Fire and human management of late Holocene ecosystems in southern Africa. (1st August 2022) - Davies, Benjamin
Abstract: Globally, fire is a primary agent for modifying environments through the long-term coupling of human and natural systems. In southern Africa, control of fire by humans has been documented since the late Middle Pleistocene, though it is unclear when or if anthropogenic burning led to fundamental shifts in the region's fire regimes. To identify potential periods of broad-scale anthropogenic burning, we analyze aggregated Holocene charcoal sequences across southern Africa, which we compare to paleoclimate records and archaeological data. We show climate-concordant variability in mid-Holocene fire across much of the subcontinent. However, increased regional fire activity during the late Holocene (∼2000 BP) coincides with archaeological change, especially the introduction and intensification of food production across the region. This increase in fire is not readily explained by climate changes, but rather reflects a novel way of using fire as a tool to manage past landscapes, with outcomes conditioned by regional ecosystem characteristics. Highlights: Microcharcoal records from southern Africa were analyzed to study regional paleofire and relationships to climate. Microcharcoal records after 2000 BP show a notable increase in fire that is not accounted for by shifting climate conditions. This increase in fire corresponds with the advent of food production in Southern Africa. Stronger signals in eastern grasslands may reflect the capacity of those ecosystems to sustain repeated firing and grazing.