Articles | Volume 74, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-74-219-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-74-219-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Quaternary glaciations in Southern Africa? A “moraine” in the Lesotho highland revisited
Venise S. Bayer
Department of Earth Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, 12249, Germany
Margot Böse
Department of Earth Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, 12249, Germany
Department of Earth Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, 12249, Germany
Joalane Marunye
Department of Geography and Environmental Science, National University of Lesotho, Roma, Lesotho
Frank Riedel
Department of Earth Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, 12249, Germany
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The Miaoli Tableland (northwestern Taiwan) consists of a sequence of fine-grained tidal to coarse fluvial late Quaternary sediments which underwent a spatially differentiated uplift and fluvial dissection. They reveal repeated rework processes of fluvial cobbles from the highlands to the coast. A new landform classification based on high-resolution 3D terrain analysis results in a new interpretation of the landform evolution. The results favour a local rarely used Quaternary stratigraphic code.
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The African baobab is a challenging climate and environmental archive for its semi-arid habitat due to dating uncertainties and parenchyma-rich wood anatomy. Annually resolved F14C data of tree-ring cellulose (1941–2005) from a tree in Oman show the annual character of the baobab’s growth rings but were up to 8.8 % lower than expected for 1964–1967. Subseasonal δ13C and δ18O patterns reveal years with low average monsoon rain as well as heavy rainfall events from pre-monsoonal cyclones.
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Short summary
The Drakensberg and Lesotho highlands serve as essential water sources. Uncertainty remains regarding the impact of rising global temperatures, prompting paleoclimatic reconstructions. However, the Last Glacial Maximum's paleoclimate conditions remain debated. Re-examination of a landscape feature challenges prior glacier associations. Our findings suggest no glacial link. Reassessing similar landforms in Lesotho's high-altitude areas is necessary for the LGM's paleoclimate implications.
The Drakensberg and Lesotho highlands serve as essential water sources. Uncertainty remains...