scholarly journals Early Holocene human presence in Madagascar evidenced by exploitation of avian megafauna

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (9) ◽  
pp. eaat6925 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Hansford ◽  
Patricia C. Wright ◽  
Armand Rasoamiaramanana ◽  
Ventura R. Pérez ◽  
Laurie R. Godfrey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Genetic Evidence ◽  
Early Holocene ◽  
Before Present ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
Human Presence ◽  
Cut Marks ◽  
History Of ◽  
Human Colonization ◽  
People First

Previous research suggests that people first arrived on Madagascar by ~2500 years before present (years B.P.). This hypothesis is consistent with butchery marks on extinct lemur bones from ~2400 years B.P. and perhaps with archaeological evidence of human presence from ~4000 years B.P. We report >10,500-year-old human-modified bones for the extinct elephant birdsAepyornisandMullerornis, which show perimortem chop marks, cut marks, and depression fractures consistent with immobilization and dismemberment. Our evidence for anthropogenic perimortem modification of directly dated bones represents the earliest indication of humans in Madagascar, predating all other archaeological and genetic evidence by >6000 years and changing our understanding of the history of human colonization of Madagascar. This revision of Madagascar’s prehistory suggests prolonged human-faunal coexistence with limited biodiversity loss.

scholarly journals Using hominin introgression to trace modern human dispersals

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (31) ◽  
pp. 15327-15332 ◽  
Author(s):  
João C. Teixeira ◽  
Alan Cooper
Keyword(s):  
New Guinea ◽  
Modern Human ◽  
Genetic Evidence ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Before Present ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
Fossil Evidence ◽  
The World ◽  
Out Of Africa ◽  
Wallace’S Line

The dispersal of anatomically modern human populations out of Africa and across much of the rest of the world around 55 to 50 thousand years before present (ka) is recorded genetically by the multiple hominin groups they met and interbred with along the way, including the Neandertals and Denisovans. The signatures of these introgression events remain preserved in the genomes of modern-day populations, and provide a powerful record of the sequence and timing of these early migrations, with Asia proving a particularly complex area. At least 3 different hominin groups appear to have been involved in Asia, of which only the Denisovans are currently known. Several interbreeding events are inferred to have taken place east of Wallace’s Line, consistent with archaeological evidence of widespread and early hominin presence in the area. However, archaeological and fossil evidence indicates archaic hominins had not spread as far as the Sahul continent (New Guinea, Australia, and Tasmania), where recent genetic evidence remains enigmatic.

scholarly journals RETURN TO FORT ROCK CAVE: ASSESSING THE SITE'S POTENTIAL TO CONTRIBUTE TO ONGOING DEBATES ABOUT HOW AND WHEN HUMANS COLONIZED THE GREAT BASIN

2017 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 558-573 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas J. Connolly ◽  
Judson Byrd Finley ◽  
Geoffrey M. Smith ◽  
Dennis L. Jenkins ◽  
Pamela E. Endzweig ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Early Holocene ◽  
Human Presence ◽  
Lithic Tools ◽  
History Of ◽  
Future Work

Oregon's Fort Rock Cave is iconic in respect to both the archaeology of the northern Great Basin and the history of debate about when the Great Basin was colonized. In 1938, Luther Cressman recovered dozens of sagebrush bark sandals from beneath Mt. Mazama ash that were later radiocarbon dated to between 10,500 and 9350 cal B.P. In 1970, Stephen Bedwell reported finding lithic tools associated with a date of more than 15,000 cal B.P., a date dismissed as unreasonably old by most researchers. Now, with evidence of a nearly 15,000-year-old occupation at the nearby Paisley Five Mile Point Caves, we returned to Fort Rock Cave to evaluate the validity of Bedwell's claim, assess the stratigraphic integrity of remaining deposits, and determine the potential for future work at the site. Here, we report the results of additional fieldwork at Fort Rock Cave undertaken in 2015 and 2016, which supports the early Holocene occupation, but does not confirm a pre–10,500 cal B.P. human presence.

