Although fire is considered an important factor in global vegetation evolution and climate
change, few high-resolution Miocene fire records have been obtained worldwide. Here, two
independent micro-charcoal–based fire records from the northern Tibetan Plateau were
analyzed; both show similar trends in micro-charcoal concentrations through time, with low
abundances in the warmer Middle Miocene Climate Optimum (18–14 Ma) followed by a
continuous increase throughout the late Miocene (14–5 Ma) cooling. Our detailed statistical …