Phytolith signal of aquatic plants and soils in Chad, Central Africa

Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology

Volumn 178, Issue , 2012, Pages 43-58

  Novello, Alice ^a,b   Barboni, Doris ^b   Berti Equille, Laure ^b,c   Mazur, Jean Charles ^b   Poilecot, Pierre ^d   Vignaud, Patrick ^a  

^a UNIVERSITÉ DE POITIERS   (France)

^b AIX MARSEILLE UNIVERSITY   (France)

^c INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE POUR LE DÉVELOPPEMENT   (France)

^d CIRAD   (France)

Author keywords

Cyperaceae; Lacustrine environments; Lake Chad; Poaceae; Silica; Sub Sahara

Indexed keywords

ABUNDANCE; AQUATIC PLANT; BIOME; COHORT ANALYSIS; GRASS; GRASSLAND; LACUSTRINE ENVIRONMENT; MORPHOLOGY; PHYTOGEOGRAPHY; PHYTOLITH; PRESERVATION; RELATIVE ABUNDANCE; SEDGE; SILICA; SPECIES DIVERSITY; SWAMP; TAXONOMY;

CHAD; SAHEL [SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA]; SUDAN;

CAREX; CYPERACEAE; POACEAE;

EID: 84860268966     PISSN: 00346667     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2012.03.010     Document Type: Article

References (87)