The Pleistocene eruptive history of Mount St. Helens, Washington, from 300,000 to 12,800 years before present

2008 ◽  
pp. 593-627 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Clynne ◽  
Andrew T. Calvert ◽  
Edward W. Wolfe ◽  
Russell C. Evarts ◽  
Robert J. Fleck ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Before Present ◽  
Eruptive History ◽  
History Of ◽  
Mount St Helens

Religious Architecture in Latium and Etruria, c. 900-500 BC

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte R. Potts
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Archaic Period ◽  
Comprehensive Treatment ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
Detailed History ◽  
Religious Buildings ◽  
Religious Architecture ◽  
The People ◽  
History Of

Religious Architecture in Latium and Etruria, c. 900-500 BC presents the first comprehensive treatment of cult buildings in western central Italy from the Iron Age to the Archaic Period. By analysing the archaeological evidence for the form of early religious buildings and their role in ancient communities, it reconstructs a detailed history of early Latial and Etruscan religious architecture that brings together the buildings and the people who used them. The first part of the study examines the processes by which religious buildings changed from huts and shrines to monumental temples, and explores apparent differences between these processes in Latium and Etruria. The second part analyses the broader architectural, religious, and topographical contexts of the first Etrusco-Italic temples alongside possible rationales for their introduction. The result is a new and extensive account of when, where, and why monumental cult buildings became features of early central Italic society.

Myth and History in Celtic and Scandinavian Traditions

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Western Europe ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
History Of ◽  
North Western

Myth and History in Celtic and Scandinavian Traditions explores the traditions of two fascinating and contiguous cultures in north-western Europe. History regularly brought these two peoples into contact, most prominently with the viking invasion of Ireland. In the famous Second Battle of Mag Tuired, gods such as Lug, Balor, and the Dagda participated in the conflict that distinguished this invasion. Pseudohistory, which consists of both secular and ecclesiastical fictions, arose in this nexus of peoples and myth and spilled over into other contexts such as chronological annals. Scandinavian gods such as Odin, Balder, Thor, and Loki feature in the Edda of Snorri Sturluson and the history of the Danes by Saxo Grammaticus. This volume explores such written works alongside archaeological evidence from earlier periods through fresh approaches that challenge entrenched views.

The History of Slovenia: Archaeological Evidence from Prehistory to the Slavs

2019 ◽  
pp. 127-141
Author(s):  
Matija Turk ◽  
Anton Velušček ◽  
Primož Pavlin ◽  
Sneža Tecco Hvala ◽  
Lucija Grahek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
History Of

Marine Metazoan Modern Mass Extinction: Improving Predictions by Integrating Fossil, Modern, and Physiological Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 369-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Piero Calosi ◽  
Hollie M. Putnam ◽  
Richard J. Twitchett ◽  
Fanny Vermandele
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Physiological Data ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
History Of ◽  
Extinction Events ◽  
Modern Mass

Evolution, extinction, and dispersion are fundamental processes affecting marine biodiversity. Until recently, studies of extant marine systems focused mainly on evolution and dispersion, with extinction receiving less attention. Past extinction events have, however, helped shape the evolutionary history of marine ecosystems, with ecological and evolutionary legacies still evident in modern seas. Current anthropogenic global changes increase extinction risk and pose a significant threat to marine ecosystems, which are critical for human use and sustenance. The evaluation of these threats and the likely responses of marine ecosystems requires a better understanding of evolutionary processes that affect marine ecosystems under global change. Here, we discuss how knowledge of ( a) changes in biodiversity of ancient marine ecosystems to past extinctions events, ( b) the patterns of sensitivity and biodiversity loss in modern marine taxa, and ( c) the physiological mechanisms underpinning species’ sensitivity to global change can be exploited and integrated to advance our critical thinking in this area.

scholarly journals Stepwise Weakening of Aeolian Activities During the Holocene in the Gannan Region, Eastern Tibetan Plateau

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shengli Yang ◽  
Xiaojing Liu ◽  
Ting Cheng ◽  
Yuanlong Luo ◽  
Qiong Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Climatic Changes ◽  
Early Holocene ◽  
Eastern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Aeolian Desertification ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Aeolian Sediments ◽  
Aeolian Activity ◽  
History Of

Aeolian sediments hold key information on aeolian history and past environmental changes. Aeolian desertification and extensive land degradation have seriously affected the eco-environment in the Gannan region on the eastern Tibetan Plateau. Understanding the history of aeolian activities can deepen our understanding of the impacts of climatic changes on aeolian activities in the future. This study uses a detailed chronology and multiple proxy analyses of a typical aeolian section in Maqu to reconstruct aeolian activities in the region during the Holocene. Our results showed that aeolian activities have occurred in the eastern Tibetan Plateau since the early Holocene. Magnetic susceptibility, grain size records, and paleosols formation indicated a trend of stepwise weakening in aeolian activities from the early Holocene to the present. The weakening of aeolian activities was divided into three stages: ∼10.0–8.0 ka BP, ∼8.0–4.0 ka BP, and ∼4.0 ka BP to the present. Paleosols were primarily formed after ∼8.0 ka BP, and episodically interrupted aeolian activities processes in the Gannan region. Aeolian activity may increase in the Gannan region as the climate gradually warms. Climatic changes and local hydrological conditions have jointly affected the history of aeolian activities in this region.

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