During recent humid episodes, stromatolites were built along paleolake margins, some 60 m above the modern water level of Lakes Natron and Magadi (southern Gregory Rift Valley). Three generations of stromatolites are observed, the more recent ones frequently covering pebbles and boulders eroded from the older ones. The youngest one yielded 14C ages ranging from approximately 12,000 to 10,000 yr B.P. Their δ13C values (≥2.6%) suggest isotopic equilibrium between the paleolake total inorganic dissolved carbon and the atmospheric CO2, thereby lending credence to the reliability of the 14C. An initial 230Th/232Th ratio in the detrital component was determined by Th/U measurements on the 14C dated stromatolites. Using this value a 230Th/234U chronology for the older stromatolites was calculated. Ages of ≥240,000 and 135,000 ± 10,000 yr were obtained for the first and second generations, respectively. A humid episode apparently characterized eastern Africa during each glacial-interglacial transition. 18O and 13C measurements on stromatolites, when compared to values on modern waters and carbonates, provide paleohydrological information. Long residence time of the paleolake waters and less seasonally contrasted regimes are inferred.
Characterization of Water Level Variability of the Main Ethiopian Rift Valley Lakes
