Group photo at São Gabriel outcrop in Manteigas (photo Liliana Meireles)
Members of the AntECC research group organized a field trip which set off to the Serra da Estrela massif on May 26-27th, in the framework of the course “Quaternary Environments”, under the coordination of Marc Oliva, Miguel Geraldes and Alexandre Trindade. Up to 28 students participated in the excursion to the highest mountain range in Portugal mainland (1,993 m asl), where the glacial and periglacial features in the massif left by the last glaciation were discussed. Several in loco analysis were made, as well as hands-on experiments, so that the students were taught how to apply in the field several methods commonly used for palaeoenvironmental purposes, such as:
· The use of the Schmidt hammer as a relative dating technique
· The close relationship between geomorphologic units and vegetation spatial patterns designed in Natura 2000 Habitat mapping
· The interpretation of sedimentological sequences within the geomorphological context.