The Geomorphology of the Lake Region (Main Ethiopian Rift): The Record of Paleohydrological and Paleoclimatic Events in an Active Volcano-Tectonic Setting

This paper illustrates the main geomorphological features of the Lakes Region (Main Ethiopian Rift) which resulted from the interplay of Late Quaternary climatic and hydrological changes with volcanism and tectonics typical of an active continental rift. Studies carried out over several decades demonstrated that the evolution of Late Pleistocene–Holocene fluvio-lacustrine systems, recorded by a plethora of geomorphic and stratigraphic features, was forced by abrupt hydro-climatic events of regional to global extent which occurred at 104–102 years scales. Besides the widely acknowledged hydro-climatic forcing, the active rift setting concurred to regulate, through volcanism and fault activity, erosion/sedimentation rates, geometry of the lakes basin and of the hydrographic network, and water supply to the lakes. A volcano-tectonic imprint was left particularly during the transition from the Late Pleistocene to the Holocene when dramatic hydrological modifications affected the region.