1. Albert R.M., Bamford M.K., Cabanes D. Taphonomy of phytoliths and macroplants in different soils from Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) and the application to Plio-Pleistocene palaeoanthropological samples. Quaternary International 2006, 148:78-94.
2. Alexandre A., Meunier J.-D., Lézine A.-M., Vincens A., Schwartz D. Phytoliths: indicators of grassland dynamics during the late Holocene in intertropical Africa. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 1997, 136:213-229.
3. Ball T.B. Phytoliths of Dhofar, Oman, Arabia, CD-ROM, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 2002.
4. Bamford M.K., Albert R.M., Cabanes D. Plio-Pleistocene macroplant fossil remains and phytoliths from Lowermost Bed II in the eastern palaeolake margin of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. Quaternary International 2006, 148:95-112.
5. Barboni D., Bremond L. Phytoliths of East African grasses: an assessment of their environmental and taxonomic significance based on floristic data. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 2009, 158:29-41.
6. Barboni D., Bonnefille R., Alexandre A., Meunier J.D. Phytoliths as paleoenvironmental indicators, West Side Middle Awash Valley, Ethiopia. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 1999, 152:87-100.
7. Barboni D., Bremond L., Bonnefille R. Comparative study of modern phytolith assemblages from inter-tropical Africa. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 2007, 246:454-470.
8. Beal W.J. The bulliform or hygroscopic cells of grasses and sedges compared. Botanical Gazette 1886, XI:319-326.
9. Blondel C., Merceron G., Andossa L., Taisso M.Hassane, Vignaud P., Brunet M. Dental mesowear analysis of the late Miocene Bovidae from Toros-Menalla (Chad) and early hominid habitats in Central Africa. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 2010, 292:184-191.
10. Boughey A.S. The physionomic delimitation of west african vegetation types. Journal of the West African Science Association 1957, 3:148-165.
11. Bremond L., Alexandre A., Peyron O., Guiot J. Grass water stress estimated from phytoliths in West Africa. Journal of Biogeography 2004, 31:1-17.
12. Bremond L., Alexandre A., Hély C., Guiot J. A phytolith index as a proxy of tree cover density in tropical areas: calibration with Leaf Area Index along a forest-savanna transect in southeastern Cameroon. Global and Planetary Change 2005, 45:277-293.
13. Bremond L., Alexandre A., Peyron O., Guiot J. Definition of grassland biomes from phytoliths in West Africa. Journal of Biogeography 2008, 35:2039-2048.
14. Bremond L., Alexandre A., Wooller M.J., Hély C., Williamson D., Schäfer P.A., Majule A., Guiot J. Phytolith indices as proxies of grass subfamilies on East African tropical mountains. Global and Planetary Change 2008, 61:209-224.
15. Brunet M., Beauvilain A., Coppens Y., Heintz E., Moutaye A.H.E., Pilbeam D. The first australopithecine 2500kilometres west of the Rift Valley (Chad). Nature 1995, 378:273-275.
16. Brunet M., Beauvilain A., Geraads D., Guy F., Kasser M., Mackaye H.T., Maclatchy M.L., Mouchelin G., Sudre J., Vignaud P. Australopithecus bahrelghazali, une nouvelle espèce d'Hominidé ancien de la région de Koro Toro (Tchad). Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences de Paris Série IIa 1996, 322:907-913.
17. Brunet M., Guy F., Pilbeam D., Mackaye H.T., Likius A., Ahounta D., Beauvilain A., Blondel C., Bocherensk H., Boisserie J.-R., de Bonis L., Coppens Y., Dejax J., Denys C., Duringer P., Eisenmann V., Fanone G., Fronty P., Geraads D., Lehmann T., Lihoreau F., Louchart A., Mahamat A., Merceron G., Mouchelin G., Otero O., Pelaez-Campomanes P., De Leon M.Ponce, Rage J.-C., Sapanetk M., Schuster M., Sudre J., Tassy P., Valentin X., Vignaud P., Viriot L., Zazzo A., Zollikofer C. A new hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad, Central Africa. Nature 2002, 418:145-151.
18. Brunet M., Guy F., Pilbeam D., Lieberman D.E., Likius A., Mackaye H.T., de Léon M.S.Ponce, Zollikofer C.P.E., Vignaud P. New material of the earliest hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad. Nature 2005, 434:752-755.
19. César J., Lebrun J.-P. Flore du Tchad 2003, Laboratoire de Recherches Vétérinaires et Zootechniques de Farcha, N'Djaména.
