Fun fact: The ecosystems of the Amazon Basin rely on around 27.7 million tons of Saharan Dust each year to replace the phosphorus that is washed away by the rains. Without this constant input the local soils would have been stripped of needed nutrients and would be unable to support the plants that currently thrive there.
It looks like the Amazon region was experiencing less rainfall at the time with a corresponding shift towards drought tolerant species with parts of the region as savannahs !!
Fun fact: The ecosystems of the Amazon Basin rely on around 27.7 million tons of Saharan Dust each year to replace the phosphorus that is washed away by the rains. Without this constant input the local soils would have been stripped of needed nutrients and would be unable to support the plants that currently thrive there.
The Amazon rainforest survived the African Humid Period though, so what’s up with that?
It looks like the Amazon region was experiencing less rainfall at the time with a corresponding shift towards drought tolerant species with parts of the region as savannahs !!
https://earthscience.stackexchange.com/a/2567
With a different rainfall profile the nutrient loss would have been vastly reduced.
Neat, thanks!
Also true for the Indian Monsoon.