Late Pleistocene Desiccation of Lake Victoria and Rapid Evolution of Cichlid Fishes

C. Johnson, Thomas; A. Scholz, Christopher; R. Talbot, Michael; Kelts, Kerry; D. Ricketts, R.; Ngobi, Gideon; Beuning, Kristina; Ssemmanda, Immacculate; W. McGill, J.

doi:10.1126/science.273.5278.1091

Public

Late Pleistocene Desiccation of Lake Victoria and Rapid Evolution of Cichlid Fishes

Published in Science • Aug 23, 1996

Authors:

Thomas C. Johnson

Christopher A. Scholz

Michael R. Talbot

Abstract

Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and harbors more than 300 endemic species of haplochromine cichlid fish. Seismic reflection profiles and piston cores show that the lake not only was at a low stand but dried up completely during the Late Pleistocene, before 12,400 carbon-14 years before t...

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