African pluvial periods
African pluvial periods are an obsolete system of climatic periods previously used by paleontologists working in East Africa. Background The sedimentary deposits left by ancient lakes in East Africa had enabled Louis Leakey and post-war paleontologists to define major climatic periods considered wet, interspersed with drier periods. Of progressively decreasing durations, they each bore the name of the site where the first clues had been collected: Kageran (Kagera), Kamasian, Kanjeran (Kanjera) and Gamblian. Paleontologists believed that the quasi-arid zones then became wooded savannahs where animals and prehistoric hunter-gatherers could thrive. Chronology These ancient climatic periods were only very approximately dated: Kageran: Calabrian (Early Pleistocene) The Kageran takes its name from the Kagera River, which flows through Rwanda and northwestern Tanzania before flowing into Lake Victoria. Kamasian: Early Middle or Central Pleistocene; the Kamasian was more or less related to the Mindel glaciation Kamasian is a district of Kenya located in the Great Rift Valley. Kanjeran: Late Middle Pleistocene; the Kanjerian was more or less related to the Riss glaciation Kanjera is a site in Kenya located on the shores of Lake Victoria. Gamblian: Late Pleistocene; the Gamblian was more or less related to the Würm glaciation The term Gamblian was