Influence of landscape evolution on the distribution of floristic patterns in northern Amazonia revealed by δ¹³C data

Abstract

Abstract The Amazonian lowlands include large patches of open vegetation which contrast sharply with the rainforest, and the origin of these patches has been debated. This study focuses on a large area of open vegetation in northern Brazil, where δ 13 C and, in some instances, C/N analyses of the organic matter preserved in late Quaternary sediments were used to achieve floristic reconstructions over time. The main goal was to determine when the modern open vegetation started to develop in this area. The variability in δ 13 C data derived from nine cores ranges from −32.2 to −19.6‰, but with nearly 60% of data above −26.5‰. The most enriched values were detected only in ecotone and open vegetated areas. The development of open vegetation communities was asynchronous, varying between estimated ages of 6400 and 3000 cal a BP. This suggests that the origin of the studied patches of open vegetation might be linked to sedimentary dynamics of a late Quaternary megafan system. As sedimentation ended, this vegetation type became established over the megafan surface. In addition, the data presented here show that the presence of C 4 plants must be used carefully as a proxy to interpret dry paleoclimatic episodes in Amazonian areas. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.