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Reconstructed high-resolution forest dynamics and human impacts of the past 2300 years of the Parc national de Mont-Orford, southeastern Québec, Canada Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-23 Claire E. O’Neill Sanger; Jeannine-Marie St-Jacques; Matthew C. Peros; Kayden Avery Schwartz
We used a high-resolution lacustrine pollen record from Étang Fer-de-Lance (45°21′21.9′N, 72°13′35.3′W), southeastern Québec, Canada, together with microcharcoal, to infer forest dynamics and human impacts over the past 2300 years. The lake is located in the eastern sugar maple-basswood forest domain of the Northern Temperate Forest of eastern North America. We found that the pollen percentages and
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An integrative approach to estimating productivity in past societies using Seshat: Global History Databank Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-22 Peter Turchin; Thomas Currie; Christina Collins; Jill Levine; Oluwole Oyebamiji; Neil R Edwards; Philip B Holden; Daniel Hoyer; Kevin Feeney; Pieter François; Harvey Whitehouse
This article reports the results of a collaborative effort to estimate agricultural productivities in past societies using Seshat: Global History Databank. We focus on 30 Natural Geographic Areas (NGAs) distributed over 10 major world regions (Europe, Africa, Southwest Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, Central Eurasia, North America, South America, and Oceania). The conceptual framework
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Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) dynamics in the Welsh Marches during the mid to late-Holocene Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-19 Dael Sassoon; William J Fletcher; Alastair Hotchkiss; Fern Owen; Liting Feng
Around 4000 cal yr BP, Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) suffered a widespread demise across the British Isles. This paper presents new information about P. sylvestris populations found in the Welsh Marches (western central Britain), for which the long-term history and origins are poorly known. Two new pollen records were produced from the Lin Can Moss ombrotrophic bog (LM18) and the Breidden Hill pond
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Long-term human impact and forest management in the Phoenician and Roman city of Utica (Tunisia) (900 BC−500 AD) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-18 María Oliva Rodríguez-Ariza; José Luis López Castro; Imed Ben Jerbania; Alfredo Mederos Martín; Ahmed Ferjaoui; Victor Martínez Hahnmüller; Carmen Ana Pardo Barrionuevo; Amparo Sánchez Moreno; Walid Khalfali; Khaouter Jendoubi
Human Colonization of new lands implied historically the diffusion of new plant species and the exploitation of local plant resources and forests by human communities. Phoenician colonization in the 1st millennium BC had important consequences in Mediterranean agriculture and the exploitation of vegetation in colonized areas. Later, Roman agriculture introduced new changes. The anthracological analysis
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Past testate amoeba communities in landslide mountain fens (Polish Carpathians): The relationship between shell types and sediment Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-18 Katarzyna Marcisz; Krzysztof Buczek; Mariusz Gałka; Włodzimierz Margielewski; Matthieu Mulot; Piotr Kołaczek
Landslide mountain fens formed in landslide depressions are dynamic environments as their development is disturbed by a number of factors, for example, landslides, slopewash, and surface run-off. These processes lead to the accumulation of mineral material and wood in peat. Disturbed peatlands are interesting archives of past environmental changes, but they may be challenging for providing biotic proxy-based
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Crop water status from plant stable carbon isotope values: A test case for monsoonal climates Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-18 Penelope J Jones; Tamsin C O’Connell; Martin K Jones; RN Singh; Cameron A Petrie
Stable carbon isotope analysis is increasingly used in archaeology as an indicator of crop water status and/or water management regime. While the technique shows promise, robust modern baseline studies are required to inform and validate archaeological interpretations. Here, we test stable carbon isotope values as a crop water status proxy in a monsoonal climatic context for the first time. Specifically
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Linking Holocene East Asian monsoon variability to solar forcing and ENSO activity: Multi-proxy evidence from a peatland in Northeastern China Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-18 Nannan Li; Arash Sharifi; Frank M Chambers; Yong Ge; Nathalie Dubois; Guizai Gao; Dehui Li; Lidan Liu; Hongyan Liu; Jiangyong Wang; Honghao Niu; Meng Meng; Ying Liu; Guihua Zhang; Dongmei Jie
High-resolution proxy-based paleoenvironmental records derived from peatlands provide important insights into climate changes over centennial to millennial timescales. In this study, we present a composite climatic index (CCI) for the Hani peatland from northeastern China, based on an innovative combination of pollen-spore, phytolith, and grain size data. We use the CCI to reconstruct variations of
