Organic geochemical measurements of sediment core GeoB20616-1

Climate sensitive organic proxies, like the distribution and isotopic composition of plant-wax lipids provide information on climatic changes in the catchment areas of the Incomati, Matola, and Lusutfu rivers. At the transition between glacials and interglacials, shifts in vegetation correlate with changes in sea surface temperature in the Agulhas current. The local hydrology, however, does not follow these orbital-paced shifts. Instead, precipitation patterns follow millennial scale variations with different forcing mechanisms in glacial versus interglacial climatic states.