Human foraging responses to climate change; Here Sorot Entapa rockshelter on Kisar Island

Abstract

This study explores prehistoric human subsistence adaptations within the context of changing marine and terrestrial environments on the tiny Island of Kisar, beginning during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition around 15,000 years ago (ka). We use zooarchaeological data on faunal remains (vertebrates and invertebrates) recovered from Here Sorot Entapa rockshelter (HSE) in temporal relationship to climate data from Flores to document prehistoric human responses to regional sea-level, temperature, and associated habitat changes that occurred after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Human settlement intensity peaked during the colder drier conditions of the Bølling-Allerød period at 14.4-13 ka, and the site was abandoned during a period of unstable sea levels and coastal habitats between 9.4-5 ka. Holocene climate change coincides with increased reefal subsistence, and an increase in crab exploitation over sea urchin use. Rodent abundance increases in the early Holocene, possibly in response to expanding forests during warmer wetter conditions, with a significant increase in the late Holocene as a result of the human introduction of exotic species to the island.

Earliest known funerary rites in Wallacea after the last glacial maximum

“…Unexpectedly, occupation intensity was greater during the cooler drier Bølling–Allerød period 14.6–12.9 ka 29 at HSE, and declined after 12.8 ka cal. BP, culminating in hiatuses at both HSE and possibly also RM2 during the early Holocene 11 , 38 . It appears that reef platform stability and its impact on marine resource availability may have influenced the desirability of settlement on Kisar more so than precipitation 11 .…”

“…BP, culminating in hiatuses at both HSE and possibly also RM2 during the early Holocene 11 , 38 . It appears that reef platform stability and its impact on marine resource availability may have influenced the desirability of settlement on Kisar more so than precipitation 11 . This may indicate resettlement of the island, at both HSE and possibly RM2, by the mid-Holocene when higher stable sea levels likely resulted in more stable productive coral reefs 11 .…”

“…46–40 ka 1 – 4 constitutes some of the earliest maritime adaptations of our species 5 – 10 . These adaptations occurred during substantial climate-mediated sea level fluctuations that influenced island size and ecologies, as well as human migration and adaptation to island environments 5 , 11 – 16 . Wallacea lies between the continental shelves of Sunda and Sahul, to which it has never been connected, and contains the islands of eastern Indonesia (Sulawesi, Lesser Sunda Islands, and the Moluccas) and the independent country of Timor-Leste on Timor 12 , 13 .…”

Early ground axe technology in Wallacea: The first excavations on Obi Island

“…After~8226 BP, there appears to have been a hiatus of several thousand years at the Kelo localities. Notably, long hiatuses beginning around this time occur elsewhere in the region, such as at Here Sorot Entapa on Kisar island [69], and Liang Lembudu on Aru island [70] (Fig 1A). At Here Sorot Entapa, where subsistence was almost exclusively maritime, abandonment may be related to sea-level rise drowning previously productive shore environments [69].…”

“…Notably, long hiatuses beginning around this time occur elsewhere in the region, such as at Here Sorot Entapa on Kisar island [69], and Liang Lembudu on Aru island [70] (Fig 1A). At Here Sorot Entapa, where subsistence was almost exclusively maritime, abandonment may be related to sea-level rise drowning previously productive shore environments [69]. At Liang Lembudu the preceding occupation occurs when terrestrial fauna indicates a much drier savannah-like environment than exists today, with abandonment occurring at a time of loss of open habitats [70].…”