Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-mlc7c Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-07T16:32:00.711Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A High-Resolution 11,400-Yr Diatom Record from Lake Victoria, East Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

J.Curt Stager ,
Brian Cumming  and
Loren Meeker
J.Curt Stager
Affiliation:
Math/Science Division, Paul Smiths College, Paul Smiths, New York, 12970; and Climate Change Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, 03824-3525
Brian Cumming
Affiliation:
P.E.A.R.L. Biology Department, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, K7L 3N6, Canada
Loren Meeker
Affiliation:
Climate Change Research Center, Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, 03824-3525
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Fine-interval (∼30–45 yr) sampling of a core from Lake Victoria's Damba Channel shows that numerous abrupt changes in the lake's diatom assemblages have occurred in response to climatic fluctuations over the past 11,40014C yr. Four distinct climatic phases bounded by sudden transitions are inferred: (1) variably dry ∼11,400–10,000 yr B.P., (2) humid ∼10,000–7200 yr B.P., (3) more seasonal ∼7200–2200 yr B.P., and (4) more arid ∼2200–0 yr B.P., with a dry “Little Ice Age” event ∼600–200 yr B.P. The diatom-inferred paleoclimatic history for northern Lake Victoria closely resembles that inferred from a well-dated pollen record from Pilkington Bay. Spectral analysis of the diatom record reveals strong periodicities including globally distributed ∼2360–2550, ∼1400, ∼1030–1130, and ∼500 cal-yr cycles. Repeated, rapid shifts betweenAulacoseira- andNitzschia-dominated diatom assemblages suggest that post-1960 changes in the lake's phytoplankton communities have had earlier, climate-driven analogs.

Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 47 , Issue 1 , January 1997 , pp. 81 - 89
Copyright
University of Washington

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adamson, D. A. Gasse, F. Street, F. A.andWilliams, M. A. J.(1980). Late Quaternary history of the Nile. Nature 287, 50–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bard, E. Arnold, M. Fairbanks, R. G.andHamelin, B.(1993). 230Th-234U and 14C ages obtained by mass spectrometry on corals. Radiocarbon 35, 191–199.Google Scholar
Bond, G. C.andLotti, R.(1995). Iceberg discharges into the North Atlantic on millenial time scales during the last glaciation. Science 267, 1005–1010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bonnefille, R.andMohammed, U.(1994). Pollen-inferred climatic fluctuations in Ethiopia during the last 3000 years. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 109, 331–343.Google Scholar
Bootsma, H. A.andHecky, R. E.(1993). Conservation of the African Great Lakes: A limnological perspective. Conservation Biology 7, 644–656.Google Scholar
Butzer, K. W. Isaac, G. L. Richardson, J. L.andWashbourn-Kamau, C.(1972). Radiocarbon dating of East African lake levels. Science 175, 1069–1076.Google Scholar
Casanova, J.andHillaire-Marcel, C.(1992). Late Holocene hydrological history of Lake Tanganyika, East Africa, from isotopic data on fossil stromatolites. Paleogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 91, 35–48.Google Scholar
Damon, P. E.andJirikowic, J. L.(1992). Solar forcing of global climate change? In ''Radiocarbon after four decades: an interdisciplinary perspective.” (Taylor R. E. Long A. and Kra R. S. Eds.), Chap. 9. Springer-Verlag, New York.Google Scholar
Finney, B. P.andJohnson, T. C.(1991). Sedimentation in lake Malawi (East Africa) during the past 10,000 years: A continuous paleoclimatic record from the southern tropics. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 85, 351–366.Google Scholar
Gasse, F.(1986). East African diatoms: Taxonomy, ecological distribution. In “Bibliotheca Diatomologica," Band 11. Cramer, Stuttgart.Google Scholar
Gasse, F. T"het, R. Durand, A. Gibert, E.andFontes, J.-C.(1990). The arid-humid transition in the Sahara and the Sahel during the last deglaciation. Nature 346, 141–146.Google Scholar
