Aims The extent and persistence of pre-Columbian human legacies in old-growth Amazonian forests are still controversial, partly because modern societies re-occupied old settlements, challenging the distinction between pre- and post-Columbian legacies. Here, we compared the effects of pre-Columbian vs. recent landscape domestication processes on soils and vegetation in two Amazonian regions. Methods We studied forest landscapes at varying distances from pre-Columbian and current settlements inside protected areas occupied by traditional and indigenous peoples in the lower Tapajós and the upper-middle Madeira river basins. By conducting 69 free-listing interviews, participatory mappings, guided-tours, 27 forest inventories, and soil analysis, we assessed the influences of pre-Columbian and current activities in soils and plant resources surrounding the settlements. Results In both regions, we found that pre-Columbian villages were more densely distributed across the landscape than current villages. Soil nutrients (mainly Ca and P) were higher closer to pre-Columbian villages but were generally not related to current villages, suggesting past soil fertilization. Soil charcoal was frequent in all forests, suggesting frequent fire events. The density of domesticated plants used for food increased in phosphorus enriched soils. In contrast, the density of plants used for construction decreased near current villages. Conclusions We detected a significant effect of past soil fertilization on food resources over extensive areas, supporting the hypothesis that pre-Columbian landscape domestication left persistent marks on Amazonian landscapes. Our results suggest that a combination of pre-Columbian phosphorus fertilization with past and current management drives plant resource availability in old-growth forests.

中文翻译：

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前哥伦布时期的土壤施肥和当前管理维持了古老的亚马逊森林中的食物资源供应

目的 亚马逊河原始森林中前哥伦布时期人类遗产的范围和持久性仍然存在争议，部分原因是现代社会重新占领了旧定居点，挑战了前哥伦布时期和后哥伦布时期遗产之间的区别。在这里，我们比较了前哥伦布时期与最近的景观驯化过程对两个亚马逊地区土壤和植被的影响。方法 我们研究了距前哥伦布时代和当前定居点不同距离的森林景观，这些地区位于塔帕约斯下游和马德拉河流域中上游的传统和土著人民占据的保护区内。通过进行 69 次免费上市访谈、参与式制图、导游、27 次森林清查和土壤分析，我们评估了前哥伦布时期和当前活动对定居点周围土壤和植物资源的影响。结果在这两个地区，我们发现前哥伦布时期的村庄比现在的村庄更密集地分布在整个景观中。靠近前哥伦比亚村庄的土壤养分（主要是钙和磷）较高，但通常与现在的村庄无关，表明过去的土壤施肥。土壤木炭在所有森林中都很常见，这表明火灾事件频繁发生。在富含磷的土壤中，用作食物的驯化植物的密度增加。相比之下，用于建筑的植物密度在当前村庄附近下降。结论 我们检测到过去土壤施肥对大面积食物资源的显着影响，支持前哥伦布时期景观驯化在亚马逊景观上留下持久痕迹的假设。我们的结果表明，前哥伦布时期的磷肥施肥与过去和现在的管理相结合，推动了古老森林中植物资源的可用性。