Correlated oceanic and continental records demonstrate past climate and hydrology of North Africa (0-140 ka)
Résumé
Analysis of pollen and dinocysts in a core from the eastern Atlantic (core V22-196; lat 13°50'N, long 18°57'W) provides the first continuous record of paleoclimate and paleohydrology for the latest climatic cycle. During interglacial intervals, increases in pollen input from humid vegetation zones are correlative with high dinocyst productivity. Our data show a close coincidence of northward extensions of Sudanian and Guinean vegetation zones in North Africa and increases in fresh-water input into the Atlantic. Direct evidence indicates positive hydroclimatic phases at 135, 125, 103, 80, 47, and 12-10 ka, coincident with widespread continental records of high lake levels, that confirm the validity of the U/Th chronology.