20. Coppens Y., Koeniguer J.C. Sur les flores ligneuses disparues Plio-Quaternaires du Tchad et du Niger. Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences de Paris 1976, 265:1282-1285.
21. Diester-Haass L., Sehrader H.T., Thiede T. Sedimentological and paleoclimatological investigations of two pelagic ooze cores off Cape Barbas, North-West Africa. Meteor Forschungs-Ergebnisse Reihe C 1973, 16:19-66.
22. Eichhorn B., Neumann K., Garnier A. Seed phytoliths in West African Commelinaceae and their potential for palaeoecological studies. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 2010, 298:300-310.
23. Ellis R.P. A procedure for standardizing comparative leaf anatomy in the Poaceae. II. The epidermis as seen in surface view. Bothalia 1979, 12:641-671.
24. Esau K. Plant Anatomy 1965, John Wiley and Sons, New York, 767 pp.
25. Fahmy A.G. Diversity of lobate phytoliths in grass leaves from the Sahel region, West tropical Africa: tribe Paniceae. Journal of Plant Systematics and Evolution 2008, 270:1-23.
26. Fahn A., Cutler D.F. Xerophytes, Handbuch der Pflanzenanatomie (band XIII, teil 3) 1992, Gebrüder Borntraeger, Berlin, Stuttgart.
27. Finne M., Norstrom E., Risberg J., Scott L. Siliceous microfossils as late-Quaternary paleo-environmental indicators at Braamhoek wetland, South Africa. The Holocene 2010, 20:747-760.
28. Fontes J.C., Maglione G., Roche M.A. Eléments d'hydrologie isotopique dans le bassin du lac Tchad. In Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy in Africa 1970, 209-219. International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienne.
29. Fotius G., Lemoalle J. Reconnaissance de l'évolution de la végétation du Lac Tchad entre janvier 1974 et juin 1976 1976, Office de la recherche scientifique et technique outre-mer, N'Djaména.
30. Fredlund G.G., Tieszen L.T. Modern phytolith assemblages from the North American Great Plains. Journal of Biogeography 1994, 21:321-335.
31. Gaston A. Agropastoralisme. Atlas d'Elevage du Bassin du Lac Tchad 1996, 39-55. Centre Technique de Coopération Agricole et Rurale, Waganingen.
32. Gaston A., Dulieu D. Pâturages naturels du Tchad 1976, Département d'Elevage et Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux, Maison Alfort.
33. Ghosh R., Naskar M., Bera S. Phytolith assemblages of grasses from the Sunderbans, India and their implications for the reconstruction of deltaic environments. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 2011, 311:93-102.
34. Grigore M.-N., Toma C., Boscaiu M. Ecological implications of bulliform cells on halophytes, in salt and water stress natural conditions. Scientific Annals of Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi. New Series, Section 2. Vegetal Biology 2010, 56:5-15.
35. Hodson M.J., White P.J., Mead A., Broadley M.R. Phylogenetic variation in silicon composition of plants. Annals of Botany 2005, 96:1027-1046.
36. Kellogg E.A. Evolutionary history of the grasses. Plant Physiology 2001, 125:1198-1205.
37. Kondo R., Childs C., Atkinson I. Opal Phytoliths of New Zealand 1994, Manaaki Whenua Press, Lincoln, 85pp.
38. Lebart L., Morineau A., Piron M. Statistique Exploratoire Multidimensionnelle 2000, 181-184. Dunod, ed.
39. Lebatard A.-E., Bourlès D.L., Duringer P., Jolivet M., Braucher R., Carcaillet J., Schuster M., Arnaud N., Monié P., Lihoreau F., Likius A., Mackaye H.T., Vignaud P., Brunet M. Cosmogenic nuclide dating of Sahelanthropus tchadensis and Australopithecus bahrelghazali: Mio-Pliocene hominids from Chad. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2008, 105:3226-3231.
40. Lebatard Anne-Elisabeth, Bourlès Didier L., Braucher Régis, Arnold Maurice, Duringer Philippe, Jolivet Marc, Moussa Abderamane, Deschamps Pierre, Roquin Claude, Carcaillet Julien, Schuster Mathieu, Lihoreau Fabrice, Likius Andossa, Mackaye Hassan Taisso, Vignaud Patrick, Brunet Michel Application of the authigenic 10Be/9Be dating method to continental sediments: reconstruction of the Mio-Pleistocene sedimentary sequence in the early hominid fossiliferous areas of the northern Chad Basin. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 2010, 297:57-70.
41. LeFur S., Fara E., Mackaye H.T., Vignaud P., Brunet M. The mammal assemblage of the hominid site TM266 (Late Miocene, Chad Basin): ecological structure and paleoenvironmental implications. Naturwissenschaften 2009, 96:565-574.
