Date of Award

Spring 5-1-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Earth & Environmental Systems

First Advisor

James H. Speer

Second Advisor

Chad Yost

Third Advisor

Justin Ngoma

Abstract

Zambia is a tropical, landlocked country that lies in the South-Central part of Africa. The climate in Zambia includes distinct dry and rainy seasons, mainly influenced by the north-south movement of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), which shifts seasonally. This research is focused on understanding the relationship between tree growth and climate using dendrochronology. Forty-nine tropical species, including Julbernardia paniculata, Brachystegia longifolia, and Pericopsis angolensis, were analysed for dendroclimatic potential, and 70% showed clear ring formation, indicating that trees in this locality produce distinct annual ring boundaries. For the single species chronology, thirteen cores from eight trees that were initially collected for a dendroecological study were sampled and analysed. The series intercorrelation was 0.338, the mean sensitivity was 0.574, and Rbar was 0.18. Tree growth was correlated with precipitation and showed that December and January precipitation control tree growth in this area, supported by a strong positive correlation. For the multispecies chronology, the series intercorrelation was 0.457, the mean sensitivity was 0.465, and the Rbar was 0.215. Our analysis suggests that not only are species in this part of the Miombo responding to precipitation, but they also seem to be responding to minimum temperature (previous January and February) and vapor pressure. These findings demonstrate that combining multiple species enhances the climate–growth signal and is an effective approach for dendroclimatic analysis in this wet Miombo woodland of Zambia.

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