Terrestrial biome distribution in the Late Neogene inferred from a black carbon record in the northeastern equatorial Pacific
Kim, D.; Lee, Y.I.; Hyeong, K.; Yoo, C.M. (2016). Terrestrial biome distribution in the Late Neogene inferred from a black carbon record in the northeastern equatorial Pacific. NPG Scientific Reports 6(32847 ): 8 pp. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep32847
In: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group). Nature Publishing Group: London. ISSN 2045-2322; e-ISSN 2045-2322, meer
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| Auteurs | | Top |
- Kim, D.
- Lee, Y.I.
- Hyeong, K.
- Yoo, C.M.
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| Abstract |
The appearance and expansion of C-4 plants in the Late Cenozoic was a dramatic example of terrestrial ecological change. The fire hypothesis, which suggests fire as a major cause of C-4 grassland is gaining support, yet a more detailed relationship between fire and vegetation-type change remains unresolved. We report the content and stable carbon isotope record of black carbon (BC) in a sediment core retrieved from the northeastern equatorial Pacific that covers the past 14.3 million years. The content record of BC suggests the development process of a flammable ecosystem. The stable carbon isotope record of BC reveals the existence of the Late Miocene C-4 expansion, the 'C-4 maximum period of burned biomass' during the Pliocene to Early Pleistocene, and the collapse of the C-4 in the Late Pleistocene. Records showing the initial expansion of C-4 plants after large fire support the role of fire as a destructive agent of C-3-dominated forest, yet the weak relationships between fire and vegetation after initial expansion suggest that environmental advantages for C-4 plants were necessary to maintain the development of C-4 plants during the late Neogene. Among the various environmental factors, aridity is likely most influential in C-4 expansion. |
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