Geometry of sedimentary deposits and evolution of the landforms in the Chobe Enclave, Northern Botswana

Abstract

The imprint of neotectonics is frequently obscured in low-relief environments by the sedimentary cover. This is the case in the Chobe Enclave, part of a pristine region of the Middle Kalahari Basin in northern Botswana, where numerous fossil landforms, such as sand dunes, pans, sand ridges, and carbonate islands, can be observed but whose detailed origins are unclear. In this study, a combination of near-surface geophysical surveys, sedimentological analysis, and optically-stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating were used to study the relationship between landscape development and neotectonic activity in one region of the Chobe Enclave. Specifically, electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and ground penetrating radar (GPR) surveys were used to define the lateral and vertical distribution of sedimentary deposits associated with a prominent sand ridge and its margins. Sedimentological analysis and OSL dating of soil samples from pits taken along the survey lines were then used to calibrate the geophysical results and establish a chronostratigraphical framework. Our results lead to the following hypotheses regarding the evolution of this part of the Chobe landscape: (i) during the Late Pleistocene (>~25 ka), fluvial channels were buried due to epeirogenic movements, resulting in paleo-channels; (ii) between ~25 ka and ~6 ka, a paleo-lake shoreline formed, which resulted in the linear eastern margin observed on the considered sand ridge. Erosional bounding surfaces suggest the syndepositional uplift of the sand ridge morphologies during this time; (iii) a neotectonic influence on the evolution of the landscape is revealed by the incision of the sand ridge forming fluvial watergaps since ~6 ka ago; and (iv) due to continuous aeolian and fluvial reworking, the western-most ridge became gradually isolated from the floodplain resulting in an inherited relief. In conclusion, this investigation allowed the deformation caused by epeirogenic movements acting on a low relief landscape to be characterized in terms of landforms and sedimentary body properties.