Paleo-geology excursion 'Reading the Landscape'

The Kuiperberg is a 71 meters high hill in the Dutch province Overijssel, Twente, Dinkelland. It is part of a moraine, formed during the Saale Glaciation, a geologic time period that Lasted from 238 tot 126 thousand years ago. The moraine stretched from Ootmarsum till Uelsen in Germany. It's of big geologic and geomorphologic importance. (Source: Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

The Kuiperberg is a 71 meters high hill in the Dutch province Overijssel, Twente, Dinkelland. It is part of a moraine, formed during the Saale Glaciation, a geologic time period that Lasted from 238 tot 126 thousand years ago. The moraine stretched from Ootmarsum till Uelsen in Germany. It's of big geologic and geomorphologic importance. (Source: Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

The Kuiperberg is a 71 meters high hill in the Dutch province Overijssel, Twente, Dinkelland. It is part of a moraine, formed during the Saale Glaciation, a geologic time period that Lasted from 238 tot 126 thousand years ago. The moraine stretched from Ootmarsum till Uelsen in Germany. It's of big geologic and geomorphologic importance. (Source: Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

"Willem Wilmink werd op 25 oktober 1936 in Enschede geboren. Hij was een zeer bekende schrijver, dichter en voordrachtskunstenaar. Het monument betreft een glazen boek geplaatst op een kubus met daar achter een tweetal ligbedden van Bentheimer zandsteen." (bron: heemkunde-ootmarsum.nl)
Monument for Willem Wilmink on the Kuiperberg - Willem Wilmink, born 25 October 1936 in Enschede, was a Dutch poet and writer. The monument on the Kuiperberg excists of a glass book with his portrait and poem, placed on a sandstone kube with behind it two loungers carved in Bentheim sandstone. Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

"Willem Wilmink werd op 25 oktober 1936 in Enschede geboren. Hij was een zeer bekende schrijver, dichter en voordrachtskunstenaar. Het monument betreft een glazen boek geplaatst op een kubus met daar achter een tweetal ligbedden van Bentheimer zandsteen." (bron: heemkunde-ootmarsum.nl)
Monument for Willem Wilmink on the Kuiperberg - Willem Wilmink, born 25 October 1936 in Enschede, was a Dutch poet and writer. The monument on the Kuiperberg excists of a glass book with his portrait and poem, placed on a sandstone kube with behind it two loungers carved in Bentheim sandstone. Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

The Kuiperberg is a 71 meters high hill in the Dutch province Overijssel, Twente, Dinkelland. It is part of a moraine, formed during the Saale Glaciation, a geologic time period that Lasted from 238 tot 126 thousand years ago. The moraine stretched from Ootmarsum till Uelsen in Germany. It's of big geologic and geomorphologic importance. (Source: Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

The Kuiperberg is a 71 meters high hill in the Dutch province Overijssel, Twente, Dinkelland. It is part of a moraine, formed during the Saale Glaciation, a geologic time period that Lasted from 238 tot 126 thousand years ago. The moraine stretched from Ootmarsum till Uelsen in Germany. It's of big geologic and geomorphologic importance. (Source: Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

De Kuiperberg is een 71 meter hoge heuvel in de Twentse gemeente Dinkelland in de Nederlandse provincie Overijssel. De top van de Kuiperberg ligt even ten westen van Ootmarsum.

De Kuiperberg maakt deel uit van de stuwwal die zich uitstrekt van Ootmarsum tot Uelsen in Duitsland. (bron: Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Kuiperberg landscape with tourism Informationboard, ANWB orientation table and monument Willem Wilmink

The Kuiperberg is a 71 meters high hill in the Dutch province Overijssel, Twente, Dinkelland. It is part of a moraine, formed during the Saale Glaciation, a geologic time period that Lasted from 238 tot 126 thousand years ago. The moraine stretched from Ootmarsum till Uelsen in Germany. It's of big geologic and geomorphologic importance. (Source: heemkunde-ootmarsum.nl and Wikipedia) Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Rivier de Dinkel en Dinkeldal. Henry zegt hierover: "De rivier de Dinkel stroomt tussen de stuwwal van Ootmarsum en de stuwwal van Oldenzaal. Sedimenten die in de laatste 130.000 jaar door wind en rivieren zijn afgezet worden door de rivier de Dinkel weer aangesneden en afgevoerd. In het Lutterszand heeft de Dinkel diep ingesneden in zijn eigen sedimenten. " River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Rivier de Dinkel en Dinkeldal. Henry zegt hierover: "De rivier de Dinkel stroomt tussen de stuwwal van Ootmarsum en de stuwwal van Oldenzaal. Sedimenten die in de laatste 130.000 jaar door wind en rivieren zijn afgezet worden door de rivier de Dinkel weer aangesneden en afgevoerd. In het Lutterszand heeft de Dinkel diep ingesneden in zijn eigen sedimenten. " River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Photo made near the river Dinkel in Twente, the Netherlands Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Rivier de Dinkel en Dinkeldal. Henry zegt hierover: "De rivier de Dinkel stroomt tussen de stuwwal van Ootmarsum en de stuwwal van Oldenzaal. Sedimenten die in de laatste 130.000 jaar door wind en rivieren zijn afgezet worden door de rivier de Dinkel weer aangesneden en afgevoerd. In het Lutterszand heeft de Dinkel diep ingesneden in zijn eigen sedimenten. " River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. Erosion, wind and rain have created natural sand sculptures in the sandy shore of the river. River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meanThe River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. Erosion, wind and rain have created a whimsical pattern of natural sand sculptures in the sandy shore of the river. River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. Erosion, wind and rain have created a whimsical pattern of natural sand sculptures in the sandy shore of the river. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. Erosion, wind and rain have created a whimsical pattern of natural sand sculptures in the sandy shore of the river. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. Erosion, wind and rain have created a whimsical pattern of natural sand sculptures in the sandy shore of the river. River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-e