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Influences of sea level on depositional environment during the last 1000 years in the southwestern Bengal delta, Bangladesh Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-18 Md. Masidul Haque; Koichi Hoyanagi
This study illustrates the influences of sea-level on the depositional process during the last 1000 years of the southwestern delta, Bangladesh. Sediments of eight litho-sections from landward in upper delta plain to seaward in lower delta plain along the Rupsa-Pasur river were studied. Sedimentary facies, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, δ13C value, diatom assemblages, and radiocarbon dating
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Settlement, landscape and land-use change at a Pictish Elite Centre: Assessing the palaeoecological record for economic continuity and social change at Rhynie in N.E. Scotland Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-17 Jones SE; Evans N; Martínez Cortizas A; Mighall TM; Noble G
The first millennium AD was a transformative period when many of the medieval kingdoms of Europe began to take shape, but despite recent advances in palaeoecological and archaeological research there remains a shortage of interdisciplinary collaborative research targeting this period. For some regions we know relatively little about the societies who lived during this formative period. This current
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A 14,000 year peatland record of environmental change in the southern Gutland region, Luxembourg Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-17 Karsten Schittek; Lelaina Teichert; Katrin Geiger; Klaus-Holger Knorr; Simone Schneider
A Late Pleistocene/Holocene paleoenvironmental record was obtained from the Rouer peatland (5°54′E, 49°45′N; 270 m a.s.l.), located in the Gutland area of southern Luxembourg. A total of six sediment samples were AMS radiocarbon-dated to obtain an age-depth model. XRF analyses and analyses of geochemical proxies of organic matter (TOC, TN, δ13C, δ15N) were conducted to identify major paleoenvironmental
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The mutual ecogeographical range and paleoclimatic reconstruction during the Late Pleistocene-Holocene in the Pampas (Argentina) using meso and microvertebrate fossils Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-15 José Alberto Cruz; José Luis Prado; Joaquín Arroyo-Cabrales
The Pampas of Argentina is a large grassland ecosystem located in the oriental region southern of South America. As a study case, we present the results of the paleoclimatic analysis of the Tixi Cave site. This is a paleontological and archeological locality that shows a long chronologic sequence, with radiocarbon dates ranging from the Late Pleistocene to historical times, and one of the best records
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Ancient to recent-past runoff harvesting agriculture in the hyper-arid Arava Valley: OSL dating and insights Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-14 Ilan Stavi; Gidon Ragolsky; Mordechai Haiman; Naomi Porat
Runoff harvesting agriculture was prevalent in ancient times across the southern Levant. In modern Israel, remnants of this agricultural adaptation strategy are widespread mostly in the semi-arid and arid Negev. Extensive literature has thoroughly described the farming systems of this region. However, runoff agriculture in the dryer, hyper-arid regions of the Arava Valley and southern Negev (excluding
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Late-Holocene landscape evolution of a delta from the foredune ridges: Seyhan Delta, the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-02-04 Emrah Özpolat; Eren Şahiner; Orkan Özcan; Tuncer Demir; Lewis A Owen
The Çukurova Delta Complex, formed by the Seyhan, Ceyhan, and Berdan rivers, is the second-largest delta system in the Mediterranean. The delta complex is a major depocenter that contains sediments transported from the Taurus Mountain belt since the Miocene. Studies on the Quaternary landscape evolution of the Çukurova Delta Complex are scarce, and in particular, the Holocene evolution of the Seyhan
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A multi-proxy reconstruction of peatland development and regional vegetation changes in subarctic NE Fennoscandia (the Republic of Karelia, Russia) during the Holocene Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-28 Kirill V Babeshko; Anna Shkurko; Andrey N Tsyganov; Elena E Severova; Mariusz Gałka; Richard J Payne; Dmitri Mauquoy; Natalia G Mazei; Yulia A Fatynina; Elena D Krasnova; Damir A Saldaev; Dmitry A Voronov; Elya Zazovskaya; Yuri A Mazei
A better understanding of past long-term environmental changes in the subarctic region is crucial for mitigation of the possible negative effects of climate warming in this vulnerable region. This study provides a new multi-proxy reconstruction of regional vegetation changes and peatland development for north-eastern Fennoscandia (Russia) during most of the Holocene. To that purpose, we performed plant
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Atmospheric effects in Scotland of the AD 1783–84 Laki eruption in Iceland Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-28 Alastair G Dawson; Martin P Kirkbride; Harriet Cole
Daily weather diaries and meteorological records from Scotland reveal complex weather patterns following the 1783–84 fissure eruption of the Laki volcano, Iceland. Four diarists in eastern and northern Scotland describe the near-simultaneous occurrence of discrete groups of days characterised by ‘foggy’, ‘gloomy’ and ‘hazy’ conditions during June and July 1783. The weather records suggest that an ash-rich
