Chase_etal_2019_PPP_Baviaanskloof hyrax middens.pdf (8.71 MB)
High-resolution record of Holocene climate change dynamics from southern Africa's temperate-tropical boundary, Baviaanskloof, South Africa
journal contribution
posted on 2020-04-02, 12:18 authored by Brian M Chase, Arnoud Boom, Andrew S Carr, Lynne J Quick, Paula J ReimerSouth Africa's southern Cape is a highly dynamic climatic region that is influenced by changes in both temperate and tropical atmospheric and oceanic circulation dynamics. Recent research initiatives suggest that the major elements of the regional climate system have acted both independently and in combination to establish a mosaic of distinct climate regions and potentially steep climate response gradients across the southern Cape. To consider this further, we present new high resolution δ13C and δ15N data from a rock hyrax (Procavia capensis) midden from Baviaanskloof, in the Cape Fold Mountains of South Africa's Eastern Cape Province. Spanning the last 7200 years, these data provide detailed information regarding environmental changes in the mid- and late Holocene, allowing us to assess the spatio-temporal nature of climate change anomalies across the wider region. Throughout the full duration of the record, a negative correlation between humidity and palaeotemperature reconstructions from nearby Cango Cave is observed. In conjunction with correlations with Southern Ocean sea-surface temperatures and sea-ice presence, we infer a dominant influence of the southern westerlies in determining multi-millennial scale hydroclimate variability. At shorter, multi-centennial to millennial timescales, the Baviaanskloof data indicate a clearer expression of tropical influences, highlighting a delicate balance between the mechanisms driving regional climate dynamics across timescales, and the sensitivity of the region to changes in global boundary conditions.
Funding
Funding was received from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013)/ERC Starting Grant “HYRAX”, grant agreement no. 258657.
History
Citation
Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 2020, Vol 539, 109518Author affiliation
School of Geography, Geology and the EnvironmentVersion
- AM (Accepted Manuscript)
Published in
Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, PalaeoecologyVolume
539Publisher
Elsevierissn
0031-0182eissn
1872-616XAcceptance date
2019-12-02Copyright date
2019Available date
2019-12-09Publisher DOI
Publisher version
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031018219304857#ac0005Language
EnglishUsage metrics
Categories
Keywords
Science & TechnologyPhysical SciencesLife Sciences & BiomedicineGeography, PhysicalGeosciences, MultidisciplinaryPaleontologyPhysical GeographyGeologyPalaeoclimateHoloceneSouth AfricaRock hyrax middensStable isotopesROCK HYRAX MIDDENSCAPE COASTLATE QUATERNARYAGULHAS CURRENTENVIRONMENTAL-CHANGENATURAL-ABUNDANCEWESTERN CAPENAMIB DESERTSEA-LEVELOCEAN
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