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Henry zegt hierover: "- We zien een milde fase uit het Pleniglaciaal (32.000 jaar geleden),
- een landschap gedomineerd door riviertransport (29.000 jaar geleden),
- een landschap gedomineerd door windtransport (26.000-14.000 jaar geleden),
- de koudste fase van de laatste ijstijd (20.000 jaar geleden),
- effecten van de eerste opwarming na de laatste ijstijd (14.000-12.000 jaar geleden),
- een terugval naar bijna-ijstijdcondities in de Jonge Dryas periode (12.000-11.000 jaar geleden), - de start van onze huidige warme periode van het Holoceen met belangrijke bodemvorming;
- effecten van de beschadiging van het Middeleeuwse landschap door de mens waardoor stuifduinen ontstaan. Cleaned up soil profile in the shore of river Dinkel, with different earth layers, spade and a poster that shows the glacial cycles and climates from which the different earth layers originate.
River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)
" River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Henry zegt hierover: "- We zien een milde fase uit het Pleniglaciaal (32.000 jaar geleden),
- een landschap gedomineerd door riviertransport (29.000 jaar geleden),
- een landschap gedomineerd door windtransport (26.000-14.000 jaar geleden),
- de koudste fase van de laatste ijstijd (20.000 jaar geleden),
- effecten van de eerste opwarming na de laatste ijstijd (14.000-12.000 jaar geleden),
- een terugval naar bijna-ijstijdcondities in de Jonge Dryas periode (12.000-11.000 jaar geleden), - de start van onze huidige warme periode van het Holoceen met belangrijke bodemvorming;
- effecten van de beschadiging van het Middeleeuwse landschap door de mens waardoor stuifduinen ontstaan. Cleaned up soil profile in the shore of river Dinkel, with different earth layers originating from the consequent climates during the glacial cycles.
River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)
" River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

River Dinkel and Dinkel Valley, nature reserve Lutterzand in De Lutte, the Netherlands - Province Twente. The River Dinkel streams between the moraine of Ootmarsum and the moraine of Oldenzaal. It's an active, freely meandering river. Sediments that in the past 130.000 years were deposited by wind and rivers are broached again and deported by the Dinkel. In the Lutterzand Nature reserve, the Dinkel has cut in deeply in its own sediments, revealing several historic earth layers in its shores.
Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Dying oak, marked to be cut - Nature reserve Lutterzand, de Lutte, Netherlands Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Juniperus communis - close up of male cones.

Juniperus vegetation in the Lutterzand, de Lutte, the Netherlands

Juniperus communis is a small coniferous evergreen tree or shrub, very variable in form, ranging from 10 m (33 ft)—rarely 16 m (52 ft)—tall to a low, often prostrate spreading shrub in exposed locations. It has needle-like leaves, green with a single white stomatal band on the inner surface. It is dioecious, with male and female cones, which are wind pollinated, on separate plants.

The fruit are berry-like cones, initially green, ripening in 18 months to purple-black with a blue waxy coating. The seeds are dispersed when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard, unwinged seeds in their droppings. The male cones are yellow, 2–3 mm (0.079–0.118 in) long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in March–April.

Juniperus communis has the largest geographical range of any woody plant, with a circumpolar distribution throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere from the Arctic south in mountains to around 30°N latitude in North America, Europe and Asia. Relict populations can be found in the Atlas Mountains of Africa (Source: Wikipedia)

Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Juniperus communis - close up of female cones or berries.

Juniperus vegetation in the Lutterzand, de Lutte, the Netherlands

"Juniperus communis is a small coniferous evergreen tree or shrub, very variable in form, ranging from 10 m (33 ft)—rarely 16 m (52 ft)—tall to a low, often prostrate spreading shrub in exposed locations. It has needle-like leaves, green with a single white stomatal band on the inner surface. It is dioecious, with male and female cones, which are wind pollinated, on separate plants.

The fruit are berry-like cones, initially green, ripening in 18 months to purple-black with a blue waxy coating. The seeds are dispersed when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard, unwinged seeds in their droppings. The male cones are yellow, 2–3 mm (0.079–0.118 in) long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in March–April.

Juniperus communis has the largest geographical range of any woody plant, with a circumpolar distribution throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere from the Arctic south in mountains to around 30°N latitude in North America, Europe and Asia. Relict populations can be found in the Atlas Mountains of Africa" (Source: Wikipedia)

Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)

Juniperus vegetation with heather (Erica carnea), grasses and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) in the Lutterzand, de Lutte, the Netherlands

Juniperus communis is a small coniferous evergreen tree or shrub, very variable in form, ranging from 10 m (33 ft)—rarely 16 m (52 ft)—tall to a low, often prostrate spreading shrub in exposed locations. It has needle-like leaves, green with a single white stomatal band on the inner surface. It is dioecious, with male and female cones, which are wind pollinated, on separate plants.

The fruit are berry-like cones, initially green, ripening in 18 months to purple-black with a blue waxy coating. The seeds are dispersed when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard, unwinged seeds in their droppings. The male cones are yellow, 2–3 mm (0.079–0.118 in) long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in March–April.

Juniperus communis has the largest geographical range of any woody plant, with a circumpolar distribution throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere from the Arctic south in mountains to around 30°N latitude in North America, Europe and Asia. Relict populations can be found in the Atlas Mountains of Africa (Source: Wikipedia)

Photo's made during a paleo-ecologic excursion 'Reading the Landscape' in Twente, the Netherlands - guided by Henry Hooghiemstra, paleo-ecologist on the UVA (University of Amsterdam)