Past tree cover of the Congo Basin recovered by phytoliths and δ13C along soil profiles

The δ13C SOC method has been successfully used to study major vegetation changes in Africa, but has never been previously constrained with another proxy of tree cover. This study confirms the value of a multi-proxy approach to investigate past vegetation changes in African tropical moist forests, and shows that SOC δ13C and phytolith signatures in soil profiles display the same dynamics and are complementary. They suggest that the majority of the present forested sites never experienced a true savanna phase.