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Transformation of high-relief canyon topography by an ancient rock avalanche, Hop Valley, Zion National Park, Utah, USA Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-28 Anna Stanczyk; Jeffrey R Moore; Olivia Steinemann; Brendon J Quirk; Marcus Christl; Susan Ivy-Ochs
Zion National Park preserves a rich geological record of Holocene landslide-dammed canyons in its deeply incised topography, with 11 hypothesized valley-blocking deposits within the park boundaries. Despite consistent stratigraphic, tectonic, and climatic settings, the occurrence of and subsequent landscape response to these natural dams varies. As such, the region provides a unique natural laboratory
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Holocene fire history reconstruction of a mid-elevation mixed-conifer forest in the Eastern Cascades, Washington (USA) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-21 Zoe A Rushton; Megan K Walsh
Fire histories of mid-elevation mixed-conifer forests are uncommon in the eastern Cascades, limiting our understanding of long-term fire dynamics in these environments. The purpose of this study was to reconstruct the fire and vegetation history for a moist mid-elevation mixed-conifer site, and to determine whether Holocene fire activity in this watershed was intermediate to fire regimes observed at
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A late-Holocene multiproxy fire record from a tropical savanna, eastern Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, Australia Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-20 Emma Rehn; Cassandra Rowe; Sean Ulm; Craig Woodward; Michael Bird
Fire has a long history in Australia and is a key driver of vegetation dynamics in the tropical savanna ecosystems that cover one quarter of the country. Fire reconstructions are required to understand ecosystem dynamics over the long term but these data are lacking for the extensive savannas of northern Australia. This paper presents a multiproxy palaeofire record for Marura sinkhole in eastern Arnhem
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The Indian Ocean Dipole response to external forcing in coupled model intercomparison project phase 5 simulations of the last millennium Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-20 Thanh Le; Deg-Hyo Bae
The Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) is a major mode of interannual climate variability, but its response to external climate forcings (i.e. solar forcing, volcanic radiative forcing (VRF) and greenhouse gas (GHG) radiative forcing) remains elusive. To improve our understanding of the variability of the IOD, it is necessary to investigate the IOD’s response to external forcings through multi-model simulations
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Mountain aquatic Isoëtes populations reflect millennial-scale environmental changes in the Bohemian Forest Ecosystem, Central Europe Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-20 Alice Moravcová; Anna Tichá; Vachel A Carter; Daniel Vondrák; Martina Čtvrtlíková; Jacqueline FN van Leeuwen; Marco Heurich; Willy Tinner; Petr Kuneš
In this study we aim to investigate millennial-scale dynamics of Isoëtes, a type of macrophyte well adapted to oligotrophic and clear-water lakes. Despite its wide distribution during the Early Holocene, nowadays Isoëtes is considered as vulnerable or critically endangered in many Central European countries. Using a multi-proxy palaeoecological reconstruction involving Isoëtes micro- and megaspores
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Long-term and recent ecohydrological dynamics of patterned peatlands in north-central Quebec (Canada) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-18 Mylène Robitaille; Michelle Garneau; Simon van Bellen; Nicole K Sanderson
Peatlands are natural ecosystems that provide archives of the hydrological cycle, ecological processes and terrestrial carbon dynamics. In the north-central region of Quebec (eastern Canada), patterned peatlands developed in topographic depressions of the Precambrian Shield following the Laurentide Ice Sheet retreat. These peatlands display characteristics similar to appa mires and other peatlands
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Recent morphological changes of the Changjiang (Yangtze River) mega-delta in the Anthropocene, China: Impact from natural and anthropogenic changes Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-18 Yifei Zhao; Xinqing Zou; Qing Liu; Min Xu; Yulong Yao
Many of the world’s largest deltas are increasingly threatened by impact of climate change and human activities. The Changjiang (Yangtze River) is among the largest river, and its change of delta has received extensive attention. However, many studies covered smaller delta areas, which cannot reflect the changes of the entire delta region. Here, we present an assessment of the Changjiang (Yangtze River)
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Holocene development of the Vistula Spit (Baltic Sea coast) based on multidisciplinary investigations Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-17 Szymon Uścinowicz; Grzegorz Adamiec; Andrzej Bluszcz; Wojciech Jegliński; Grażyna Miotk-Szpiganowicz
