Geology of East Africa

"The Geology of East Africa is a bold attempt by Thomas Schlüter to "fill a vacuum". Although the region covered by the book represents one of the best studied parts of the African Continent, yet there has not been attempt to present the published information in a single volume. East Africa is one of the most fascinating part of the African Continent and perhaps in the world. It includes the "Great Rift Valley System", the "Great Lakes" such as Victoria, Tangayika and Malawi as well as volcanic peaks like mount Kenya, Elgon and Kilimanjaro, the highest in Africa. Extensive lava plateaux and undulating plains of pre-historic fame such as the Serengeti plain are within this region. The book presents a comprehensive historical review of geological research in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda dating back to the early 20th century with the establishment of Geological Survey and Mining Departments in East Africa by the British Colonial Government and German Institutions. It summarises the essential knowledge of the Precambrian, Karoo, Mesozoic and Cenozoic rock formations with two valuable chapters by S. Hampton on the structural evolution of the East African Rift System and the Upper Phanerozoic volcanism related to the East African Rift System.

The Geological Survey Departments, during the colonial era, have produced excellent geological maps and reports. The maps were prepared on a scale of 1:120,000 or 1:100,000 and they still represent to a large extent the only published maps available for most of the areas described in the book. Foreign interest in the geology of this exciting region began during the late 19th century when Gustav Fischer mapped parts of the rift valley and Gregory published his book on The Rift Valleys and Geology of East Africa. Contributions by these pioneer geologists and their more recent successors are discussed in the volume or cited in the references.

Since the establishment of geology departments in Universities in Kampala, Dar es Salaam and Nairobi, the number of geologists in East Africa have increased tremendously. This increase resulted in the rapid development of geological research and published articles in mostly foreign journals. One positive aspect of the book by Schlüter is the inclusion of the contributions of local experts to the knowledge of the geology of the region.

The volume includes a comprehensive bibliographic compilation which is definitely a useful "data bank" on the geology of East Africa. It is well printed and illustrated and contains a subject index, locality index and fossil index. One observation concerns the quality of the language expression which fortunately does not diminish the usefulness of the volume.

With the publication of The Geology of East Africa, Thomas Schlüter has once again demonstrated his love for Africa and African Geology. It is with pleasure that I recommend the volume as an indispensable introduction to all those that are interested in the geology of this exciting region."

– Prof. Cornelius A. Kogbe, Africa Geoscience Review January 1998
 

"East Africa is an area of remarkable geomorphological appeal. It contains the highest mountains in Africa, some of the world's largest lakes, extensive areas of current and past volcanic activity, magnificent rifts, and crucial evidence for climatic change and human evolution. Curiously, therefore, over one hundred years has passed since the last comprehensive attempt to summarize the geology of East Africa, undertaken by J. W. Gregory in 1896. Schlüter's magisterial overview is therefore very welcome, not least because it contains much material which will be of interest both to Quaternary scientists and to geomorphologists. That said it is fundamentally a survey of geology, with a great deal of stratigraphic and tectonostratigraphic material going back to the Precambrian and the Proterozoic. Nevertheless, not far short of half of the book deals with the history and development of the rift systems and associated volcanoes. Among the topics that will particularly appeal to geomorphologists are: sea level changes along the coast of the Indian Ocean, the physiography and faulting mechanics of the rifts, the ages and forms of the main types of volcano, and the nature of the sidements of the main lake basins. Given the large amount of work that has been done on these topics in recent years, and the new concepts that have arisen, particularly with regard to the evolution of rifts, this comprehensive survey is extremely timely. The only curious omission is that there is no real attempt to synthesise the work that has been done on Quaternary climatic changes, involving the analysis and interpretation of cores from lakes and swamps, such as those on the flanks of Mount Kenya.

This is a well illustrated book, with extensive referencing, and an impressive collection of indexes. It will for long be a fundamental resource for those concerned with one of the most remarkable geomorphological regions on the face of the Earth."

– Z. Geomorph. 43,1 (1999)
 

"This is a welcome summary of the geology of a fascinating part of the world, comprising Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The author has published previously on the palaeontology, geology and economic geology of the region and is Professor in the Department of Geography, Environmental Science and Planning in the University of Swaziland. The area shows a wide variation in natural features, has high mountains and large lakes, but is perhaps best known for the East African Rift System, its attendant volcanic landforms and its cradling of the earliest human beings. Footprints preserved in volcanic ash at Laetoli, Tanzania, demonstrate that hominids were walking with an upright stance over three million years ago. The text is well illustrated in black and white but lacks an up-to-date reference map for the region. The author's English is occasionally unconventional but this is no impediment to enjoying his gathering of data from Archaean greenstones to Holocene evaporites of alkaline lakes. The book is aimed broadly at students, teachers, researchers and even
the interested lay person.

