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Titel |
Holocene changes in African vegetation: tradeoff between climate and water availability |
VerfasserIn |
C. Hély, A.-M. Lézine, APD contributors |
Medientyp |
Artikel
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Sprache |
Englisch
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ISSN |
1814-9324
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Digitales Dokument |
URL |
Erschienen |
In: Climate of the Past ; 10, no. 2 ; Nr. 10, no. 2 (2014-04-01), S.681-686 |
Datensatznummer |
250116945
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Publikation (Nr.) |
copernicus.org/cp-10-681-2014.pdf |
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Zusammenfassung |
Although past climate change is well documented in West Africa through
instrumental records, modeling activities, and paleo-data, little is known
about regional-scale ecosystem vulnerability and long-term impacts of climate
on plant distribution and biodiversity. Here we use paleohydrological and
paleobotanical data to discuss the relation between available surface water,
monsoon rainfall and vegetation distribution in West Africa during the
Holocene. The individual patterns of plant migration or community shifts in
latitude are explained by differences among tolerance limits of species to
rainfall amount and seasonality. Using the probability density function
methodology, we show here that the widespread development of lakes, wetlands
and rivers at the time of the "Green Sahara" played an additional role in
forming a network of topographically defined water availability, allowing for
tropical plants to migrate north from 15 to 24° N (reached ca.
9 cal ka BP). The analysis of the spatio–temporal changes in
biodiversity, through both pollen occurrence and richness, shows that the
core of the tropical rainbelt associated with the Intertropical Convergence
Zone was centered at 15–20° N during the early Holocene wet period,
with comparatively drier/more seasonal climate conditions south of
15° N. |
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