Description: Human activities have increasingly changed terrestrial particulate organic carbon (POC) export to the coastal ocean since the Industrial Age (19th century). However, the influence of human perturbations on the composition and flux of terrestrial biospheric and petrogenic POC sub-pools remains poorly constrained. Here, we examined 13C and 14C compositions of bulk POC and source-specific biomarkers (fatty acids, FA) from two nearshore sediment cores collected in the Pearl River-derived mudbelt, to determine the impacts of human perturbations of the Pearl River watershed on the burial of terrestrial POC in the coastal ocean over the last century. Our results show that although agricultural practices and deforestation during the 1930s–1950s increased C4 plant coverage in the watershed, the export fluxes of terrestrial biospheric and petrogenic POC remained rather unchanged; however, added perturbations since 1974, including increasing coal consumption, embankment and dam constructions caused massive export of both petrogenic POC and relatively fresh terrestrial biospheric POC from the river delta. Our data reveal that human activities substantially enhance the transfer of petrogenic POC and fresh biospheric POC to the coastal ocean after ca. 1974, with the latter process acting as an important sink for anthropogenic CO2.

Description: Biomass burning on the African continent is widespread and interactions with climate, vegetation dynamics and biogeochemical cycling are complex. To obtain a better understanding of these complex relationships, African fire history has been widely studied, although mostly on relatively short time-scales (i.e. yrs to kyrs) and less commonly on long-term scales. Here, we present a 192-kyr, continuous biomass-burning record from sub-Saharan Northwest Africa based on the fire biomarker levoglucosan in a marine sediment core offshore Guinea. Notable features of our record include an increase in levoglucosan accumulation at 80 ka and two peaks at 50-60 ka. The event at 80 ka is likely related to an overall increase in sedimentation rates rather than an increase in biomass burning in the Northwest African savanna region. Our record indicates that glacial/interglacial changes in regional climate and vegetation composition (C3 vs. C4 plants) were not a major influence on biomass burning over the last 192 kyrs. However, we suggest that the burning events at 50-60 ka might be caused by increased occurrence of C3 vegetation and human settlement in this region. At this time, the savanna region became wetter and fuel loads likely increased. Therefore, the region was more hospitable for humans, who likely used fire for hunting activities. Collectively, we hypothesize that on longer (glacial/interglacial) timescales, biomass burning, regional climate and African vegetation are not necessarily coupled, while around 50-60 ka, higher fuel loads and human fire-use may have influenced fire occurrence in sub-Saharan Northwest Africa.

Description: Late Holocene hydroclimate variations have been extensively recognized in Amazonia, but the effects of such changes on riverine discharge within the Amazon lowlands are still poorly understood. We investigated a sediment core covering circa 4,000 to 300 cal yr BP collected in the lower valley of the Xingu River (Xingu Ria) in an area under the influence of the Amazon River. Our results indicate a decrease in precipitation in the Amazon lowlands throughout the studied period and reduced input of coarser and potassium‐rich Amazon River sediments to the confluence from about 2,600 to 1,400 cal yr BP. We suggest that lower temperatures in the extratropical Southern Hemisphere weakened the South American Summer Monsoon and led to a decrease in the water discharge of the Amazon River during this period.

Description: The data set has been obtained on gravity core M125-67-4 from off the Jequitinhonha River, East Brazil. The obtained proxies described the hydrological conditions in the river's hinterland over the past ~ 5000 years as measure of fluctuations in the South American Summer Monsoon intensity. XRF-derived K/Al ratios and mineral phases determined by XRD reflect weathering state in the hinterland; high K/Al ratio and low kaolinite contents indicate dry conditions (and vice versa for low K/Al and high kaolinite conditions). Hydrogen isotopes are interpreted to primarily reflect precipitation amount, with low values indicating more precipitation.

Description: Lipid biomarkers have been extensively used to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions. However, the entrainment of local compounds from source to sink may complicate interpretations. Here we present: (i) glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) distributions from the Amazon River and its main tributaries (i.e. Japurá, Içá, Juruá, Jutaí, Madeira, Solimões, Negro, Tapajós and Purus); and (ii) GDGT distributions and n-alkane isotopic compositions of soils and sediments from the Xingu River, a large clearwater River in eastern Amazonia. Our study aimed at understanding the processes and patterns related to distinct GDGT distributions and n-alkane isotopic signatures across lowland Amazonia. Suspended sediment samples from the Amazon Basin were obtained during the low-water season of 2015. Soil and suspended sediment samples from the Xingu Basin were obtained during the low- and high-water seasons of 2011, 2012, 2016 and 2017. Riverbed material was obtained using a Van Veen bottom sampler. Suspended material was concentrated using a Merck Millipore Ultrafiltration system equipped with Pellicon 2 Ultrafiltration cassettes (0.45 μm, 0.5 m2) after pumping up to 100 L of water from 60% of the total water column.

