Late Quaternary fires and grassland palaeoecology of Mount Kenya, East Africa: evidence from charred grass cuticles in lake sediments

Wooller, Matthew J.; Street-Perrott, F. Alayne; Agnew, A. D. Q.

doi:10.1016/s0031-0182(00)00187-5

Cited by 74 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…More precise identification of microscopic charcoal is necessary by differentiation of cuticles and stomata of different grass species, as pioneered by Tucker (1981, 1983), Talbot et al (1984), Horn (1993) and Wooller et al (2000). The Tswaing and Wonderkrater sites show potential for more sophisticated charcoal analyses, as residues are well preserved and include diagnostic structures such as carbonised stomata.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microscopic charcoal in sediments: Quaternary fire history of the grassland and savanna regions in South Africa

Scott

2002

J Quaternary Science

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The microscopic charcoal content of several Quaternary pollen sequences is used to investigate fire history in South Africa both during the Holocene and the Late Pleistocene. Although fluctuations in charcoal composition are recorded, it is difficult to link them directly to either human-made or natural fires. Strong long-term variations in microscopic charcoal of Middle and Upper Pleistocene layers are independent of pollen indications of past temperature and moisture conditions. Holocene charcoal sequences from different areas show no correlation, so no phases of regional burning are found. Some fluctuations in charcoal probably are the result of local burning in the various regions. The arrival of Iron Age people some 2000 yr ago apparently did not coincide with widespread wild fires, as these events do not consistently appear in regional microscopic charcoal records. The only exception appears to be the Wonderkrater spring deposit. Relatively open savanna environments, which are implied by pollen analysis at some sites during this period and the generally low microscopic charcoal contents, were either caused by climate change or controlled burning by Iron Age people.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microscopic charcoal in sediments: Quaternary fire history of the grassland and savanna regions in South Africa

Scott

2002

J Quaternary Science

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“…Starting around AD 1950, C/N atomic declines towards the top of the core, with a surface sediment ratio of 12.6. C org values at the base of the sequence, coincident with a rise in charcoal macrofossils, may indicate vegetation change associated with catchment fires (Wooller et al, 2000). The δ 13 C org record rises from ~AD 1375 -1450, and peak values coincide with maximum chironomidinferred salinity.…”

Section: Lake Kasendamentioning

confidence: 96%

Environmental change over the last millennium recorded in two contrasting crater lakes in western Uganda, eastern Africa (Lakes Kasenda and Wandakara)

Ryves

Mills

Bennike

et al. 2011

Quaternary Science Reviews

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The last millennium is a key period for understanding environmental change in eastern Africa, as there is clear evidence of marked fluctuations in climate (effective moisture) that place modern concern with future climate change in a proper context, both in terms of environmental and societal impacts and responses. Here, we compare sediment records from two small, nearby, closed crater lakes in western Uganda (Lake Kasenda and Lake Wandakara), spanning the last 700 (Wandakara) and 1200 years (Kasenda) respectively. Multiproxy analyses of chemical sedimentary parameters (including C/N ratios,  13 C of bulk organic matter and  13 C and  18 O of authigenic carbonates) and biotic remains (diatoms, aquatic macrofossils, chironomids) suggest that Kasenda has been sensitive to climate over much of this period, and has shown substantial fluctuations in conductivity, while Wandakara has a more muted response, likely due to the increasing dominance of human activity as a driver of change within the lake and catchment over

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“…Additional charcoal morphotypes can be observed and classified as well (Enache and Cumming, 2006;Mustaphi and Pisaric, 2014), but the application of these methods remains largely untested. In the meantime, separate tallies only of woody and herbaceous charcoal have already been shown to provide reliable information about fuel sources (e.g., Wooller et al, 2000;Walsh et al, 2008;Maezumi et al, 2015) and are recommended when possible.…”

Section: Future Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reconstructions of biomass burning from sediment-charcoal records to improve data–model comparisons

Kelly²,

et al. 2016

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Abstract. The location, timing, spatial extent, and frequency of wildfires are changing rapidly in many parts of the world, producing substantial impacts on ecosystems, people, and potentially climate. Paleofire records based on charcoal accumulation in sediments enable modern changes in biomass burning to be considered in their long-term context. Paleofire records also provide insights into the causes and impacts of past wildfires and emissions when analyzed in conjunction with other paleoenvironmental data and with fire models. Here we present new 1000-year and 22 000-year trends and gridded biomass burning reconstructions based on the Global Charcoal Database version 3 (GCDv3), which includes 736 charcoal records (57 more than in version 2). The new gridded reconstructions reveal the spatial patterns underlying the temporal trends in the data, allowing insights into likely controls on biomass burning at regional to global scales. In the most recent few decades, biomass burning has sharply increased in both hemispheres but especially in the north, where charcoal fluxes are now higher than at any other time during the past 22 000 years. We also discuss methodological issues relevant to data-model comparisons and identify areas for future research. Spatially gridded versions of the global data set from GCDv3 are provided to facilitate comparison with and validation of global fire simulations.

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Late Quaternary fires and grassland palaeoecology of Mount Kenya, East Africa: evidence from charred grass cuticles in lake sediments

Cited by 74 publications

References 55 publications

Microscopic charcoal in sediments: Quaternary fire history of the grassland and savanna regions in South Africa

Microscopic charcoal in sediments: Quaternary fire history of the grassland and savanna regions in South Africa

Environmental change over the last millennium recorded in two contrasting crater lakes in western Uganda, eastern Africa (Lakes Kasenda and Wandakara)

Reconstructions of biomass burning from sediment-charcoal records to improve data–model comparisons

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