Coastal barriers are the first line of defense for the mainlands against the impacts of severe storms, therefore the need for better understanding how barriers evolve is arising. Spits (barriers) are the dominant landform type of the southern and south-eastern Baltic Sea coast. The aim of this paper is to gain present a better insight into problems of the Vistula Spit origin in general, and especially
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Carbon accumulation in peatlands along a boreal to subarctic transect in eastern Canada Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-17 Guillaume Primeau; Michelle Garneau
In this study, we investigated the links between peat carbon accumulation and past ecological and hydrological conditions in three peatlands (Bouleau, Mista, Auassat) which developed along a South-North transect within a watershed encompassing the boreal and subarctic domain in Eastern Canada. Peatland development and long-term apparent rates of carbon accumulation (LORCA) were asynchronous in the
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Trace fossils and palynomorphs in Holocene calcareous concretions from Lake Selbusjøen, Mid-Norway: Post-glacial environmental records Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-17 Morten Smelror; Dirk Knaust
Trace fossils and palynomorphs are recorded for the first time in Holocene calcareous concretions from Lake Selbusjøen, Central Norway. The described trace fossils can be assigned to the Mermia ichnofacies, characterizing lake deposits with good oxygenation and low depositional energy. The predominance of simple grazing trails and shallow burrows (e.g. Cochlichnus, Helminthoidichnites and Treptichnus)
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Climatic and anthropogenic influences on vegetation changes during the last 5000 years in a seasonal dry tropical forest at the northern limits of the Neotropics Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-17 Socorro Lozano-García; Blanca Figueroa-Rangel; Susana Sosa-Nájera; Margarita Caballero; Anders J Noren; Sarah E Metcalfe; Oswaldo Tellez-Valdés; Beatriz Ortega-Guerrero
Seasonal dry tropical forest (STDF) is a widespread vegetation type in western Mexico. Generally, this type of forest develops in semihumid habitats where lacustrine basins are scarce, preventing documentation of the vegetation history and forest dynamics using a paleoecological approach. Here, we present a palynological record from the Santa Maria del Oro crater lake, located within the distribution
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Linking modern pollen accumulation rates to biomass: Quantitative vegetation reconstruction in the western Klamath Mountains, NW California, USA Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-13 Clarke A Knight; Mark Baskaran; M Jane Bunting; Marie Champagne; Matthew D Potts; David Wahl; James Wanket; John J Battles
Quantitative reconstructions of vegetation abundance from sediment-derived pollen systems provide unique insights into past ecological conditions. Recently, the use of pollen accumulation rates (PAR, grains cm−2 year−1) has shown promise as a bioproxy for plant abundance. However, successfully reconstructing region-specific vegetation dynamics using PAR requires that accurate assessments of pollen
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Climate and land-use effects on hydrological and vegetation signals during the last three millennia: Evidence from sedimentary leaf waxes in southwestern Morocco Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2021-01-13 Asmae Baqloul; Enno Schefuß; Martin Kölling; Lydie Dupont; Jeroen Groeneveld; Xueqin Zhao; Hanane Reddad; Lhoussaine Bouchaou; Ilham Bouimetarhan
The southwest of Morocco is considered to be an area of refuge within the Mediterranean region, hosting the endemic tropical Argan tree. This region is presently subject to severe droughts, desertification and land degradation, and likely facing increased climate variability and socio-economic stress in the future. Here, we use the stable hydrogen and carbon isotope composition (δD and δ13C) of plant-waxes
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Prehistoric pigment production on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), c. AD 1200–1650: New insights from Vaipú and Poike based on phytoliths, diatoms and 14C dating Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-29 Welmoed A Out; Andreas Mieth; Sergi Pla-Rabés; Marco Madella; Svetlana Khamnueva-Wendt; Carolin Langan; Stefan Dreibrodt; Stefan Merseburger; Hans-Rudolf Bork
Although Rapa Nui has been proposed as a classic example of cultural collapse, this hypothesis has been repeatedly questioned. This paper investigates cultural continuity on Rapa Nui following the onset of deforestation through a study of red ochre pits. Red ochre pigments are well-known from various contexts on Rapa Nui, but until recently its origin and the extraction process involved in their production
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Lake and inland dunes as interconnected Systems: The story of Lake Tresssee and an adjacent dune field (Schleswig-Holstein, North Germany) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-26 Christian Stolz; Magdalena Suchora; Irena A Pidek; Alexander Fülling
The specific aim of the study was to investigate how four adjacent geomorphological systems – a lake, a dune field, a small alluvial fan and a slope system – responded to the same impacts. Lake Tresssee is a shallow lake in the North of Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). During the Holocene, the lake’s water surface declined drastically, predominately as a consequence of human impact. The adjacent inland
