Tufas indicate prolonged periods of water availability linked to human occupation in the southern Kalahari.

Autor: von der Meden J; Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa., Pickering R; Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa., Schoville BJ; Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; School of Social Science, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia., Green H; School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia., Weij R; Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia., Hellstrom J; School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia., Greig A; School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia., Woodhead J; School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia., Khumalo W; Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa., Wilkins J; Human Evolution Research Institute, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.; Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Environmental Futures Research Institute, Griffith University, Nathan, Australia.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: PloS one [PLoS One] 2022 Jul 20; Vol. 17 (7), pp. e0270104. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Jul 20 (Print Publication: 2022).
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0270104
Abstrakt: Detailed, well-dated palaeoclimate and archaeological records are critical for understanding the impact of environmental change on human evolution. Ga-Mohana Hill, in the southern Kalahari, South Africa, preserves a Pleistocene archaeological sequence. Relict tufas at the site are evidence of past flowing streams, waterfalls, and shallow pools. Here, we use laser ablation screening to target material suitable for uranium-thorium dating. We obtained 33 ages covering the last 110 thousand years (ka) and identify five tufa formation episodes at 114-100 ka, 73-48 ka, 44-32 ka, 15-6 ka, and ~3 ka. Three tufa episodes are coincident with the archaeological units at Ga-Mohana Hill dating to ~105 ka, ~31 ka, and ~15 ka. Based on our data and the coincidence of dated layers from other local records, we argue that in the southern Kalahari, from ~240 ka to ~71 ka wet phases and human occupation are coupled, but by ~20 ka during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), they are decoupled.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Databáze: MEDLINE
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