Humid periods in southern Arabia; windows of opportunity for modern human dispersal

Arabia is a key area for the dispersal of anatomically modern humans (AMH, Homo sapiens) out of Africa. Given its modern hostile environment, the question of the timing of dispersal is also a question of climatic conditions. Fresh water and food were crucial factors facilitating AMH expansions into...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geology (Boulder) 2011-12, Vol.39 (12), p.1115-1118
Main Authors: Rosenberg, T. M, Preusser, F, Fleitmann, D, Schwalb, A, Penkman, K, Schmid, T. W, Al-Shanti, M. A, Kadi, K, Matter, A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
absolute age
Arabian Peninsula
arid environment
Asia
biogeography
C-14
carbon
Cenozoic
Chordata
climate change
dates
Dispersal
Environmental conditions
Eutheria
Freshwater
Geochronology
Geological time
Hominidae
Hominids
Homo
Homo sapiens
humid environment
isotopes
Khujaymah Saudi Arabia
lacustrine environment
lake sediments
Lakes
Mammalia
migration
Mundafan Saudi Arabia
paleoclimatology
paleoecology
Primates
Quaternary
Quaternary geology
radioactive isotopes
Red Sea region
relict materials
Rub' al Khali
Saudi Arabia
sediments
terrestrial environment
Tetrapoda
Theria
upper Quaternary
Vertebrata
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Arabia is a key area for the dispersal of anatomically modern humans (AMH, Homo sapiens) out of Africa. Given its modern hostile environment, the question of the timing of dispersal is also a question of climatic conditions. Fresh water and food were crucial factors facilitating AMH expansions into Arabia. By dating relict lake deposits, four periods of lake formation were identified: one during the early Holocene and three during the late Pleistocene centered ca. 80, ca. 100, and ca. 125 ka. Favorable environmental conditions during these periods allowed AMH to migrate across southern Arabia. Between ca. 75 and 10.5 ka, arid conditions prevailed and turned southern Arabia into a natural barrier for human dispersal. Thus, expansion of AMH through the southern corridor into Asia must have taken place before 75 ka, possibly in multiple dispersals.
ISSN:0091-7613
1943-2682
1943-2682
DOI:10.1130/G32281.1