Altitudinal variation in the late quaternary vegetational history of Northwest Greece

Willis, Katherine J.

doi:10.1080/10292389409380492

Cited by 14 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Some of the lowland areas would have been allocated to crop-growing; if clearance for creating pasture land was not practised, or only on a small scale, for most of the Greek Neolithic, as suggested by the dominance of woodland in pollen diagrams (e.g. Willis 1994a) and if animals browsed in the woods, as was practised for example in Switzerland (Ackeret et al 1999: 180) and still is in parts of modern Greece, then browsing/grazing of the forested landscape might have required movement away from the settlement. Pollen diagrams from upland sites in northern Greece show a reduction in diversity and density of most tree taxa, as well as an increase in Hornbeam pollen (a species that flourishes in cleared and grazed woodland), suggesting possible human interference with natural woodland vegetation, due to pastoral activity, at around 5000 BC (Willis 1994b: 105-6).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detecting seasonal movement from animal dung: an investigation in Neolithic northern Greece

Valamoti¹

2007

Antiquity

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Neolithic northern Greece has both tell sites and extended ‘flat’ sites, with an implication that people lived differently and may have managed their animals differently on each type of site. The author investigates these differences using characteristic plant assemblages deriving from animal dung. She finds that samples from tells are rich in processed crops and wild seeds, indicating grazing on and off the fields near home. But those from the flat sites were rich in chaff and contain no wild seeds, indicating the absence of animals out grazing on the hills when the wild plants are in seed. These were seemingly two alternative categories of Neolithic farmer, the one organising grazing differently from the other.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detecting seasonal movement from animal dung: an investigation in Neolithic northern Greece

Valamoti¹

2007

Antiquity

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“…Although the microenvironment created by the coniferous trees is demonstrated in this record, other areas that might have provided such oases include southfacing slopes, high-altitude sites, and areas of well-drained soils. Previous researchers suggested that small pockets of microenvironmentally favorable conditions played an a important refugial role in the survival of temperate tree taxa in southern Europe during the last full-glacial (Bennett et al, 1991;Willis, 1992;Tzedakis, 1993;Willis, 1994b). However, until now there has been little evidence to support this suggestion.…”

Section: Fig 3 Chronological Position Of Macroscopic Charcoal Samplmentioning

confidence: 98%

The Full-Glacial Forests of Central and Southeastern Europe

2000

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The presence of trees in central and southern Europe during the last full-glaciation has long been a matter of debate. A low but persistent presence of fossil tree pollen in central and southern European full-glacial paleoecological sequences has been interpreted either as representing long-distance pollen transport from southerly refuges or as representing in situ refugial populations. Here we present macroscopic charcoal results from 31 sequences located throughout Hungary that provide unequivocal evidence for the presence of at least seven different tree types between approximately 32,500 and 16,500 14C yr B.P. This evidence is presented in conjunction with molluscan and pollen analyses to indicate that during the last full-glaciation, trees grew as far north as Hungary, probably in microenvironmentally favorable sites. These areas provided an important cold-stage refugium for the European flora and fauna.

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“…Unfortunately, none of these nearby sequences have an independent, absolute chronology for these marine deposits. In fact, the Lake Bufi age model was obtained by the tuning main vegetation changes with the pollen sequence of Lake Gramousti (Pindus Mountains, NW Greece) (Willis, 1992) assumed to be synchronous. According to this correlation, marine deposits in Lake Bufi were deposited prior to ca.…”

Section: The Transition From Open Marine To Lagoon Conditions (2420-1mentioning

confidence: 99%

Human–climate interactions in the central Mediterranean region during the last millennia: The laminated record of Lake Butrint (Albania)

Morellón

Anselmetti

Ariztegui

et al. 2016

Quaternary Science Reviews

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Lake Butrint (39°47 N, 20°1 E) is a ca. 21 m deep, coastal lagoon located in SW Albania where finely-laminated sediments have been continuously deposited during the last millennia. The multi-proxy analysis (sedimentology, high-resolution elemental geochemistry and pollen) of a 12 m long sediment core, supported by seven AMS radiocarbon dates and 137Cs dating, enable a precise reconstruction of the environmental change that occurred in the central Mediterranean region during the last ∼4.5 cal kyrs BP. Sediments consist of triplets of authigenic carbonates, organic matter and clayey laminae. Fluctuations in the thickness and/or presence of these different types of seasonal laminae indicate variations in water salinity, organic productivity and runoff in the lake's catchment, as a result of the complex interplay of tectonics, anthropogenic forcing and climate variability. The progradation of the Pavllo river delta, favoured by variable human activity from the nearby ancient city of Butrint, led to the progressive isolation of this hydrological system from the Ionian Sea. The system evolved from an open bay to a restricted lagoon, which is consistent with archaeological data. An abrupt increase in mass-wasting activity between 1515 and 1450 BC, likely caused by nearby seismic activity, led to the accumulation of 24 homogenites, up to 17 cm thick. They have been deposited during the onset of finely laminated sedimentation, which indicates restricted, anoxic bottom water conditions and higher salinity. Periods of maximum water salinity, biological productivity, and carbonate precipitation coincide with warmer intervals, such as the early Roman Warm Period (RWP) (500 BC–0 AD), the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA) (800–1400 AD) and recent times (after 1800 AD). Conversely, lower salinity and more oxic conditions, with higher clastic input were recorded during 1400–500 BC, the Late Roman and the Early Medieval periods (0–800 AD) and during the Little Ice Age (1400–1800 AD). Hydrological fluctuations recorded in Butrint are in phase with most central and western Mediterranean records and correlate with NAO variability. In contrast, opposite hydrological patterns have been recorded in the Eastern Balkans and the Levant during the last millennium, emphasizing a complex spatial variability in the region. Phases of maximum settlement intensity in Butrint (Roman-Late Antique) coincide with warmer and/or stable climate periods (0–800 AD and MCA, respectively), indicating a long-term influence of climatic conditions on human activities. The Late Holocene sedimentary record of Lake Butrint demonstrates the complex interplay of climate variability, tectonics and human impact in the recent evolution of coastal Mediterranean regions

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Altitudinal variation in the late quaternary vegetational history of Northwest Greece

Cited by 14 publications

References 25 publications

Detecting seasonal movement from animal dung: an investigation in Neolithic northern Greece

Detecting seasonal movement from animal dung: an investigation in Neolithic northern Greece

The Full-Glacial Forests of Central and Southeastern Europe

Human–climate interactions in the central Mediterranean region during the last millennia: The laminated record of Lake Butrint (Albania)

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