Gasse, F. Tailing, J. F.andKilham, P.(1983). Diatom assemblages in East Africa: Classification, distribution and ecology. Revue Hydrobiologie tropische 16, 3–34.Google Scholar
Gillespie, R. Street-Perrott, F. A.andSwitsur, R.(1983). Post-glacial arid episodes in Ethiopia have implications for climate prediction. Nature 306, 680–682.Google Scholar
Haberyan, K. A.andHecky, R. E.(1987). The late Pleistocene stratigraphy and paleolimnology of Lakes Kivu and Tanganyika. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 61, 169–197.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haberyan, K. A.andMhone, O. K.(1991). Algal communities near Cape Maclear, southern Lake Malawi, Africa. Hydrobiolgia 215, 175–188.Google Scholar
Hamilton, A. C.(1982). Environmental History of East Africa. A Study of the Quaternary. Academic Press, London.Google Scholar
Hecky, R. E.(1993). The eutrophication of Lake Victoria. Verh. Internationale Vereinigung Limnologie 25, 39–48.Google Scholar
Hecky, R. E.andKling, H. J.(1987). Phytoplankton ecology of the great lakes in the rift valleys of Central Africa. Archiv f"r Hydrobiologie 25, 197–228.Google Scholar
Johnson, T. C,Scholz, C. A. Talbot, M. R. Kelts, K. Ngobi, G. Beuning, K. Ssemmanda, I.andMcGill, J. A.(1996). Late Pleistocene desiccation of Lake Victoria and rapid evolution of cichlid fishes. Science 273, 1091–1093.Google Scholar
Kendall, R. L.(1969). An ecological history of the Lake Victoria basin. Ecological Monographs 39, 121–176.Google Scholar
Kilham, P.(1971). A hypothesis concerning silica and the freshwater plank-tonic diatoms. Limnology and Oceanography 16, 10–18.Google Scholar
Kilham, P. Kilham, S. S.andHecky, R. E.(1986). Hypothesized resource relationships among African planktonic diatoms. Limnology and Oceanography 31, 1169–1181.Google Scholar
Kutzbach, J. E.andStreet-Perrot, F. A.(1985). Milankovitch forcing of fluctuations in the level of tropical lakes from 18 to 0 kyr BP. Nature 317, 130–134.Google Scholar
Lehman, S. J.andKeigwin, L. D.(1992). Sudden changes in North Atlantic circulation during the last deglaciation. Nature 356, 757–762.Google Scholar
Lomb, N. R.(1976). Least-squares frequency analysis of unequally spaced data. Astrophysical and Space Science 39, 447–462.Google Scholar
Maitima, J. M.(1991). Vegetation response to climatic change in central Rift Valley, Kenya. Quaternary Research 35, 234–245.Google Scholar
Mayewski, P. A. Meeker, L. D. Whitlow, S. Twickler, M. S. Morrison, M. C, Alley, R. B. Bloomfield, P.andTaylor, K.(1993). The atmosphere during the Younger Dryas. Science 261, 195–197.Google Scholar
Mayewski, P. A. Meeker, L. D. Twickler, M. S. Whitlow, S. Yang, Q.andPrentice, M. (in press). Major features of high latitude northern hemisphere atmospheric circulation over the last 110,000 years. Journal of Geophysical Research.Google Scholar
Meeker, L. DvMayewski, P. A.andBloomfield, P.(1995). A new approach to glaciochemical time series analysis. In “Ice Core Studies of Global Biogeochemical Cycles” ( Delmas, R. J.Ed.). NATO ASI Series I: Global Environmental Change, Vol. 30.Google Scholar
Nicholson, S. E.(1994). Recent rainfall fluctuations in Africa and their relationship to past conditions over the continent. The Holocene 4, 121–131.Google Scholar
Nicholson, S. E.andFlohn, H.(1980). African environmental and climatic changes and the general atmospheric circulation in late Pleistocene and Holocene. Climatic Change 2, 313–348.Google Scholar
Ochumba, P. B. O.andKibaara, D. I.(1989). Observations on blue-green algal blooms in the open waters of Lake Victoria, Kenya. African Journal of Ecology 21, 23–34.Google Scholar
Owen, R. B.andCrossley, R.(1992). Spatial and temporal distribution of diatoms in sediments of Lake Malawi, Central Africa, and ecological implications. Journal of Paleolimnology 7, 55–71.Google Scholar
Owen, R. B. Barthelme, J. W. Renaut, R. W.andVincens, A.(1982). Paleolimnology and archaeology of Holocene deposits northeast of Lake Turkana, Kenya. Nature 298, 523–529.Google Scholar
