Scott, L., Manzano, S., Carr, A.S. et al. (4 more authors) (2021) A 14000 year multi-proxy alluvial record of ecotone changes in a Fynbos-Succulent Karoo transition in South Africa. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 569. 110331. ISSN 0031-0182
Abstract
To address long-standing questions concerning Southern Hemisphere climate dynamics and palaeoecological change in southern Africa, a Late Glacial-Holocene alluvial sediment sequence from the relatively dry interior year-round rainfall zone in South Africa was investigated. The study site borders the Fynbos biome and Succulent Karoo biome ecotone, and comprises a rare stratified sequence of sandy and organic-rich silt deposits, shown to span the last 14,000 years. A high resolution multi-proxy record of ecological change was derived using pollen, phytoliths and organic geochemical analyses. For the period 14–11 ka, significant valley aggradation occurred under relatively drier conditions, followed, during the early and middle Holocene, by alternating phases of humid and dry events with higher stream energy, slower accumulation or subtle seasonality changes. A transition from relatively humid to more arid conditions at 4–3 ka is identified and is consistent in timing with several interior year-round rainfall zone records. Results revealed alternations of fynbos and karroid elements and C3/C4 grasses throughout the last fourteen thousand years, but did not suggest large-scale biome shifts. The record joins a growing number of sites contributing to debate over the complex atmospheric-oceanic drivers of palaeoclimate in this region. These data broadly fit to the regional pattern for the southernmost interior of South Africa in showing alternating influences from the westerly winter rain systems in the early Holocene, with a greater contribution from subtropical summer rain system during the middle and later Holocene.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2021 Elsevier B.V. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. Article available under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Pollen; Southern Hemisphere; Younger Dryas; OSL; Radiocarbon; Seasonality |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Geography (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 27 Feb 2024 15:35 |
Last Modified: | 27 Feb 2024 15:35 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier BV |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.palaeo.2021.110331 |
Related URLs: | |
Sustainable Development Goals: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:209685 |