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The role of sea-level changes in the evolution of coastal barriers – An example from the southwestern Baltic Sea Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-24 Reinhard Lampe; Matthias Lampe
According to a basic model, the formation of the coastal barriers in the southwestern Baltic can be divided into four evolutionary stages which are characterized by different rates of sea-level rise and varying relations between sediment supply and accommodation space. This model is tested using the example of a strandplain of the island Usedom, along with a local sea-level curve that reflects even
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Peatland initiation in Central European Russia during the Holocene: Effect of climate conditions and fires Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-24 Elena Yu Novenko; Natalia G Mazei; Dmitry A Kupriyanov; Maria V Kusilman; Alexander V Olchev
Peatlands store massive amounts of organic carbon, but the fate of this carbon remains unclear as global climate continues to warm. The age of peatland inception and the main drivers of peat initiation are one of the most important issues in Holocene paleoecology, especially for the numerous but under investigated peatlands in European Russia. This paper introduces new peatland initiation ages for
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Geoarchaeology of the Derkul River floodplain, west Kazakhstan: Soil formation, sediment accumulation and human settlement Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-24 Denis Aleksandrovich Gavrilov; Talgat Bazarbaevich Mamirov
The natural environment and prehistoric human activity in the Holocene floodplains of the Low Volga River and in the southern Urals are important research objects in geomorphology, soil science and archaeology. The alternating sequences of soil-alluvium sequences represent a sedimentary archive with chrono-stratigraphic records of human land use, sediment accumulation and soil formation. The central
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Buxus sempervirens and Laurus nobilis leaves from an archaeological site at 7300 cal BP (La Draga, Spain) provide a better understanding of past vegetation and human activities Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-23 Eva Castells; Valentina Araya-Piqué; Ada Behncké; Raquel Piqué
Leaves are valuable, but very rare, remains in archaeological contexts, as they can provide precise information on the landscape vegetation composition, the past climatic conditions and the use of plant resources in a settlement. La Draga (Spain) is an early Neolithic site partially waterlogged, which has allowed the preservation of organic material. During the excavation of the oldest level (7300–7000
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The history of human land use activities in the Northern Alps since the Neolithic Age. A reconstruction of vegetation and fire history in the Mangfall Mountains (Bavaria, Germany) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-23 Fridtjof Gilck; Peter Poschlod
Millenia of sustainable, low intensity land use have formed the cultural landscapes of central Europe. Studies from the Central Alps show that mountain pastures also look back onto many thousand years of land use history. In this palynological and pedoanthracological study in the border region between Germany and Austria in the Mangfall Mountains, we aim to close the knowledge gap that exists for the
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Historical droughts in Southeast Australia recorded in a New South Wales stalagmite Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-23 Nick Scroxton; Maureen Walczak; Monika Markowska; Jian-xin Zhao; Stewart Fallon
The Murray Darling Basin contains 40% of Australia’s farms and is subject to multi-year droughts that put severe pressure on southeast Australia’s freshwater resources. Yet the long-term frequency, timing and potential severity of these droughts is unknown, as there are few high-resolution paleoclimate records from the basin that extend past the instrumental era. In this study, we investigate the potential
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Were human-introduced diseases the responsible for Pleistocene-Holocene megafaunal extinctions? First evidence from South America Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-21 Alberto E Pérez; Federico L Agnolin
Diverse hypotheses have been proposed with the aim to explain the extinction of Late Pleistocene/Holocene mammals, including the Megafauna from America. Some authors support that human being was the direct responsible of extinction by means of intensive hunting, as proposed by the “blitzkrieg” or overkilling hypothesis. However, evidence is not conclusive. As is well known by biologists, exotic diseases
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The distribution of the guanaco (Lama guanicoe) in Patagonia during Late Pleistocene–Holocene and its importance for prehistoric human diet Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-21 Diego D. Rindel; Bruno F. Moscardi; S. Ivan Perez
