Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa
Southern Africa sits at the junction of tropical and temperate systems, leading to the formation of seasonal precipitation zones. Understanding late Quaternary paleoclimatic change in this vulnerable region is hampered by a lack of available, reliably-dated records. Here we present a sequence from a...
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Umeå universitet, Institutionen för ekologi, miljö och geovetenskap
2021
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ftumeauniv:oai:DiVA.org:umu-182054 2023-10-09T21:44:58+02:00 Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa Kylander, Malin E. Holm, Mikaela Fitchett, Jennifer Grab, Stefan Cortizas, Antonio Martinez Norström, Elin Bindler, Richard 2021 application/pdf http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-182054 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246821 eng eng Umeå universitet, Institutionen för ekologi, miljö och geovetenskap Department of Geological Sciences, The Bolin Centre for Climate Research, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa Facultade de Bioloxía, EcoPast (GI-1553), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain Department of Physical Geography, The Bolin Centre for Climate Research, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden Public Library of Science PLOS ONE, 2021, 16:3, http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-182054 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0246821 PMID 33730018 ISI:000630345000017 Scopus 2-s2.0-85102781925 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Physical Geography Naturgeografi Article, review/survey info:eu-repo/semantics/article text 2021 ftumeauniv https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246821 2023-09-22T14:01:30Z Southern Africa sits at the junction of tropical and temperate systems, leading to the formation of seasonal precipitation zones. Understanding late Quaternary paleoclimatic change in this vulnerable region is hampered by a lack of available, reliably-dated records. Here we present a sequence from a well-stratified sedimentary infill occupying a lower slope basin which covers 17,060 to 13,400 cal yr BP with the aim to reconstruct paleoclimatic variability in the high Drakensberg during the Late Glacial. We use a combination of pollen, total organic carbon and nitrogen, d13C, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) spectral and elemental data on contiguous samples with high temporal resolution (10 to 80 years per sample). Our data support a relatively humid environment with considerable cold season precipitation during what might have been the final stage of niche-glaciation on the adjoining southern aspects around 17,000 cal yr BP. Then, after an initial warmer and drier period starting ~15,600 cal yr BP, we identify a return to colder and drier conditions with more winter precipitation starting ~14,380 cal yr BP, which represents the first local evidence for the Antarctic Cold Reversal (ACR) in this region. On decadal to centennial timescales, the Late Glacial period was one marked by considerable climatic fluctuation and bi-directional environmental change, which has not been identified in previous studies for this region. Our study shows complex changes in both moisture and thermal conditions providing a more nuanced picture of the Late Glacial for the high Drakensburg. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Umeå University: Publications (DiVA) Antarctic The Antarctic PLOS ONE 16 3 e0246821 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Umeå University: Publications (DiVA) |
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ftumeauniv |
language |
English |
topic |
Physical Geography Naturgeografi |
spellingShingle |
Physical Geography Naturgeografi Kylander, Malin E. Holm, Mikaela Fitchett, Jennifer Grab, Stefan Cortizas, Antonio Martinez Norström, Elin Bindler, Richard Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa |
topic_facet |
Physical Geography Naturgeografi |
description |
Southern Africa sits at the junction of tropical and temperate systems, leading to the formation of seasonal precipitation zones. Understanding late Quaternary paleoclimatic change in this vulnerable region is hampered by a lack of available, reliably-dated records. Here we present a sequence from a well-stratified sedimentary infill occupying a lower slope basin which covers 17,060 to 13,400 cal yr BP with the aim to reconstruct paleoclimatic variability in the high Drakensberg during the Late Glacial. We use a combination of pollen, total organic carbon and nitrogen, d13C, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) spectral and elemental data on contiguous samples with high temporal resolution (10 to 80 years per sample). Our data support a relatively humid environment with considerable cold season precipitation during what might have been the final stage of niche-glaciation on the adjoining southern aspects around 17,000 cal yr BP. Then, after an initial warmer and drier period starting ~15,600 cal yr BP, we identify a return to colder and drier conditions with more winter precipitation starting ~14,380 cal yr BP, which represents the first local evidence for the Antarctic Cold Reversal (ACR) in this region. On decadal to centennial timescales, the Late Glacial period was one marked by considerable climatic fluctuation and bi-directional environmental change, which has not been identified in previous studies for this region. Our study shows complex changes in both moisture and thermal conditions providing a more nuanced picture of the Late Glacial for the high Drakensburg. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Kylander, Malin E. Holm, Mikaela Fitchett, Jennifer Grab, Stefan Cortizas, Antonio Martinez Norström, Elin Bindler, Richard |
author_facet |
Kylander, Malin E. Holm, Mikaela Fitchett, Jennifer Grab, Stefan Cortizas, Antonio Martinez Norström, Elin Bindler, Richard |
author_sort |
Kylander, Malin E. |
title |
Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa |
title_short |
Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa |
title_full |
Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa |
title_fullStr |
Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa |
title_full_unstemmed |
Late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr BP) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the Sekhokong Range (Drakensberg), southern Africa |
title_sort |
late glacial (17,060-13,400 cal yr bp) sedimentary and paleoenvironmental evolution of the sekhokong range (drakensberg), southern africa |
publisher |
Umeå universitet, Institutionen för ekologi, miljö och geovetenskap |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-182054 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246821 |
geographic |
Antarctic The Antarctic |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic The Antarctic |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic |
op_relation |
PLOS ONE, 2021, 16:3, http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-182054 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0246821 PMID 33730018 ISI:000630345000017 Scopus 2-s2.0-85102781925 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246821 |
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PLOS ONE |
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16 |
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3 |
container_start_page |
e0246821 |
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