Coastal reconstruction of Vista Alegre, an ancient maritime Maya settlement

Jaijel, Roy; Glover, Jeffrey; Rissolo, Dominique; Beddows, Patricia A; Smith, Derek; Ben‐Avraham, Zvi; Goodman-Tchernov, Beverly

doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2018.02.003

Cited by 11 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 90 publications

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“…The research detailed earlier in this article by Toscano and Macintyre (2003), McKee et alia (2007), Monacci et alia (2009), Collins et alia (2015), and Torrescano and Islebe (2006) focuses on mangrove ecology, but these authors do not tie their research to human settlement. The research from Vista Alegre (Jaijel et al 2018) does include some discussion of mangroves but does not necessarily tie the mangroves to the discussion of human settlement. Only the research from Marco Gonzales (Graham and Pendergast 1989;Mazzullo and Reid 1988;Mazzullo et al 1987) links the onset of mangrove accumulation and sea-level rise with the decline of the Maya occupation at the site.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Paleoenvironmental Reconstructions on the Coast of the Maya Area Mangrove cores in coastal areas can provide information on sedimentation rates, vegetation variation, sea-level rise, and marine and coastal landscapes (Jaijel et al 2018;McKee et al 2007;McKillop et al 2010aMcKillop et al , 2010bMonacci et al 2009;Torrescano and Islebe 2006). Ten inundated sites in the Port Honduras area of southern Belize were studied to investigate the relationship between sea-level rise and settlement, and the factors affecting the relationship (McKillop 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Human–environment interactions at Ta'ab Nuk Na, a submerged Maya salt works site in Belize

Foster,

McKillop,

Sills

2023

Ancient Mesoam

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Sea-level rise and settlement are investigated at Ta'ab Nuk Na, an ancient Maya salt works in Belize, by examining samples from wooden posts and marine sediment. The samples included Post 145 of Building B and the Nunavut beam, along with marine sediment columns cut from beside both wooden posts. The sediment columns were sampled at 2 cm intervals. Loss-on ignition confirmed the presence of organic material. Identifying the organic content involved removing nonorganic material from the sediment and sorting the organic material under magnification. This procedure established that most of the organic material was red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle). Red mangroves tolerate salt water, but under conditions of sea-level rise, the plants grow vertically to keep their leaves above water. Sediment, leaves, and detritus trapped in the prop roots form mangrove peat, which serves as a proxy for sea-level rise. AMS dating of fine red mangrove roots determined that the local sea levels rose at Ta'ab Nuk Na throughout the Late Classic period and continued into the Postclassic period. Radiocarbon dates obtained from the wood-post samples yielded Late Classic–period dates. Comparing the radiocarbon dates from the wooden posts and the sediment core samples determined that the site was abandoned before the rising seas flooded the area. Evidently, sea-level rise did not play a role in site abandonment.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human–environment interactions at Ta'ab Nuk Na, a submerged Maya salt works site in Belize

Foster,

McKillop,

Sills

2023

Ancient Mesoam

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“…Alegre where sedimentological studies have revealed superimposed sequences and transgression episodes at the end of the Classic period (Beddows & Carter, 2013) as well as changes in sea levels during the last 3,000 years (Jaijel et al, 2018). The discharge reduction of freshwater as the result of diminishing rains resulted in a gradual elevation of the sea level that flooded the Yucatán coastline (Beddows & Carter, 2013;Goodman & Rohi, 2013).…”

Section: Gulf Of Mexicomentioning

confidence: 99%

Pre‐Hispanic Maya fisheries and coastal adaptations in the northern lowlands from the Classic (500–900 AD) to Postclassic (900–1400 AD) periods

Cano

2019

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

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Recent studies of fish remains at Mayan settlements from the Classic (500–900 AD) and Postclassic (900–1400 AD) periods are examined. These analyses deepen our understanding of ancient Maya fishing practices and coastal ecosystems and call into question traditional paradigms of environmental stability in the northern Maya lowlands. The effects of droughts recorded during the Maya collapse (800–1000 AD) led to an overall reduction in freshwater inflow into the estuaries combined with episodic increases of sedimentary output. The latter fostered the development of muddy bottoms along the coast, in particular around estuaries formed by underwater river discharges. Ecological characterization and trophic level shifts of fish assemblages from the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean shores help elucidate environmental stress episodes. These findings set a preliminary baseline for pre‐Hispanic Maya fisheries, which can further our understanding of present day fisheries along the Maya coast.

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Late Holocene environmental change in Celestun Lagoon, Yucatan, Mexico

et al. 2021

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Epikarst estuary response to hydroclimate change remains poorly understood, despite the well-studied link between climate and karst groundwater aquifers. The influence of sea-level rise and coastal geomorphic change on these estuaries obscures climate signals, thus requiring careful development of paleoenvironmental histories to interpret the paleoclimate archives. We used foraminifera assemblages, carbon stable isotope ratios (δ13C) and carbon:nitrogen (C:N) mass ratios of organic matter in sediment cores to infer environmental changes over the past 5300 years in Celestun Lagoon, Yucatan, Mexico. Specimens (> 125 µm) from modern core top sediments revealed three assemblages: (1) a brackish mangrove assemblage of agglutinated Miliammina and Ammotium taxa and hyaline Haynesina (2) an inner-shelf marine assemblage of Bolivina, Hanzawaia, and Rosalina, and (3) a brackish assemblage dominated by Ammonia and Elphidium. Assemblages changed along the lagoon channel in response to changes in salinity and vegetation, i.e. seagrass and mangrove. In addition to these three foraminifera assemblages, lagoon sediments deposited since 5300 cal yr BP are comprised of two more assemblages, defined by Archaias and Laevipeneroplis, which indicate marine Thalassia seagrasses, and Trichohyalus, which indicates restricted inland mangrove ponds. Our data suggest that Celestun Lagoon displayed four phases of development: (1) an inland mangrove pond (5300 BP) (2) a shallow unprotected coastline with marine seagrass and barrier island initiation (4900 BP) (3) a protected brackish lagoon (3000 BP), and (4) a protected lagoon surrounded by mangroves (1700 BP). Stratigraphic (temporal) changes in core assemblages resemble spatial differences in communities across the modern lagoon, from the southern marine sector to the northern brackish region. Similar temporal patterns have been reported from other Yucatan Peninsula lagoons and from cenotes (Nichupte, Aktun Ha), suggesting a regional coastal response to sea level rise and climate change, including geomorphic controls (longshore drift) on lagoon salinity, as observed today. Holocene barrier island development progressively protected the northwest Yucatan Peninsula coastline, reducing mixing between seawater and rain-fed submarine groundwater discharge. Superimposed on this geomorphic signal, assemblage changes that are observed reflect the most severe regional wet and dry climate episodes, which coincide with paleoclimate records from lowland lake archives (Chichancanab, Salpeten). Our results emphasize the need to consider coastal geomorphic evolution when using epikarst estuary and lagoon sediment archives for paleoclimate reconstruction and provide evidence of hydroclimate changes on the Yucatan Peninsula.

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Coastal reconstruction of Vista Alegre, an ancient maritime Maya settlement

Cited by 11 publications

References 90 publications

Human–environment interactions at Ta'ab Nuk Na, a submerged Maya salt works site in Belize

Human–environment interactions at Ta'ab Nuk Na, a submerged Maya salt works site in Belize

Pre‐Hispanic Maya fisheries and coastal adaptations in the northern lowlands from the Classic (500–900 AD) to Postclassic (900–1400 AD) periods

Late Holocene environmental change in Celestun Lagoon, Yucatan, Mexico

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