Holocene environmental change in the Otjiwarongo thornbush savanna (Northern Namibia): evidence from soils and sediments

The Amspoort Silts, northern Namib desert (Namibia): formation, age and palaeoclimatic evidence of river-end deposits

“…Nevertheless, large parts of the northern highlands of Namibia are characterized by aridification. Thus, actual erosion of the Amspoort silts confirms the results of sedimentological and pedological studies carried out in the semiarid highland savannas of Namibia, which state that the observed environmental changes are most likely caused by human impact and desertification processes Eitel et al, 2002b), not by climatic change.…”

Rare earth and trace element geochemistry of termite mounds in central and northeastern Namibia: Mechanisms for micro-nutrient accumulation

“…In contrast to the Kalahari Basin, Mesozoic sedimentary rocks (sandstone, siltstone and mudstone), Palaeozoic Damara Granite intrusion and Precambrian Damara Schists (Eitel et al, 2002) underlie the Waterberg area (WA). Although the soils of the area are poorly developed and comprise mainly arenosols, pockets of organic-rich and thick paleosols are found in many parts of the region (Eitel et al, 2002).…”

“…Although the soils of the area are poorly developed and comprise mainly arenosols, pockets of organic-rich and thick paleosols are found in many parts of the region (Eitel et al, 2002). The Waterberg area is covered by an open thornbush savanna with an average annual rainfall of 450 mm (Eitel et al, 2001).…”

Gully head retreat rates in the semi-arid highlands of Northern Ethiopia

“…Reported cases of gully erosion indicate that both urban and rural areas are affected in many African countries, e.g., Burkina Faso (Marzoff and Ries, 2007), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC; Ndona and Truong 2011), Ethiopia , Kenya (Oostwoud Wijdenes and Bryan, 2001;Katsurada, 2007), Leshoto (Showers, 1996); Namibia (Eitel et al, 2002), Niger (Leblanc et al, 2008), Nigeria (Gobin et al, 1999), Rwanda (Moeyersons, 1991), Senegal , South Africa (Boardman et al, 2003), Swaziland (FelixHenningsen et al, 1997) and Zimbabwe (Stocking, 1980). In these regions, gully erosion is mainly related to the degradation of the vegetation cover, as a consequence of overgrazing, and the intensification of agriculture.…”