An introduction provides a useful geographical and historical background and tectonostratigraphic synopsis. German and British colonial interests gave rise to expioratory geology in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: the Gregory Rift was named aftera Scot who published a book on the rift system. Over fifty percent of the region is now covered by geological maps, but further publication has been in abeyance.

Geology and its economic aspects are described in stratigraphic order, with chapters on the Precambrian (underlying a great part of the reglon), Karoo (Late Carboniferous to Early Jurassic), Mesozolc and Cainozoic of coastal areas, and Cainozolc of the East African Rift System. There are two important chapters on the structural evolution of the rift system and associated volcanism written by Craig Hampton. Archaean rocks comprise greenstone, gneiss, granulite and charnockite of the Tanzania Craton and the Gneissic-Granulitic Complex of Uganda, and are surrounded by Proterozoic belts varying from complexly folded metasediments to little-disturbed sedimentary sequences with stromatolites and interspersed basaltic rocks. The Karoo includes tillites, coal, continental beds and volcanics, in places over 7000 m in total thickness. The coastal Mesozolc comprises marine strata marking the opening of the Indian Ocean. Description of the Tertiary includes the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and Mafia.

There is much well-illustrated data (including geophysics) on the rift system, a complex of mainly normal dip-slip faults within the Afro-Arablan Rift System. The final chapter, on the Cenozoic of the East African Rift System, provides a review of fossil hominids and their
geographic and palaeontological environment."

– AMF-Alert 1 (1) 1999
 

"The first summarising publication on the geology of East Africa, The Great Rift Valley (1896, J. Murray, London) was written by J.W. Gregory. During the last century, tremendous progress has been achieved in geology, palaeontology and sedimentology. However, until
now, a modern comprehensive presentation of the subject has not been available in a single volume. With this volume the author and publisher intend to provide a general textbook as well as a source of references for students, university teachers and interesting scientist
from various related disciplines and even for the interested layperson. The Geology of East Africa provides an account of the multi-faceted regional geology and stratigraphy of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, but much of the data presented is highly relevant to the surrounding regions as well.

For geologists, East Africa is an exciting area for scientific research Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda cover an area of more than 1.75 million square kilometres, including the highest mountains of Africa and some of the largest lakes on earth. Some areas are very arid,
others quite humid. Temperate highlands are close to hot savannas. A mosiac of rich and poor soils is found in many regions. East Africa's geological and tectonic features, from Precambrian basement, the palaeontology and geology of the sedimentary series overlying it, to the structural evolution and volcanic history of the great Rift System, are discussed in detail as are the metamorphic development, for example, of the Ubendian, Usgaran and Kibaran belts. A separate chapter presents the record of hominid evolution from the East African Rift System. The book is a compilation and explanation of the manifold of the geologic-tectonic landscapes of East Africa.

The book is divided into chapters following stratigraphic aspects (Precambrium, p. 15-141; Karoo, p. 142-199; Coastal Meso- and Cenozoic, p. 200- 264) and the importance of the East African Rift System (EARS) for all environmental investigations of the region (Structural Evolution of the EARS, p. 265-301; Upper Phanerozoic Volcanism Related to the EARS, p. 302-346; Cenozoic of the EARS, p. 347-410). Indexes of subjects, fossils and places and the 61 pages (!) with more than 1600 references allow the reader to get the
information he is looking for. The appeal of the book lies in its clear, thoughtful, and systematic presentation of the subject matter.

Schlüter's emphasis is to summarise the entire body of research on the geology of East Africa, considering the literature published in different languages (English, German, French) until 1995. Therefore, the book will be most valuable for all Quaternary and environmental
scientists interested in East Africa. The readers of Palaeoecology of Africa will appreciate the introductions to every region and every subject. Terms are defined and commented, and preferred usage is explained where necessary. Concepts are questioned as well as
explained, and popular misconceptions pointed out. This critical approach is refreshing and particularly valuable in a textbook like this, which should aim at fostering a critical attitude as well as knowledge. The readers of Palaeoecology of Africa also will appreciate
the condensed chapters of the Neogene in general and on the Cenozoic of the EARS presenting concise summaries of the sedimentation, the geomorphology, the environment, the biostratigraphy and the palaeontology. The various lakes and lake basins as well as places of interest like the Olduvai Gorge, the Koobi Fora region or the Laetoli site are dealt with in special chapters.

This book forms a substantial and important contribution to our knowledge of the East African geology and should be read by everyone active in the field of East African earth sciences, as well as environmental specialists in other fields."

– Prof. Dr. Klaus Heine, Palaeoecology of Africa, Vol. 26 (1999)