@article{fdi:010087669,
  title = {{M}icroscopic charcoals in ocean sediments off {A}frica track past fire intensity from the continent},
  author = {{H}aliuc, {A}. and {D}aniau, {A}. {L}. and {M}ouillot, {F}lorent and {C}hen, {W}entao and {L}eys, {B}. and {D}avid, {V}. and {H}anquiez, {V}. and {D}ennielou, {B}. and {S}chefuss, {E}. and {B}ayon, {G}. and {C}rosta, {X}.},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{L}arge grassland and open savannah fires occurred during humid periods of the {H}olocene in subtropical {A}frica and contributed to increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, according to the concentration and morphotype of microcharcoals in marine sediments off {A}frica {F}ires in {A}frica account for more than half of global fire-carbon emissions but the long-term evolution of fire activity and its link to global climate change remains elusive. {P}aleofire records provide descriptive information about fire changes through time, going beyond the range of satellite observations, although fire regime characteristics are challenging to reconstruct. {T}o address this conceptual gap, we report here the abundance and morphometric data for a large set of microscopic charcoal samples (n = 128) recovered from surface ocean sediments offshore {A}frica. {W}e show that in subtropical {S}outhern {A}frica, large and intense fires prevailing in open savanna-grassland ecosystems produce a high abundance of small and elongated microcharcoal particles. {I}n contrast, in the forest ecosystems of equatorial and tropical regions of western and central {A}frica, low-intensity fires dominate, producing low amounts of squared microcharcoal particles. {M}icrocharcoal concentration and morphotype in marine sediment records off {A}frica are thus indicative of fire regime characteristics. {A}pplied to down-core marine charcoal records, these findings reveal that at orbital time-scale intense and large, open grassland-savanna fires occurred during wet periods in the sub-tropical areas. {A} strong contribution of fire carbon emissions during periods of precession and summer insolation maxima in the geological record is thus expected.},
  keywords = {{AFRIQUE}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{C}ommunications {E}arth and {E}nvironment},
  volume = {4},
  numero = {1},
  pages = {133 [11 p.]},
  year = {2023},
  DOI = {10.1038/s43247-023-00800-x},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010087669},
}