Humpata Plateau

Humpata Plateau

*Planalto da Humpata* (Portuguese)
Humpata Plateau Planalto da Humpata (Portuguese)
Plateau
	Coordinates: 15°19′00″S 13°28′00″E / 15.31667°S 13.46667°E
Location	South-central Angola
Native name	Planalto da Humpata (Portuguese)
Elevation	2,300 metres (7,500 feet)

The Humpata Plateau (Portuguese: Planalto da Humpata) is an elevated plateau and highlands region in southwest Angola, part of the larger Huíla Plateau. It has a semi-humid climate, and acts as an intermediate climactic region between the arid Namib Desert to the west and the wetter Kalahari Basin to the east. It is a potential water source for the city of Lubango through diversion of its groundwater.

The region is the source of several fossil specimens dating from the Quaternary period. Some such specimens have been retrieved from breccias where animals became trapped in crevasses.

Fossils

Fossils of animals excavated from locations within Humpata Plateau include:

Several taxa of diatom have also been identified in the region, and have been used as historic climate indicators.

References

^ ^a ^b Robakiewicz, Elena; de Matos, Daniela; Stone, Jeffery R.; Junginger, Annett (September 2021). "Hydrochemistry and Diatom Assemblages on the Humpata Plateau, Southwestern Angola". Geosciences. 11 (9): 359. doi:10.3390/geosciences11090359. ISSN 2076-3263.
^ De Matos, Daniela; Oosterbeek, Luiz; Domingos, Ziva; Miller, Christopher; Conard, Nicholas J.; Neto, Manuel Sahando; Valongo, Paulo; Fernandes, José B.; Henriques, Maria Helena (2020). "An integrated approach to the construction of cultural landscapes in Southwest Angola: The case of Huila". Mapping the Past: From Sampling Sites and Landscapes to Exploring the 'Archaeological Continuum'. Archaeopress. p. 28. doi:10.2307/jj.15136074.10. JSTOR jj.15136074.10.
^ ^a ^b de Graaf, Cor; van Dalen, Daniela Benedicto; Baptista, João (4 April 2022). Hydrogeological Survey and Prospection of New Production Boreholes in Lubango (Report). pp. 18–19.
^ ^a ^b Robakiewicz, Elena (2020-10-29). "Modern Diatom Communities on the Humpata Plateau in Southwestern Angola". T55. Insights from Microfossils and Their Modern Analogs: From Traditional to Emerging Approaches (Posters). GSA. doi:10.1130/abs/2020am-352209.
^ ^a ^b Jablonski, Nina G. (1994). "New fossil cercopithecid remains from the Humpata Plateau, southern Angola". American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 94 (4): 435–464. doi:10.1002/ajpa.1330940402. ISSN 1096-8644.
^ ^a ^b ^c de Matos, Daniela; Nora, David; Francisco, Rui; Fernandes, José; Neto, Manuel Sahando; Robakiewicz, Elena (2023-08-12). "Survey and Explorations of the Prehistoric Sites in the Highlands of Southwest Angola". Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology. 6 (1): 25. doi:10.1007/s41982-023-00152-0. ISSN 2520-8217.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Mirote de Matos, Daniela Filipa (2023-08-09), Geoarchaeological Investigations in Southwestern Angola: macro- and micro-scale approaches to the Middle and Late Pleistocene of Leba Cave, Universitaet Tuebingen, Conard, Nicholas (Prof Dr.), Universität Tübingen, p. 63, doi:10.15496/PUBLIKATION-85409, retrieved 2025-02-01
^ Matos, Daniela de; Zastrow, Julia; Val, Aurore; Mendelsohn, John (15 December 2023). Mendelsohn, John; Huntley, Brian; Vaz Pinto, Pedro (eds.). "Caves and their fauna in Highlands and Escarpments of Angola and Namibia". Namibian Journal of Environment. 8. Namibia: Environmental Information Service; Namibia for the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism; the Namibian Chamber of Environment; the Namibia University of Science and Technology: 325. hdl:10316/111102. ISSN 2026-8327.
^ Sen, S.; Pickford, M. (2022). "Red Rock Hares (Leporidae, Lagomorpha) past and present in southern Africa, and a new species of Pronolagus from the early Pleistocene of Angola" (PDF). Communications of the Geological Survey of Namibia. 24: 82–92.

[geosciences-1] Robakiewicz, Elena; de Matos, Daniela; Stone, Jeffery R.; Junginger, Annett (September 2021). "Hydrochemistry and Diatom Assemblages on the Humpata Plateau, Southwestern Angola". Geosciences. 11 (9): 359. doi:10.3390/geosciences11090359. ISSN 2076-3263.

[2] De Matos, Daniela; Oosterbeek, Luiz; Domingos, Ziva; Miller, Christopher; Conard, Nicholas J.; Neto, Manuel Sahando; Valongo, Paulo; Fernandes, José B.; Henriques, Maria Helena (2020). "An integrated approach to the construction of cultural landscapes in Southwest Angola: The case of Huila". Mapping the Past: From Sampling Sites and Landscapes to Exploring the 'Archaeological Continuum'. Archaeopress. p. 28. doi:10.2307/jj.15136074.10. JSTOR jj.15136074.10.

[report-3] Graaf, Cor; van Dalen, Daniela Benedicto; Baptista, João (4 April 2022). Hydrogeological Survey and Prospection of New Production Boreholes in Lubango (Report). pp. 18–19.

[ROBAKIEWICZ-4] Robakiewicz, Elena (2020-10-29). "Modern Diatom Communities on the Humpata Plateau in Southwestern Angola". T55. Insights from Microfossils and Their Modern Analogs: From Traditional to Emerging Approaches (Posters). GSA. doi:10.1130/abs/2020am-352209.

[cercopithecid-5] Jablonski, Nina G. (1994). "New fossil cercopithecid remains from the Humpata Plateau, southern Angola". American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 94 (4): 435–464. doi:10.1002/ajpa.1330940402. ISSN 1096-8644.

[Matos-2023-6] Matos, Daniela; Nora, David; Francisco, Rui; Fernandes, José; Neto, Manuel Sahando; Robakiewicz, Elena (2023-08-12). "Survey and Explorations of the Prehistoric Sites in the Highlands of Southwest Angola". Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology. 6 (1): 25. doi:10.1007/s41982-023-00152-0. ISSN 2520-8217.

[Mirote_de_Matos-7] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Mirote de Matos, Daniela Filipa (2023-08-09), Geoarchaeological Investigations in Southwestern Angola: macro- and micro-scale approaches to the Middle and Late Pleistocene of Leba Cave, Universitaet Tuebingen, Conard, Nicholas (Prof Dr.), Universität Tübingen, p. 63, doi:10.15496/PUBLIKATION-85409, retrieved 2025-02-01

[8] Matos, Daniela de; Zastrow, Julia; Val, Aurore; Mendelsohn, John (15 December 2023). Mendelsohn, John; Huntley, Brian; Vaz Pinto, Pedro (eds.). "Caves and their fauna in Highlands and Escarpments of Angola and Namibia". Namibian Journal of Environment. 8. Namibia: Environmental Information Service; Namibia for the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism; the Namibian Chamber of Environment; the Namibia University of Science and Technology: 325. hdl:10316/111102. ISSN 2026-8327.

[9] Sen, S.; Pickford, M. (2022). "Red Rock Hares (Leporidae, Lagomorpha) past and present in southern Africa, and a new species of Pronolagus from the early Pleistocene of Angola" (PDF). Communications of the Geological Survey of Namibia. 24: 82–92.