Partridge, T. C.(1993). Warming phases in Southern Africa during the last 150,000 years: An overview. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 101, 237–244.Google Scholar
Pilskaln, C. H.andJohnson, T. C.(1991). Limnology and Oceanography 36, 544–557.Google Scholar
Pokras, E. M.andMix, A. C.(1985). Eolian evidence for spatial variability of late Quaternary climates in tropical Africa. Quaternary Research 24, 137–149.Google Scholar
Prell, W. L.andKutzbach, J. E.(1987). Monsoon variability over the past 150,000 years. Journal of Geophysical Research 92, 8411–8425.Google Scholar
Press, W. H. Teukolsky, S. A. Vettering, W. T.andFlannery, B. P.(1992). “Numerical Recipes in C.” Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.Google Scholar
Richardson, J. L.andDussinger, R. A.(1986). Paleolimnology of mid-elevation lakes in the Kenya Rift Valley. Hydrobiologia 143, 167–174.Google Scholar
Roberts, N. Taieb, M. Barker, P. Damnati, B. Icole, M. N.andWilliamson, D.(1994). Timing of the Younger Dryas event in East Africa from lake-level changes. Nature 366, 146–148.Google Scholar
Sirocko, F. Garbe-Sch"nberg, D. McIntyre, A.andMolfino, B.(1996). Teleconnections between the subtropical monsoons and high-latitude climates during the last deglaciation. Science 272, 526–529.Google Scholar
Smol, J. P. Brown, S. R.andMcintosh, H. J.(1984). A hypothetical relationship between differential algal sedimentation and diatom succession. Verh. Internationale Vereinigung Limnologie 22, 1361–1365.Google Scholar
Stager, J. C.(1988). Environmental changes at Lake Cheshi, Zambia since 40,000 years B.P. Quaternary Research 29, 54–65.Google Scholar
Stager, J. C.(1984). The diatom record of Lake Victoria (East Africa): The last 17,000 years. In “Proceedings of the Seventh International Diatom Symposium," Philadelphia, 1982. ( Mann, D. G.Ed.) pp. 455–476. Strauss & Cramer, Koenigstein.Google Scholar
Stager, J. C,Reinthal, P. R.andLivingstone, D. A.(1986). A 25,000 year history for Lake Victoria, East Africa, and some comments on its significance for the evolution of cichlid fishes. Freshwater Biology 16, 15–19.Google Scholar
Street-Perrot, F. A.andPerrott, R. A.(1990). Abrupt climate fluctuations in the tropics: The influence of Atlantic Ocean circulation. Nature 343, 607–612.Google Scholar
Stuiver, M.(1970). Long-term C14 variations. In “Radiocarbon variations and absolute chronology." ( Olsson, I. U.Ed.), pp. 197–213. Proc. Twelfth Nobel Symp., Uppsala. Wiley, New York.Google Scholar
Stuiver, M.andReimer, P. J.(1993). Extended 14-C data base and revised CALIB 3.0 14-C age calibration program. Radiocarbon 35, 215–230.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Talbot, M. R.andJohannessen, T.(1992). A high resolution paleoclimatic record for the last 27,500 years in tropical West Africa from the carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition of lacustrine organic matter. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 100, 23–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tailing, J. F.(1966). The annual cycle of stratification and phytoplankton growth in Lake Victoria (East Africa). Internationale Revue der gesamten Hydrobiologie 51, 545–621.Google Scholar
Tailing, J. F.(1957). Some observations on the stratification of Lake Victoria. Limnology and Oceanography 2, 213–221.Google Scholar
Taylor, D. M.(1990). Late Quaternary pollen records from two Ugandan mires: evidence for environmental change in the Rukiga Highlands of southwest Uganda. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 80, 283–300.Google Scholar
Ter Braak, C. J. F.(1990). Update notes: CANOCO version 3.10. Agricultural Mathematics Group, Wageningen, The Netherlands.Google Scholar
Tilman, D. Kiesling, R. Sterner, R. Kilham, S. S.andJohnson, F. A.(1986). Green, bluegreen and diatom algae: Taxonomic differences in competitive ability for phosphorus, silicon and nitrogen. Archiv f"r Hydrobiologie 106, 473–485.Google Scholar