Coastal palaeoenvironments and hunter-gatherer plant-use at Waterfall Bluff rock shelter in Mpondoland (South Africa) from MIS 3 to the Early Holocene
Coastal palaeoenvironments and hunter-gatherer plant-use at Waterfall Bluff rock shelter in Mpondoland (South Africa) from MIS 3 to the Early Holocene
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DOI：
10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106664
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发表时间：
2020-12-15
影响因子：
4
通讯作者：
Fisher, Erich C.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Esteban, Irene;Bamford, Marion K.;Fisher, Erich C.
位于东姆蓬杜兰省(南非东开普省)的瀑布峭壁是最近出土的考古遗址，其沉积范围从海洋同位素第三阶段到中全新世。在这里，我们介绍了一项多指标古环境研究的初步结果，该研究结合了来自同一考古记录的宏观植物遗骸、木炭、植硅体、花粉和植物蜡质。我们的目标是了解狩猎-采集植物觅食与沿海Mpondoland从MIS3到瀑布崖全新世早期的气候和环境变化之间的相互作用。瀑布峭壁的木炭和花粉记录显示，以燃烧和药用特性为特征的各种木本分类群聚集在一起(例如，大千层木和二亚二叠木)。在大型植物学和植硅体记录中鉴定的叶可能属于这些分类群中的一些，它们很可能被用于药用目的。从古环境的角度来看，我们的结果表明，在MIS3和末次冰盛期(LGM)期间，降雨量少，降雨量季节性低。在这些条件下，在当地景观中出现了空旷的林地，夹杂着干燥和潮湿的草原和灌木丛植被，具有显著的Fynbos元素，可能是沿着Podocarpus/AFrocarpus森林。后者可能是(1)存在于姆蓬多拉和瀑布断崖南部和西部裸露的大陆架上的河流山谷和悬崖上，受到有利于低蒸散的古河流和凉爽温度的支持，或(2)存在于内陆，花粉颗粒可能被强烈的西风输送到遗址。这些森林由于冰期后的海洋海侵或末次大冰期之后西风带减弱而收缩。在全新世早期，古环境信号指示夏季降雨量和(夏季)季节性高于MIS3、LGM和LGIT。这些变化与瀑布断崖周围局部湿地植被的海岸森林和C-4中级草原的增加是同步的。这些多指标考古植物学和生物化学数据表明，瀑布悬崖周围的景观随着海洋海侵/退缩以及降雨强度和季节性的变化而发生变化。瀑布峭壁的居民在冰川时期到海岸觅食以收集木材。(C)2020爱思唯尔有限公司。保留所有权利。
Waterfall Bluff, in Eastern Mpondoland (Eastern Cape Province, South Africa), is a recently excavated archaeological site with deposits spanning Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 to the Middle Holocene. Here, we present preliminary results of a multi-proxy palaeoenvironmental study combining macro-botanical remains, charcoal, phytoliths, pollen and plant waxes derived from the same archaeological record. We aim to understand the interactions between hunter-gatherer plant foraging and climate and environmental change in coastal Mpondoland from MIS 3 to the Early Holocene at Waterfall Bluff. The charcoal and pollen records at Waterfall Bluff show the gathering of a variety of woody taxa characterised by their combustion and medicinal properties (e.g., Millettia grandis and Apodytes dimidiate). The leaves identified in the macrobotanics and in the phytolith record might belong to some of these taxa and it is likely that they were used for medicinal purposes. From a palaeoenvironmental perspective, our results indicate low precipitation and low rainfall seasonality under cool conditions during MIS 3 and the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Under these conditions, open woodlands interspersed with dry and hygrophilous grasslands and bushveld vegetation with significant representation of fynbos elements occurred in the local landscapes probably along Podocarpus/Afrocarpus forests. The latter could have been (1) present along river valleys and scarps on the Mpondoland exposed continental shelf towards the south and west of Waterfall Bluff, supported by palaeo-rivers and cool temperatures favouring low evapotranspiration, or (2) present in the interior with pollen grains possibly transported to the site by intensified westerly winds. These forests contracted as a result of the post-glacial marine transgression or reduced westerlies following the LGM. During the Early Holocene, the palaeoenvironmental signal points to higher summer rainfall and higher (summer) seasonality than during MIS 3, the LGM and the LGIT. These changes are coeval with an increase of coastal forests and C-4 mesic grasslands with localized wetland vegetation around Waterfall Bluff. These multi-proxy archaeobotanical and biochemical data show that landscapes surrounding Waterfall Bluff changed in relation to marine transgressions/regressions and changes in rainfall intensity and seasonality. The people of Waterfall Bluff foraged the coasts during glacial periods to collect wood. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.