The great importance of the guanaco (Lama guanicoe) for the subsistence of the human populations of Patagonia during the Holocene has been demonstrated in numerous studies. This species is considered as the main prey of the hunter-gatherer groups of the Patagonian interior, indicating the existence of a strong ecological relationship of predator-prey type. Despite the importance of this ungulate for
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Paleoceanographic evolution of the Gulf of Tehuantepec (Mexican Pacific) during the last ~6 millennia Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-21 Ángela García-Gallardo; María Luisa Machain-Castillo; Laura Almaraz-Ruiz
Oceanographic dynamics in the Gulf of Tehuantepec (GT) are the direct consequence of climate variability, mainly influenced by the strong wind regime locally called “Tehuanos” and the interactions between the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The area is characterized by intense upwelling driven by the Tehuanos within one of the largest Oxygen Minimum Zones
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Climate-human-landscape interaction in the eastern foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro (equatorial East Africa) during the last two millennia Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-20 Geert W van der Plas; Stephen M Rucina; Andreas Hemp; Robert A Marchant; Henry Hooghiemstra; Lisa Schüler; Dirk Verschuren
The Mt. Kilimanjaro region is known for its long history of intensive agriculture, but the temporal extent of human activity and its impact on the regional ecosystem are not well known. In this study, climate-human-landscape interactions during the past ~2200 years were examined using climate and vegetation proxies extracted from the continuous and high-resolution sediment record of Lake Chala. Ancient-to-modern
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Sum things are not what they seem: Problems with point-wise interpretations and quantitative analyses of proxies based on aggregated radiocarbon dates Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-20 W. Christopher Carleton; Huw S Groucutt
Radiocarbon-date assemblages are commonly used as proxies for past human and environmental phenomena. Prominent examples of target phenomena include past population levels and sea level fluctuations. These processes are thought to have affected the amount of organic carbon deposited into the archaeological and/or palaeoenvironmental record. Time-series representing through-time fluctuations in the
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The Holocene paleoenvironmental history of Western Caucasus (Russia) reconstructed by multi-proxy analysis of the continuous sediment sequence from Lake Khuko Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-18 Alexei M Grachev; Elena Y Novenko; Evgeniy A Grabenko; Mikhail Y Alexandrin; Elya P Zazovskaya; Evgeniy A Konstantinov; Vasiliy A Shishkov; Lyudmila I Lazukova; Anna A Chepurnaya; Tatiana M Kuderina; Maxim M Ivanov; Natalia V Kuzmenkova; Andrei V Darin; Olga N Solomina
This paper presents new multi-proxy records of the Holocene environmental and climatic changes in the Western Caucasus revealed from a continuous sediment sequence from mountainous Lake Khuko (Caucasus State Natural Biospheric Reserve, 1744 m a.s.l.). Palaeoecological analyses of a sediment core for grain size, magnetic susceptibility, loss on ignition, and pollen allowed us to determine five principal
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New evidence of mid- to late- Holocene vegetation and climate change from a Neolithic settlement in western fringe of Central Ganga Plain: Implications for Neolithic to Historic phases Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-15 Deepika Tripathi; Bahadur Singh Kotlia; Manish Tiwari; Anil K Pokharia; Shailesh Agrawal; Pankaj Kumar; Tengwen Long; Morthekai Paulramasamy; Biswajeet Thakur; Jagannath Pal; Kamalesh Singh Mahar; Devendra Kumar Chauhan
Here we present a continuous palaeoclimatic record of 5980 years (7230 cal BP–1250 cal BP) from Hetapatti, a Neolithic site situated on the western fringe of the Central Ganga Plain. The region was a center of reurbanisation following the decline of the Harappan civilisation and is considered a hub of economic, political and religious evolution since the sixth millennium BC. Hetapatti contains an uninterrupted
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Late-Holocene seasonal moisture variability: Range Creek Canyon, Utah, USA Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-10 Mariangelica Groves; Andrea R Brunelle; Mitchell J Power; Kenneth L Petersen; Zachary J Lundeen
A 3300 year-long reconstruction of paleoenvironmental moisture conditions was constructed from a sediment core from North Gate Bog (NGB) in the northern section of Range Creek Canyon within the Colorado Plateau. The methods used to analyze the record include loss on ignition (LOI), magnetic susceptibility (MS), elemental analysis with X-ray fluorescence (XRF), charcoal influx, isotopic analysis, elemental
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The Baigetuobie cemetery: New discovery and human genetic features of Andronovo community’s diffusion to the Eastern Tianshan Mountains (1800–1500 BC) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-12-07 Jiangsong Zhu; Jian Ma; Fan Zhang; Yinqiu Cui; Marcella Festa; Tongyuan Xi; Meng Ren; Yinchen Wang; Ben Li; Feixiang Huang
