this region stand 500–700 m above the surrounding plains, offering topography suitable for hosting independent plateau ice; however, this potential has not previously been explored. This thesis combines high-resolution lidar geomorphic mapping with two-dimensional ice sheet modelling to assess this potential across five uplands in northern Alberta: the Caribou Mountains, Birch Mountains, Buffalo Head Hills, Clear Hills, and Swan Hills. Mapping reveals suites of radial, locally sourced suites of glacial lineations, moraines and eskers overprinting the regional signal of deglaciation. Modelling distinguishes ice that could have grown within the Younger Dryas from ice requiring a pre-existing mass by comparing the equilibrium-line altitude needed to reproduce each imprint against plateau elevation. Results indicate that independent ice was possible from ice-free starting conditions on the Caribou Mountains and Buffalo Head Hills, and dependent on pre- existing remnant ice on the Swan Hills, Clear Hills, and potentially the Caribou Mountains. Independent ice formation or expansion on the Birch Mountains was unsupported by our work. Together these findings demonstrate that northern Alberta was not uniformly ice-free following deglaciation, and that independent upland ice, varying in extent, origin, and timing, records the threshold of glaciation across the continental interior during the last abrupt cold reversal.

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