Synthèse sur l’évolution des paléoenvironnements de l’Afrique occidentale atlantique depuis la fin de la dernière période glaciaire. Influences climatiques et anthropiques.

in Revue Internationale de Géologie, de Géographie et d'Ecologie Tropicales (2010), 34

This paper gets together palynological informations issued from 34 sites from Atlantic West Africa for making, with the aid of an exhaustive bibliography, the synthesis of the palaeoecological evolution ... [more ▼]

This paper gets together palynological informations issued from 34 sites from Atlantic West Africa for making, with the aid of an exhaustive bibliography, the synthesis of the palaeoecological evolution of the area during the last 20 000 years. From the collected data, the following progressive process was established: the period going from 20 000 to 15 500 yrs BP, characterized by a maximum of aridity, is marked by an important expansion of savannahs. During the post-glacial transition, between 15 500 and 12 000 yrs BP, an increase of heat and moisture results in the renewal of the Guineo-Congolese rainforest in the lowlands and of the afro-mountainous forest in the highlands. From 8000 to 6000 yrs BP, a wet and warm optimum favours the rise of lakes levels and a wide forests’ expansion. Then, a major change of gradual climatic drying out, recorded towards 4000 yrs BP and extended until 2500 yrs BP allows the retreat of forests and the opening of some clumps. From 2500 yrs BP, the climate evolves gradually towards its current stage, with warmer and wetter characters but it presents a certain instability in touch with the global changes of the last two millennia. Human influence on environment in Atlantic West Africa increases principally from 2000 yrs BP interfering during the last millennium with climate-related events, de effects of which it can mask. [less ▲]