42. Lemoalle J., Hourtal D. Eaux de surface. Atlas d'Elevage du Bassin du Lac Tchad 1996, 23-28. Centre Technique de Coopération Agricole et Rurale, Wageningen.
43. Letouzey R. Etude phytogéographique du Cameroun. Encyclopedia biologica n°69 1968, 511. Paul Lechevalier, Paris.
44. Lézine A.-M., Watrin J., Vincens A., Hély C. Are modern pollen data representative of west African vegetation?. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 2009, 156:265-276.
45. Livingstone D.A., Clayton W.D. An altitudinal cline in tropical African grass floras and its paleoecological significance. Quaternary Research 1980, 13:392-402.
46. Lu H., Liu K. Phytoliths of common grasses in the coastal environments of southeastern USA. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 2003, 58:587-600.
47. Madella M., Alexandre A., Ball T. International Code for Phytolith Nomenclature 1.0. Annals of Botany 2005, 96:253-260.
48. Maley J. La sédimentation pollinique actuelle dans la zone du lac Tchad (Afrique Centrale). Pollen et Spores 1972, 14:263-307.
49. Mauseth J.D. Plant Anatomy 2008, Blackburn Press, Caldwell, 576pp. A. Crowley, R. Williams, L. Faust, L. Kenney (Eds.).
50. Mercader J., Bennett T., Esselmont C., Simpson S., Walde D. Phytoliths in woody plants from the Miombo woodlands of Mozambique. Annals of Botany 2009, 104:91-113.
51. Mercader J., Astudillo F., Barkworth M., Bennett T., Esselmont C., Kinyanjui R., Grossman D.L., Simpson S., Walde D. Poaceae phytoliths from the Niassa Rift, Mozambique. Journal of Archaeological Science 2010, 1953-1967.
52. Metcalfe C.R. Anatomy of the monocotyledons. Anatomy of the Monocotyledons 1960, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 731 pp. C.R. Metcalfe (Ed.).
53. Motoruma H., Fujii T., Suzuki M. Silica deposition in abaxial epidermis before the opening of leaf blades of Pleioblastus chino (Poaceae, Bambusoideae). Annals of Botany 2006, 97:513-519.
54. Moulia B. The biomechanics of leaf rolling. Biomimetics 1994, 2:267-281.
55. Mulholland S.C. Phytolith shape frequencies in North Dakota grasses: a comparison to general patterns. Journal of Archaeological Science 1989, 16:489-511.
56. Mulholland S.C., Rapp G. A morphological classification of grass silica-bodies. Phytolith Systematics 1992, 65-89. Plenum, New York. G. Rapp, S.C. Mulholland (Eds.).
57. Neumann K., Fahmy A., Lespez L., Ballouche A., Huysecom E. The Early Holocene palaeoenvironment of Ounjougou (Mali): phytoliths in a multiproxy context. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 2009, 276:87-106.
58. Olivry J.-C., Chouret A., Vuitlaume G., Lemoalle J., Bricquet J.-P. Hydrologie du lac Tchad 1996, Institut Français de Recherche Scientifique pour le Développement en Coopération, Paris.
59. Ollendorf A.L. Toward a classification scheme of sedge (Cyperaceae) phytoliths. Phytolith Systematics 1992, Plenum Press, New York. G. Rapp, S.C. Mulholland (Eds.).
60. Ollendorf A.L., Mulholland S.C., Rapp G. Phytolith from Israeli sedges. Israel Journal of Botany 1987, 36:125-132.
61. Ollendorf A.L., Mulholland S.C., Rapp G. Phytolith analysis as a means of plant identification: Arundo donax and Phragmites communis. Annals of Botany 1988, 61:209-214.
62. Otero O., Pinton A., Mackaye H.T., Likius A., Vignaud P., Brunet M. The fish assemblage associated with the Lare Miocene Chadian hominid (Toros-Menalla, Western Djurab) and its palaeoenvironmental significance. Palaeontographica, Abteilung A: Palaeozoology, Stratigraphy 2010, 292:21-51.
63. Palmer P.G., Gerbeth-Jones S., Hutchison S. A Scanning Electron Microscope Survey of the Epidermis of East African Grasses, III 1985, Smithsonian Contributions to Botany, Washington, 136 pp.
64. Parry D.W., Smithson F. Types of opaline silica depositions in the leaves of British grasses. Annals of Botany 1964, 28:169-185.
65. Piperno D.R. Phytolith Analysis - An Archaeological and Geological Perspective 1988, Academic Press (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich), New York, 280 pp.
66. Piperno D.R. Phytoliths. A Comprehensive Guide for Archaeologists and Paleoecologists 2006, AltaMira Press, Oxford, (Rowman & Littlefield).
67. Piperno D.R., Pearsall D.M. The silica bodies of tropical American grasses: morphology, taxonomy, and implications for grass systematics and fossil phytolith identification. Smithsonian Contribution to Botany 1998, 85:1-40.