Description: The climate changes associated with the Holocene wet phase in the Sahara, the African Humid Period (AHP), are subject to ongoing debate discussing interactions between climate and vegetation and possible feedbacks between vegetation, albedo, desertification, and dust. However, very little attention has been given to the role of fire in shaping the land cover, although in is known that fires are important in the formation and consolidation of the African savanna. To fill this gap, we investigated the interaction between precipitation changes, vegetation shifts, and fire occurrence in West Africa by combining stable isotope measurements on plant waxes with pollen and micro-charcoal counts of marine sediments retrieved offshore of Cape Blanc. Our study focusses on the roles of fire at the dry limit of savanna during the Holocene evolution of precipitation changes indicating that the impact of fire during a relative wet climate differs from that during aridification. During the humid early Holocene, increased savanna extension and diversification ran parallel to increased fire occurrence. In contrast, after aridification of northern Africa started at the end of the AHP, a maximum in fire occurrence correlated with a deterioration of the vegetation promoting desertification.

Description: Changes in heat transport associated with fluctuations in the strength of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) are widely considered to affect the position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), but the temporal immediacy of this teleconnection has to date not been resolved. Based on a high-resolution marine sediment sequence over the last deglaciation, we provide evidence for a synchronous and near-linear link between changes in the Atlantic interhemispheric sea surface temperature difference and continental precipitation over northeast Brazil. The tight coupling between AMOC strength, sea surface temperature difference, and precipitation changes over northeast Brazil unambiguously points to a rapid and proportional adjustment of the ITCZ location to past changes in the Atlantic meridional heat transport.

Description: The study of past sedimentary records from coastal margins allows us to reconstruct variations in terrestrial input into the marine realm and to gain insight into continental climatic variability. There are numerous organic proxies for tracing terrestrial input into marine environments but none that strictly reflect the input of river-produced organic matter. Here, we test the fractional abundance of the C32 alkane 1,15-diol relative to all 1,13- and 1,15-long-chain diols (FC32 1, 15) as a tracer of input of river-produced organic matter in the marine realm in surface and Quaternary (0-45 ka) sediments on the shelf off the Zambezi and nearby smaller rivers in the Mozambique Channel (western Indian Ocean). A Quaternary (0-22 ka) sediment record off the Nile River mouth in the eastern Mediterranean was also studied for long-chain diols. For the Mozambique Channel, surface sediments of sites most proximal to Mozambique rivers showed the highest F1, 15 - C32 (up to 10 k%). The sedimentary record shows high (15-35 k%) pre-Holocene F1, 15 - C32 and low (〈 10 k%) Holocene F1, 15 - C32 values, with a major decrease between 18 and 12 ka. F1, 15 - C32 is significantly correlated (r2 = 0.83, p 〈 0.001) with the branched and isoprenoid tetraether (BIT) index, a proxy for the input of soil and river-produced organic matter in the marine environment, which declines from 0.25 to 0.60 for the pre-Holocene to 〈 0.10 for the Holocene. This decrease in both FC32 1, 15 and the BIT is interpreted to be mainly due to rising sea level, which caused the Zambezi River mouth to become more distal to our study site, thereby decreasing riverine input at the core location. Some small discrepancies are observed between the records of the BIT index and FC32 1, 15 for Heinrich Event 1 (H1) and the Younger Dryas (YD), which may be explained by a change in soil sources in the catchment area rather than a change in river influx. Like for the Mozambique Channel, a significant correlation between FC32 1, 15 and the BIT index (r2 = 0.38, p 〈 0.001) is observed for the eastern Mediterranean Nile record. Here also, the BIT index and FC32 1, 15 are lower in the Holocene than in the pre-Holocene, which is likely due to the sea level rise. In general, the differences between the BIT index and FC32 1, 15 eastern Mediterranean Nile records can be explained by the fact that the BIT index is not only affected by riverine runoff but also by vegetation cover with increasing cover leading to lower soil erosion. Our results confirm that FC32 1, 15 is a complementary proxy for tracing riverine input of organic matter into marine shelf settings, and, in comparison with other proxies, it seems not to be affected by soil and vegetation changes in the catchment area.

Description: Terrestrial signals in marine sediment archives are often used for paleoclimatic reconstructions. It is therefore important to know the origin of the different terrestrial sedimentary components. The proximity to a river mouth is often the key location to determine the source. Especially in regions with strong ocean currents, such an assumption might,however, lead to considerable misinterpretations. To investigate the source of various terrigenous sediment fractions in southeastern Africa, a region with strong sediment redistribution, we have performed an extensive comparison between terrestrial material (pollen, plant lipids, detrital modes and heavy minerals as well as bulk inorganic geochemical composition) from potential source regions and the same components in the adjacent coastal and continental shelf sediments. Onshore the proxy‐indicators reflect small‐scale diversity in sampling locations and associated environments (riverbank sediments, flood deposits, suspension loads and soils). Nevertheless, the overall trends reflect significant environmental gradients along a SW to NE transect. We note a general comparability of the studied parameters between the continental and marine sediments regardless of their specific differences in transport and depositional characteristics. We propose that the influence of the Agulhas Current affects sediment deposition and distribution only seaward of the mid‐shelf and that pockets of sediment remain preserved in the lee of coastal protrusions where they are protected from erosion. This study provides the essential prerequisite to allow the attribution of temporal variations of compositional changes in marine sediment cores to environmental changes in southeastern Africa.