THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL LANDSCAPE OF THE NEOLITHIC PERIOD IN THE WESTERN FOOTHILLS OF THE ZAGROS MOUNTAINS: NEW EVIDENCE FROM THE SAR POL-E ZAHĀB REGION, IRAN-IRAQ BORDERLAND

A recent survey in the western foothills of the Zagros Mountains has located five new Neolithic sites. We present here the occupational features and finds of this period in the Sar Pol-e Zahāb region, along with an interpretation of their distribution and associated settlement patterns. Our research indicates that the visible distribution of Neolithic sites is highly influenced by geomorphological factors. All sites are located on natural outcrops or on the edge of alluvial plains. Many others have certainly been buried beneath layers of later sedimentation. All of the sites identified by our survey are small and of modest elevation, with cultural remains, particularly ceramics, similar to Neolithic sites such as Guran and Sarāb in the central Zagros region and Jarmo and Tamarkhan in Mesopotamia. Based on the ceramic evidence and the location of the region, between the central Zagros mountains on the east and Mesopotamia on the west, we suggest that this vast area maintained an integrated ceramic tradition, which suggests an overall cultural homogeneity of these areas during the seventh and early sixth millennia B.C. In other words, these recent discoveries indicate that similarities in Neolithic material culture in the Māhidasht, Kermanshāh and Hulailan plains with material culture of regions in Mesopotamia are not accidental or random but indicative of a large coherent zone with unique ceramic and cultural traditions (the patterned ceramic tradition of Sarāb-Jarmo), extending from Iraqi Kurdistan east into the central Zagros range. Regarding the lack of eighth and seventh millennium B.C. sites in the northern reaches of the Iranian part of the Zagros range, we may consider the pathway of Sar Pol-e Zahāb a primary route for transporting obsidian to upland areas of the central Zagros. This also suggests a lasting network of cross-regional communications, since archaeological discoveries prove this pathway was the main node connecting these two cultural regions for a long period of time.

Phytopharmacological review of Bunium persicum (Boiss)B. fedtsch.

Bunium persicum(BOISS)B.Fedtsch belonging to family Apiaceae is native to the region of the limited zones of the West Asia, Kherman and grows to the areas of North Khorasan and Kheraman, East of the Zagros range to Bandar Abbaas and south area of the Albroz range in Iran. It is also found in North western parts of Himalayas. Bunium persicum is found growing naturally in sub-alpine and alpine habitats of North Western Himalayas. It is a perennial herb, dwarf 30cm to tall 80cm and its flowers are small, white in color. Keywords: Bunium persicum, Apiaceae, North-Western Himalayas, Perrenial Herb

Lactuca pumila (Asteraceae, Cichorieae) revisited—additional evidence for a phytogeographical link between SE Zagros and Hindu Kush

Lactuca pumila, so far known only from a single gathering from E Afghanistan, is shown to occur also in the SE Zagros range, Kerman province, southeastern Iran. The new locality extends the range of the species about 1000 km south-westward and this disjunction further highlights the floristic link between the SE Zagros and the Hindu Kush as well as Central Asian mountains. Fruiting plants, so far not known of the species, confirm it as a member of the L. rosularis group, which includes four closely related species of rosette herbs confined to rock crevices in the montane to alpine zone of the Iranian–Afghan highlands. The relationships of the two disjunctly distributed populations and of the species is corroborated by a molecular phylogenetic analysis. A key to the species of the L. rosularis group, a full description, photographs of life plants, SEM images of achenes and a distribution map of L. pumila are provided, and the generic classification is discussed.

Genetic diversity of Thymus daenensis subsp. daenensis using SRAP markers

Thymus daenensis subsp. daenensis is an aromatic medicinal plant endemic to Iran and generally grows in high altitudes in Zagros Mountains range. Molecular markers provide valuable information about relative genetic relationships for facilitate breeding programs. Here, we used SRAP markers to estimate the genetic diversity of 79 T. daenensis accessions from 16 regions in Iran, located at extremes and the central regions of the Zagros range. Fourteen SRAP primer combinations (PCs) amplified 240 stable and reproducible fragments, of which 198 (82.5%) were polymorphic for all accessions. The PIC value for PCs ranged from 0.195 to 0.333 with an average of 0.284. Neighbor-joining tree constructed from Dice’s similarity matrix of SRAP data revealed two major groups and verified with the results of AMOVA (P < 0.001; genetic distance = 0.98). The Tc and Te groups included the accessions collected from the center and the extremes of the Zagros Mountains, respectively. The results showed that the current scattered distribution area of Iranian thyme is probably recent due mainly to anthropic pressures and limited gene flow via seed and/or pollen dispersal.