68. Poilecot P. Les Poaceae du Niger. Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique, Conservatoire et Jardins botaniques de Genève, Union Internationale pour la Conservation de la Nature 1999, vol. 56:766. Boissiera, Genève.
69. Quézel P. La végétation du Sahara. Du Tchad à la Mauritanie. Geobotanica Selecta 1965, 2:333. Gustaf Fisher Verlag, Stuttgart.
70. Rossouw, L., 2009. The application of fossil grass-phytolith analysis in the reconstruction of late Cenozoic environments in the South African interior, PhD Thesis. Bloemfontein: University of the Free State.
71. Rovner I. Potential of opal phytoliths for use in paleoecological reconstruction. Quaternary Research 1971, 1:343-359.
72. Runge F. The opal phytolith inventory of soils in central Africa - quantities, shapes, classification, and spectra. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 1999, 107:23-53.
73. Sangster A.G., Parry D.W. Sorne factors in relation to bulliforrn cell silicification in the grass leaf. Annals of Botany 1969, 33:315-323.
74. Schmidt M., Thiombiano A., Zizka A., König K., Brunken U., Zizka G. Patterns of plant functional traits in the biogeography of West African grasses (Poaceae). African Journal of Ecology 2011, 49:490-500.
75. Schuster, M., 2002. Sédimentologie et paléoécologie des séries à vertébrés du paléolac Tchad depuis le Miocène supérieur, PhD Thesis. Strasbourg: Université Louis-Pasteur.
76. Schwartz D., Mariotti A. Le delta13C des principales graminées et cypéracées du Congo, conséquences pour les études isotopiques des savanes et forêts d'Afrique centrale, Dynamique à long terme des écosystèmes forestiers intertropicaux 1996, 89-92. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer, Paris.
77. Scurfield G., Anderson A., Segnit E.R. Sîlica in woody stems. Anatomical Journal of Botany 1974, 22:211-229.
78. Strömberg, C. A. E., 2003. The origin and spread of grass-dominated ecosystems during the Tertiary of North America and how it relates to the evolution of hypsodonty in equids, PhD Thesis, Integrative Biology. Berkeley: University of California.
79. Thorn V.C. An Annotated Bibliography of Phytolith Analysis and Atlas of Selected New Zealand Subantarctic and Subalpine Phytoliths Antarctic Data Series 2004, 29:1-67.
80. Twiss P.C., Suess E., Smith R.M. Morphology classification of grass phytoliths. Soil Science Society of America 1969, 33:109-115.
81. UNEP, United Nations Environment Programme Lake Chad Basin, Global International Waters Assessment 2004.
82. Vignaud P., Duringer P., Mackaye H.T., Likius A., Blondel C., Boisserie J.-R., de Bonis L., Eisenmann V., Etienne M.-E., Geraads Denis, Guy F., Lehmann T., Lihoreau F., Lopez-Martinez N., Mourer-Chauviré C., Otero O., Rage J.-C., Schuster M., Viriot L., Zazzo A., Brunet M. Geology and palaeontology of the Upper Miocene Toros-Menalla hominid locality, Djurab Desert, Northern Chad. Nature 2002, 418:152-155.
83. Wallis L. An overview of leaf phytolith production patterns in selected northwest Australian flora. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 2003, 125:201-248.
84. Watson, L., Dallwitz, M. J., 1992 onwards. GrassBase - the grass genera of the world: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval; including synonyms, morphology, anatomy, physiology, phytochemistry, cytology, classification, pathogens, world and local distribution, and references. Available at: (accessed January 2012). http://delta-intkey.com/grass/.
85. White F. The Vegetation Map of Africa, Recherches sur les ressources naturelles 1983, Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Paris, 384.
86. WoldeGabriel G., Ambrose S.H., Barboni D., Bonnefille R., Bremond L., Currie B., DeGusta D., Hart W.K., Murray A.M., Renne P.R., Jolly-Saad M.C., Stewart K.M., White T.D. The geological, isotopic, botanical, invertebrate, and lower vertebrate surroundings of Ardipithecus ramidus. Science 2009, 326:65e61-65e65.
87. Zazzo A., Bocherens H., Brunet M., Beauvilain A., Billiou D., Mackaye H.T., Vignaud P., Mariotti A. Herbivore paleodiet and paleoenvironmental changes in Chad during the Pliocene using stable isotope ratios of tooth enamel carbonate. Paleobiology 2000, 26:294-309.