You have full access to this open access chapter. To give context to the present landscapes of Angola, a brief geological history of the Earth provides a backdrop to the dramatic evolutionary innovations that occurred in terrestrial ecosystems during the Miocene Epoch Angola has 12 main landscape groups, with which its ecoregions are closely aligned.
The ecosystem services which these water resources provide to the region are described in terms of their role in pollution regulation, hydro-electric power generation and biodiversity maintenance. You have full access to this open access chapter, Download chapter PDF. What accounts for the great diversity in age, structure and properties of the rocks on which the country is built. What the main geological and rock groups are, and how they are distributed across Angola.
How the landscapes of Angola have been shaped by geological events, erosion by rivers, and the redistribution of loose sediments by wind. You have to understand the past to understand the present. Carl Sagan, The biodiversity of Angola and the ecological processes that determine the patterns of distribution and the abundance of its biota have evolved over many hundreds of millions of years, most especially since the formation of the supercontinent Gondwana.
The following outline focuses on some key events of the past million years, and defines relevant geological and geomorphological terminology. A summary of geological history and major timelines Eons, Eras, Periods and Epochs, and the first appearance of major biological groups is presented in Fig.
The most ancient rocks in Angola belong to the Precambrian Eon, predating the Phanerozoic. The geological timescale, referencing the first appearance of major biological groups. Ma million years ago indicates the age of first appearance of major plant and animal groups. The lithosphere is made up of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. Igneous rocks, formed deep within the crust, include granites and gabbros, which today can be found in many parts of Angola where they have been exposed by erosion.
