Raised fields in the Bolivian Amazonia: a prehistoric green revolution or a flood risk mitigation strategy?

Lombardo, Umberto; Canal-Beeby, Elisa; Fehr, Seraina; Veit, Heinz

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2010.09.022

Cited by 81 publications

(93 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…The key environmental constraints today and in the past seem to be soil fertility and soil drainage. Soil fertility is closely linked to the age of the soils and to the source of the sediments: it is very low for old, weathered soils formed on the Brazilian shield and it is higher for younger soils formed on fluvial (Lombardo et al 2011) sediments from the Andes. Therefore, the first general trend to emerge is a decrease in soil fertility from the south (Andes piedmont) to the north (Pando).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1b). The main reason behind the construction of Pre-Columbian agricultural fields in the LM was to improve the local drainage (see review in Lombardo et al 2011). …”

Section: Pre-columbian Earthwork In North-eastern Boliviamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Settlements (ring ditches) were situated on top of the NFI. Agricultural ditched fields were built on the well drained gentle slopes that border the NFI towards the savannah (Lombardo et al 2011). Ditched fields improved the agricultural potential of the land.…”

Section: Bella Vista/baures: Eco-archaeological Region IIImentioning

confidence: 99%

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Eco-archaeological regions in the Bolivian Amazon

2012

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1b). The main reason behind the construction of Pre-Columbian agricultural fields in the LM was to improve the local drainage (see review in Lombardo et al 2011). …”

Section: Pre-columbian Earthwork In North-eastern Boliviamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Eco-archaeological regions in the Bolivian Amazon

2012

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“…The paleosol, located about 4 m below the top of the riverbank, has been radiocarbon dated to 1390 ± 43 cal yrs BP. Pre-Columbian raised fields, which are ancient elevated platforms that were used for agriculture (Lombardo et al, 2011;Rodrigues et al, 2016), are visible in Google Earth imagery a few kilometers downriver from the areas affected by the logjam-induced floods of the Cuberene River (Fig. 13).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the other hand, the presence of Cuberene paleochannels in the very same area as the pre-Columbian earthworks suggests that, prior to the construction of the raised fields, logjams were less frequent or happened further to the east than their modern location. Raised fields were built to mitigate the risk posed by extreme floods (Lombardo et al, 2011) and their geometry, size, and location responded to the local hydrology (Rodrigues et al, 2015(Rodrigues et al, , 2016. The fact that raised fields in the Cuberene area were built along the whole slope that goes from the former levees of the Cuberene River to the former backswamps ( Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

River logjams cause frequent large-scale forest die-off events in southwestern Amazonia

Lombardo

2017

Earth Syst. Dynam.

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Abstract. This paper investigates the dynamics of logjam-induced floods and alluvial deposition in the Bolivian Amazon and the effects these have on forest disturbance and recovery cycles. It expands on previous work by Gullison et al. (1996) who reported a case of catastrophic floods triggered by logjams in the Chimane Forest in the Bolivian Amazon. No further studies have followed up on this observation and no research has been published on the effects of large wood in tropical lowland rivers. The study is based on the analysis of a time series of Landsat imagery and field evidence. Results show that logjam-induced floods are a major driver of forest disturbance along the Andean piedmont in the Bolivian Amazon. New logjams form on an almost yearly basis, always further upriver, until an avulsion takes place. Logjam-induced floods are characterized here by the sudden deposition of a thick sand layer and the death of forest in a V-shaped area. The Bolivian Amazon offers a unique opportunity for further research on how large wood affects river behavior in lowland tropical settings and how large and frequent forest disturbance events resulting from river logjams affect forest biodiversity and community successions.

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Geoarchaeological signatures of anthropogenic soils in southeastern Uruguay: Approaches to formation processes and spatial–temporal variability

et al. 2021

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This contribution focuses on the interpretation of earthen mound formation processes in the lowlands of the Pampa biome, southeastern Uruguay, through the integrated analysis of sedimentological and archaeological data. The three analyzed mounds from the La Tapera site have different heights and radiocarbon chronologies, indicating different construction periods across the last 4000 years. In addition, soils from surrounding plains were analyzed to provide a comparative basis for geoarchaeological characterization. From granulometric, compositional, and geochemical results, we identified different soil classes and several anthropogenic layers inside the earthen structures. Mound soils stood out from the rest due to higher levels of P, soil organic matter (SOM), and micro‐artifact content, leading to their classification as hortic Anthroportic Udorthent soils or hortic‐cultural cumulic archaeo‐anthrosols. Geoarchaeological differences between mounds are inferred as variations in the formation processes and/or construction technologies, possibly related to the functionality and height of the structures. Evidence from this contribution demonstrated the existence of ancient ways to produce nutrient‐rich long‐lasting anthropogenic soils that left persistent geoarchaeological signatures on the landscape. These findings highlight the need to broaden the discussion, culturally and geographically, about the genesis and development of management practices and associated indigenous knowledge to include the lowlands of southeastern South America.

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Raised fields in the Bolivian Amazonia: a prehistoric green revolution or a flood risk mitigation strategy?

Cited by 81 publications

References 38 publications

Eco-archaeological regions in the Bolivian Amazon

Eco-archaeological regions in the Bolivian Amazon

River logjams cause frequent large-scale forest die-off events in southwestern Amazonia

Geoarchaeological signatures of anthropogenic soils in southeastern Uruguay: Approaches to formation processes and spatial–temporal variability

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