© 2007 Heron Publishing—Victoria, Canada
Radiocarbon dating of a very large African baobab
Adrian Patrut (1, 2), Karl F. Von Reden (3), Daniel A. Lowy (4), Andries H. Alberts (5), John W. Pohlman (6), Rudolf Wittmann (7), Dana Gerlach (3), Li Xu (3) and Clark S. Mitchell (6)
1. Department of Chemistry, Babes-Bolyai University, 400028 Cluj-Napoca, Romania / 2. Corresponding author (apatrut@chem.ubbcluj.ro) / 3. NOSAMS Facility, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA / 4. Nova Research Inc., Alexandria, VA 22308, USA / 5. Nyae Nyae Conservancy, Directorate Parks and Wildlife Management, Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Tsumkwe, Namibia / 6. Chemistry Division, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375, USA / 7. Tree Research Office, 85051 Ingolstadt, Germany / Received February 26, 2007; accepted March 30, 2007; published online August 1, 2007
Summary
In late 2004, Grootboom, probably the largest known African baobab (Adansonia digitata L.), collapsed unexpectedly in northeastern Namibia. Ten wood samples collected from different areas of the trunk were processed
and investigated by accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dating. The radiocarbon dates of three samples were greater
than 1000 years BP (radiocarbon years before present, i.e., before AD 1950). The corresponding calibrated calendar age of
the oldest sample was 1275 ± 50 years, making Grootboom the oldest known angiosperm tree with reliable dating results. Variations
in radiocarbon dates among the wood samples indicated that, morphologically, Grootboom was a quintuple tree, whereas genetically,
it was a single individual. Ages of extreme lateral samples revealed that, over the past 500–600 years, Grootbooom had almost
ceased growing, providing information about climate changes in central southern Africa. The sudden demise of Grootboom coincided
with the spread of the poorly studied baobab disease, which has become epidemic in Namibia.
Keywords:
Adansonia digitata, age determination, dendrochronology, dendroclimatology, tropical trees.
