Isotope hydrology of ancient landscapes

Deuterium abundances in plant and algae biomarkers record isotopic signatures of meteoric waters, resulting in an increasingly popular proxy approach to paleohydrology. Reconstructions of ancient vegetation and lake conditions strengthen our interpretive framework for such records. This approach will be illustrated by studies of continental-ocean climate linkages during repeated grassland-forest transitions in the Early Pleistocene at Olduvai Gorge, a site of early hominid occupation and considered the "cradle of humankind".

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