Paleoecological Studies at the Ancient Maya Center of Yaxnohcah Using Analyses of Pollen, Environmental DNA, and Plant Macroremains

Lentz, David L.; Hamilton, Trinity L.; Dunning, Nicholas P.; Jones, John G.; Reese-Taylor, Kathryn; Hernández, Armando Anaya; Walker, Debra S.; Tepe, Eric J.; Carr, Christopher; Brewer, Jeff L.; Ruhl, Thomas; Meyers, Stephanie A.; Vàzquez, Mariana Malet; Golden, Alex; Weiss, Alison A.

doi:10.3389/fevo.2022.868033

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…In the case of the seasonal wetlands, the Cobweb Swamp records in Belize were developed in areas inside artificial channels developed by the Maya (Jones, 1994), which are dry today, while the records at Akab Muclil and Cob are wetlands in flood plains (Kylander et al, 2012;Pohl et al, 1996). A similar case happens in records obtained from sediments deposited in artificial reservoirs for keeping water (chultunes) in Aguada Mucal and adjacent reservoirs (Lentz et al, 2022). In addition, records at El Infierno (Castanet et al, 2022), El Laberinto and El Ramonal adjacent to Calakmul were developed from sediments (colluvium) deposited in seasonal swamps (Gunn et al, 2002).…”

Section: Types Of Palaeoclimatic Records In the Mamentioning

confidence: 79%

Spatial and temporal distribution of palaeoclimatic records in the Maya Area

Martinez-Dyrzo

2024

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Palaeoclimatic research has been performed in the Maya Area (MA), using mainly lake sediment cores and speleothems. Most of the studies have been performed in the lowlands, leaving the highlands unexplored. Lake sediments records contain a diversity of proxies (e.g. Mineralogy, isotopes, pollen, charcoal, diatoms, chemicals, magnetic susceptibility, among others) and temporal resolution, making them frequently not easy to compare and leaving numerous gaps of information. Practically all stalagmites are focused on using δ18O as a proxy of effective rainfall during the Maya periods, having only some explored the role of palaeostorms and hurricanes as well as the paleoclimatology of the pre-Maya and modern periods. In this review paper, the location and temporal frame of palaeoenvironmental records of the MA and their proxies are presented, showing the zones and periods that possess environmental information and assessing their resolution. The comparison shows that more high-resolution records with a multi-proxy approach covering most of the Holocene are needed to understand the climate change in different zones of the MA. Finally, the geographic distribution of the diverse recorded hydroclimate responses based on the records is presented for three critical moments in the Maya History that have been associated with dry periods in the Great Maya Droughts hypothesis. This geographic perspective shows that dry events were not presented in all the MA during these moments although they were vastly recorded in both high- and lowlands. The geographic perspective also shows a negligible drought effect in the central lowlands for the Maya Hiatus period, where this cultural phenomenon was identified first. But signals of droughts are presented in other zones of the MA for this period. The distribution of the drought signal also shows that sites that thrived during the Maya Collapse period were in the regions that suffered the strongest droughts, whilst many sites that were abandoned were in regions rich in hydric resources. Explanations are reviewed for these contradictions. Finally, the works towards the development of mathematical models of the environmental variables are briefly reviewed, pointing out the lack of a proper computational model that has been fed by the palaeoclimatic data developed by the records in the MA.

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Section: Types Of Palaeoclimatic Records In the Mamentioning

confidence: 79%

Spatial and temporal distribution of palaeoclimatic records in the Maya Area

Martinez-Dyrzo

2024

revmexcg

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“…However, the connection of modern composition with Maya times comes from the archaeological record. Identifications of pollen, charcoal, and eDNA recovered from excavations at Yaxnohcah show some dominant species present in the modern forest, such as Brosimum and Manilkara as well as Pinus that is not there today [46]. Supported by the identification of archaeobotanical remains, it is confirmed that the forest composition in ancient Maya times around Yaxnohcah had similarities to that of the present-day, though, as noted in the introduction, acknowledging that the long Maya occupation itself changed the nature of the landscape and forest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lidar-Based Aboveground Biomass Estimations for the Maya Archaeological Site of Yaxnohcah, Campeche, Mexico

et al. 2022

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This study aims to provide a technique applied to archaeology to estimate lidar-based aboveground biomass (AGB) in contemporary tropical forests surrounding archaeological sites. Accurate AGB estimations are important to serve as a baseline to evaluate the wood resources that the ancient Maya could have used for the development of their cities. A lidar processing model is proposed to study the contemporary forest surrounding the Yaxnohcah archaeological site. As tropical forests are highly diverse environments where species are not uniformly distributed, it was necessary to consider the variation within the forest to obtain accurate AGB. Four vegetation communities were defined from a supervised classification of a Sentinel-2 satellite image. A stratified sample was then selected for the field survey that comprised 73 transects of 500 m2 each. To estimate the transect AGB, we used an allometric equation that requires diameter, height, and wood density measurements for identified species. Linear-derived models provided the relationship between field data with lidar statistics for each vegetation type. Predicted average AGB values agreed with those obtained in the field. However, they significantly differed between vegetation types, averaging 83 Mg/ha for lowland forest, 178 for transition forest, and 215 for upland forest communities. From those results, we created a map with wall-to-wall AGB estimates following the distribution of vegetation classes that could complement archaeological research of past land use. Vegetation classification also helped determine that there is a spatial relationship between vegetation communities and the distribution of archaeological settlement features for the ancient city of Yaxnohcah.

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“…Cyperaceae (sedge) and other aquatic plants have been identified in sediment cores from Maya reservoirs (e.g., ref. 60 ).…”

Section: Ancient Maya Reservoirs As Cwsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ancient Maya reservoirs, constructed wetlands, and future water needs

Lucero

2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The Classic Maya (c. 250 to 900 CE) in the tropical southern lowlands of Central America dealt with water scarcity during annual dry seasons and periods of climate instability via sophisticated urban reservoir systems they relied on for over a thousand years. Surface water is limited because typically rain percolates through the karstic terrain. I posit that Maya reservoirs functioned as do constructed wetlands (CWs) at present. Still-water systems like CWs and Maya reservoirs can become stagnant and nonpotable due to the build-up of nutrients that promote algal growth. Stagnant waters also serve as breeding grounds for mosquitoes that spread endemic diseases. CWs keep water clean via certain aquatic plants since all plants uptake nutrients (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorus) and decomposing plant matter supports microbial biofilms that break down nutrients. CWs also support diverse zooplankton that prey on pathogens and bacteria that assist to denitrify water. CWs do not require the use of chemicals or fossil fuels and after the initial labor-intensive output become self-cleaning and self-sufficient with some maintenance. I posit that the Maya used a diverse array of aquatic plants and other biota to keep water clean in the same manner as do CWs, which I demonstrate using evidence from excavations and settlement maps, sediment cores and current wetlands, and the iconographic and hieroglyphic records. The next step is to combine what we know about ancient Maya reservoirs in conjunction with what is currently known about CWs to better address future water needs.

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Paleoecological Studies at the Ancient Maya Center of Yaxnohcah Using Analyses of Pollen, Environmental DNA, and Plant Macroremains

Cited by 7 publications

References 53 publications

Spatial and temporal distribution of palaeoclimatic records in the Maya Area

Spatial and temporal distribution of palaeoclimatic records in the Maya Area

Lidar-Based Aboveground Biomass Estimations for the Maya Archaeological Site of Yaxnohcah, Campeche, Mexico

Ancient Maya reservoirs, constructed wetlands, and future water needs

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