Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert
Abstract The response of the hyperarid Pacific coast of South America to greenhouse warming remains highly uncertain but has profound implications for the future habitability of the region. Here, we present the first paleobotanical study documenting the Peruvian Desert’s response to the Late Miocene...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Communications Earth & Environment |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02322-0 |
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| author | Diana Ochoa Matthieu Carré Juan-Felipe Montenegro Thomas J. DeVries Dayenari Caballero-Rodríguez Oris Rodríguez-Reyes Angel Barbosa-Espitia Jorge Cardich Edgar Cruz-Acevedo Danilo Cruz David A. Foster María LaTorre-Acuy Franco Quispe María Rivera-Chira Pedro E. Romero Rodolfo Salas-Gismondi Mario Urbina José-Abel Flores |
| author_facet | Diana Ochoa Matthieu Carré Juan-Felipe Montenegro Thomas J. DeVries Dayenari Caballero-Rodríguez Oris Rodríguez-Reyes Angel Barbosa-Espitia Jorge Cardich Edgar Cruz-Acevedo Danilo Cruz David A. Foster María LaTorre-Acuy Franco Quispe María Rivera-Chira Pedro E. Romero Rodolfo Salas-Gismondi Mario Urbina José-Abel Flores |
| author_sort | Diana Ochoa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The response of the hyperarid Pacific coast of South America to greenhouse warming remains highly uncertain but has profound implications for the future habitability of the region. Here, we present the first paleobotanical study documenting the Peruvian Desert’s response to the Late Miocene greenhouse climate, when radiative forcing was comparable to 21st century projections. Fossil leaves, wood, and pollen from the Pisco Formation lagerstätte indicate a diverse dry forest biome where an absolute desert is observed today. Rainfall at 8–6 Ma is estimated to have been three times higher than today, possibly due to a warmer Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean or to more frequent El Niño events. Our results suggest that the impacts of tropical climate dynamical changes on ecosystems of the Pacific South American coast under greenhouse warming conditions may outweigh those of heat and evaporation, potentially enabling vegetation expansion, biome transformations, and enhanced habitability in this region. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a1152015df554109af027dbe9c54e4c9 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2662-4435 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Communications Earth & Environment |
| spelling | doaj-art-a1152015df554109af027dbe9c54e4c92025-08-20T03:08:44ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Earth & Environment2662-44352025-05-016111210.1038/s43247-025-02322-0Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian DesertDiana Ochoa0Matthieu Carré1Juan-Felipe Montenegro2Thomas J. DeVries3Dayenari Caballero-Rodríguez4Oris Rodríguez-Reyes5Angel Barbosa-Espitia6Jorge Cardich7Edgar Cruz-Acevedo8Danilo Cruz9David A. Foster10María LaTorre-Acuy11Franco Quispe12María Rivera-Chira13Pedro E. Romero14Rodolfo Salas-Gismondi15Mario Urbina16José-Abel Flores17Departamento de Geología, Universidad de SalamancaCentro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)Centro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)The Burke Museum, University of WashingtonSmithsonian Tropical Research InstituteSmithsonian Tropical Research InstitutePrograma de Geografía, Universidad Nacional de ColombiaCentro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)Centro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)Department of Geological Sciences, University of FloridaDepartment of Geological Sciences, University of FloridaHerbario Nacional, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San MarcosCentro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)Centro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San MarcosCentro de Investigación para el Desarrollo Integral y Sostenible (CIDIS), Facultad de Ciencias e Ingeniería, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH)Departamento de Paleontología de Vertebrados, Museo de Historia Natural, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San MarcosDepartamento de Geología, Universidad de SalamancaAbstract The response of the hyperarid Pacific coast of South America to greenhouse warming remains highly uncertain but has profound implications for the future habitability of the region. Here, we present the first paleobotanical study documenting the Peruvian Desert’s response to the Late Miocene greenhouse climate, when radiative forcing was comparable to 21st century projections. Fossil leaves, wood, and pollen from the Pisco Formation lagerstätte indicate a diverse dry forest biome where an absolute desert is observed today. Rainfall at 8–6 Ma is estimated to have been three times higher than today, possibly due to a warmer Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean or to more frequent El Niño events. Our results suggest that the impacts of tropical climate dynamical changes on ecosystems of the Pacific South American coast under greenhouse warming conditions may outweigh those of heat and evaporation, potentially enabling vegetation expansion, biome transformations, and enhanced habitability in this region.https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02322-0 |
| spellingShingle | Diana Ochoa Matthieu Carré Juan-Felipe Montenegro Thomas J. DeVries Dayenari Caballero-Rodríguez Oris Rodríguez-Reyes Angel Barbosa-Espitia Jorge Cardich Edgar Cruz-Acevedo Danilo Cruz David A. Foster María LaTorre-Acuy Franco Quispe María Rivera-Chira Pedro E. Romero Rodolfo Salas-Gismondi Mario Urbina José-Abel Flores Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert Communications Earth & Environment |
| title | Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert |
| title_full | Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert |
| title_fullStr | Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert |
| title_full_unstemmed | Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert |
| title_short | Late Miocene greening of the Peruvian Desert |
| title_sort | late miocene greening of the peruvian desert |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02322-0 |
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