Andronovo has been regarded as one of the most powerful cultures in Central Asia, which reflected frequent cultural interflow, people migration, and technique diffusion on the Bronze Age Eurasian steppes. In the past decade, many new discoveries in Xinjiang, such as Adunqiaolu and Jartai, have drawn broad attention to the communication of the Andronovo culture in the central Tianshan Mountains. However
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Interdisciplinary study on dietary complexity in Central China during the Longshan Period (4.5–3.8 kaBP): New isotopic evidence from Wadian and Haojiatai, Henan Province Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-29 Wei Li; Ligang Zhou; YiHsien Lin; Hai Zhang; Ying Zhang; Xiaohong Wu; Chris Stevens; Yingliang Yang; Hui Wang; Yanming Fang; Fawei Liang
Central China is one of the key regions of the world that sees the transition from early Neolithic urbanization into the social complexity of Bronze Age civilizations. Previous evidence had indicated that the diets of humans and the feeding strategies of livestock in Central China during the Longshan Period (4.5–3.8 kaBP) became more complex and diverse, including the widespread introduction of cattle
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Multi-profile fine-resolution palynology of Late Mesolithic to Bronze Age peat at Cat Stones, Rishworth Moor, Central Pennines, UK Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-29 Bruce M Albert; James B Innes; Jeff J Blackford
Palynological data from three radiocarbon dated peat profiles at Rishworth Moor in the Pennine hills of northern England provide a record of vegetation change and human impacts in the Late Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. All three cultures have archaeological sites present in the vicinity, with Late Mesolithic sites by far the most abundant, comprising mainly very late assemblages dominated
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A 2000-year documentary record of levee breaches on the lower Yellow River and their relationship with climate changes and human activities Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-27 Wen-Jia Li; Shi-Yong Yu; Jianrong Pan; Xianyong Cao; Yingying Chen; Yi Wang
The Yellow River floodplain represents a fertile landmass that contributes significantly to human welfare and thus has been colloquially known as the birthplace of Chinese civilization. The sediment-laden nature of the Yellow River gave rise to a super-elevated channel belt, which is prone to failure particularly in the summer months when excessive precipitation occurs, resulting in cataclysmic floods
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Interpreting archaeological site-formation processes at a mountain ice patch: A case study from Langfonne, Norway Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-25 Lars Holger Pilø; James H Barrett; Trond Eiken; Espen Finstad; Sunniva Grønning; Julian R Post-Melbye; Atle Nesje; Jørgen Rosvold; Brit Solli; Rune S Ødegård
In the context of global warming, ice patches are increasingly important foci of high-elevation archaeology. Langfonne in Jotunheimen, central southern Norway, is uniquely suited to provide a window onto site formation processes and taphonomy in this novel archaeological setting. Here the site record from systematic survey includes the largest number of arrows, bones and antlers from a single ice patch
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Humid and cold periods in the last 5600 years in Arid Central Asia revealed by palynology of Picea schrenkiana from Issyk-Kul Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-24 Suzanne AG Leroy; Santiago R Giralt
Central Asia, with its high mountains, despite its location between Europe and eastern Asia remains a data poor area. However, mountain glaciers are strongly affected by global change and have a wide-ranging impact. A new pollen record over the last 5600 years shows the extension of a dry Artemisia steppe around Lake Issyk-Kul, with a slightly wetter period from 4.5 to 2.7 ka BP (less Ephedra). Picea
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Late-Holocene climate changes linked to ecosystem shifts in the Northwest Wisconsin Sand Plain, USA Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 Randy Calcote; Christopher Nevala-Plagemann; Elizabeth A Lynch; Sara C Hotchkiss
Records of century-scale climate variability in the Upper Midwest generally agree that moisture availability increased between 4000 and 3000 cal. yr BP (calendar years before present = 1950 CE), and that there were large, frequent droughts 1000–700 cal. yr BP followed by wetter/cooler conditions. Variability among regional sites, however, remains problematic. In this study we reconstruct climate on
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Holocene subalpine forest-parkland dynamics in Big Cottonwood Canyon, Wasatch Mountains, Utah, USA Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 David Rhode; Lisbeth A Louderback; Sandy O Brugger
Understanding long-term responses of subalpine forest-parklands to Holocene climate variability in local context is critical for better managing those ecosystems under future climate change. Available records suggest that western North American subalpine forest-parkland ecosystems responded to Holocene climate in various ways at different places. Here we present a Holocene record of upper montane forest-parkland
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Sedimentary grain-size record of Holocene runoff fluctuations in the Lake Lugu watershed, SE Tibetan Plateau Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 Xiaonan Zhang; Hucai Zhang; Fengqin Chang; Umar Ashraf; Han Wu; Wei Peng; Qi Liu; Fengwen Liu; Yun Zhang; Lizeng Duan
