Phytoliths in the Flora of Ecuador: Methodology for Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction

厄瓜多尔植物区系中的植硅体：古环境重建方法

• 批准号: 9707029
• 负责人: Deborah Pearsall
• 金额: $ 9.06万
• 依托单位: University of Missouri-Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 1997
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1997-08-01 至 2000-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9707029&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Phytoliths; Flora; Ecuador; Methodology; Paleoenvironmental

With National Science Foundation support, Dr. Deborah Pearsall and her students will construct diagnostic phytolith profiles for a variety of present day Equadorian vegetation communities. `Phytoliths` are microscopic silica forms which are produced by plants and which are eventually incorporated into the soil. Although a single species produces more than one phytolith form and few forms are unique to any single species, through analysis of phytolith assemblages preserved in the ground, it is often possible to identify the plants which were present. Phytolith analysis therefore constitutes an important tool for environmental reconstruction. For many years archaeologists have worked in Equador and attempted to understand how complex societies arose in this region. The country varies ecologically from the better watered Northern to drier Southern coast. From West to East vegetation zones change from arid coastline across the Andes to tropical Amazonian rainforest. Paleoecologists know that these zones shifted significantly in response to past climate changes and archaeologists wish to understand cultural change in relation to these natural phenomena. Dr. Pearsall's research will provide data to assist in this process. She and her students will establish two transects across Equador, one running North-South, the other East-West. Through analysis of already collected specimens as well as additional fieldwork they will define phytolith assemblages which correlate with specific environments and note the most important indicator types. On this basis it will then be possible to extract phytolith assemblages from old soils and reconstruct paleoenvironments. This work is important for several reasons. It will help to establish an environmental context to understand cultural change. It will also shed new light on long term human impact on the environment. Ecologists are uncertain about how humans who functioned prehistorically at technologically simple levels affected their surroundings. To what extent were rainforest boundaries and plant communities influenced by small scale slash and burn agriculture? The data collected during this research will shed new light on this question. It will also establish a data base which will be widely used by archaeologists and natural scientists.

在国家科学基金会的支持下，Deborah Pearsall博士和她的学生将为当今各种赤道植被群落构建诊断植硅石剖面。“植硅石”是由植物产生并最终融入土壤的微观二氧化硅形式。虽然一个物种产生一个以上的植硅体形式和一些形式是唯一的任何单一的物种，通过分析保存在地面上的植硅体组合，它往往是可能的，以确定存在的植物。因此，植硅体分析是环境重建的重要工具。多年来，考古学家一直在厄瓜多尔工作，试图了解该地区复杂的社会是如何产生的。这个国家的生态环境各不相同，从水资源较好的北方到干燥的南部海岸。从西到东，植被带从干旱的海岸线穿过安第斯山脉到热带亚马逊雨林。古生态学家知道，这些区域在过去的气候变化中发生了显着变化，考古学家希望了解与这些自然现象有关的文化变化。Pearsall博士的研究将为这一过程提供数据。她和她的学生将在厄瓜多尔建立两个横断面，一个是南北走向，另一个是东西走向。通过分析已经收集的标本以及额外的实地考察，他们将定义植硅体组合与特定环境相关，并注意到最重要的指示类型。在此基础上，将有可能从古土壤中提取植硅体组合，重建古环境。 这项工作之所以重要，有几个原因。这将有助于建立一个环境背景，以了解文化的变化。它还将揭示人类对环境的长期影响。生态学家不确定史前时期在技术简单水平上发挥作用的人类如何影响他们的环境。雨林边界和植物群落在多大程度上受到小规模刀耕火种农业的影响？ 在这项研究中收集的数据将为这个问题提供新的线索。它还将建立一个数据库，供考古学家和自然科学家广泛使用。