Changes in moisture conditions or precipitation in the SE Tibetan Plateau during the Holocene have been studied using various environmental archives and proxies. However, due to different interpretations of the proxies and records, the pattern of Holocene precipitation/moisture variations in the region remains unclear. A lake-sediment-based reconstruction of runoff variations, which can directly and
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Archaeobiogeography of extinct rice rats (Oryzomyini) in the Lesser Antilles during the Ceramic Age (500 BCE–1500 CE) Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 Marine Durocher; Violaine Nicolas; Sophia Perdikaris; Dominique Bonnissent; Gwenola Robert; Karyne Debue; Allowen Evin; Sandrine Grouard
During the Ceramic Age (500 BCE–1500 CE), Lesser Antilles rice rats (Tribe Oryzomyini) made up a significant portion of the diet of Caribbean islanders. Archaeological excavations across the archipelago resulted to the discovery of large quantities of remains from to these now extinct taxa. It offers a unique opportunity to investigate the past biogeography of this taxon of high cultural and ecological
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Linking testate amoeba assemblages to paleohydrology and ecosystem function in Holocene peat records from the Hudson Bay Lowlands, Ontario, Canada Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 David Bysouth; Sarah A Finkelstein
Peat cores from boreal bog and fen sites in the Hudson Bay Lowlands of Northern Ontario, Canada, were analysed to calculate Holocene carbon accumulation rates, and to show how testate amoeba taxonomic assemblages, inferred depths to water table, and four morpho-traits that may be linked to function (mixotrophy, aperture size, aperture position, and biovolume) changed since peatland initiation. Carbon
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Water management and wheat yields in ancient China: Carbon isotope discrimination of archaeological wheat grains Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 Zhou Xinying; Zhu Lin; Robert N Spengler; Zhao Keliang; Liu Junchi; Xu Xing; Bao Yige; John Dodson; Xu Hai; Li Xiaoqiang
The evaluation of ancient crop production and its response to climate change is key to exploring the ancient demographic and social changes. Wheat is currently the third most widely cultivated crop worldwide and was a major component across of the agricultural systems of the ancient Eurasia. In this study, the Δ13C values of 116 charred wheat grains from 28 archaeological sites, with direct AMS 14C
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Social and environmental factors influencing dietary choices among Dawenkou culture sites, Late Neolithic China Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-20 Yu Dong; Songtao Chen; Stanley H Ambrose; Anne Underhill; Xue Ling; Mingkui Gao; Zhenguang Li; Fengshi Luan; Guiyun Jin
Archaeological cultures are commonly defined by typologies established from ceramic assemblages at sites dated to a relatively restricted timeframe and located in specific geographic regions. It is often assumed that cultural traditions, social organizations, and other aspects of lifeways were similar throughout the established cultural areas. However, variations in pottery assemblages, burial practices
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New evidence for early human habitation in the Nyingchi Region, Southeast Tibetan Plateau Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-11 Yanren Wang; Yu Gao; Jishuai Yang; Yunyao Tan; Wangdue Shargan; Shuai Zhang; Xiaoyan Yang
The lack of archaeological work has long impeded our understanding of prehistoric and historical human inhabitation and East-West interactions on the southeastern Tibetan Plateau (TP). In this study, we conducted a series of systematic archaeological investigations in the Nyingchi region, on the southeastern TP. We examined archaeological stratigraphies from 10 sites and collected charred seeds and
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Considering change with archaeological data: Reevaluating local variation in the role of the ~4.2k BP event in Northwest China Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-06 Yitzchak Y Jaffe; Anke Hein
Over the past two decades, environmental studies in research on prehistoric China have been gaining popularity and importance. For Northwest China in particular, climate change, especially the so-called ~4.2k BP event has been seen as the main reason for an alleged collapse of Late Neolithic societies and a transition to pastoral-heavy economies and mobile lifeways. Yet, these explanatory models tend
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A comparison of Holocene testate amoeba assemblages and paleohydrological records from pollen slides and wet-sieved peat Holocene (IF 2.353) Pub Date : 2020-11-03 Gabriel Magnan; Terri Lacourse; Michelle Garneau
In this study, we compared new testate amoeba records produced by the conventional water-based wet-sieving method to testate amoeba data from previous palynological analyses of two Holocene peat profiles from British Columbia, Canada. We used 132 paired samples from the same peat cores to compare the composition of testate amoeba assemblages between the two methods and evaluate the potential of palynological
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