Tectonic Geomorphology and Soil Edaphics as Controls on Animal Migrations and Human Dispersal Patterns

Kübler, Simon; King, Geoffrey; Dévès, Maud; Inglis, Robyn; Bailey, Geoff

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-99408-6_29

Cited by 8 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Wildlife dynamics as responses to soil nutritional gradients in a relatively flat Serengeti-type landscape lead to wide corridors of animal movements distributed over a large region. In complex tectonic landscapes such as the southern Kenya Rift, animal movements are likely channeled through narrow corridors along soil nutritional and/or topographical pathways (King et al, 1994;King and Bailey, 2006;Devès et al, 2014;Kübler et al, 2019). In our study region, during Pleistocene lake-level high stands such migration corridors would have likely lead along narrow strips of exposed lake sediments or (Guth and Wood, 2013;Muiruri, 2017;Owen et al, 2019).…”

Section: Soil Nutrients and Hominin-landscape Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 88%

“…Soil samples were tested for a wide range of macronutrients and trace elements. We will show here only the results for Ca, Mg, and plant available P, as previous studies carried out in the wider vicinity of the study region have documented deficiencies and related health problems for humans and animals in relation to those nutrients (McNaughton, 1990;Maskall and Thornton, 1996;Davies, 2013;Kübler et al, 2015;Kübler et al, 2019).…”

Section: Soil Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Understanding the factors that determine variations in soil nutrient levels is important, not only for agricultural and livestock research, but also for other disciplines including ecology and paleoanthropology, which can exploit knowledge of the longterm distribution and availability of soil nutrients. This helps to better understand paleoecological conditions in regions of early human presence, and deduce regional-scale mobility patterns of animals and humans in past and present (Sturdy and Webley, 1988;McNaughton, 1990;Murray, 1995;Sturdy et al, 1997;Devès et al, 2014;Devès et al, 2015;Kübler et al, 2015;Kübler et al, 2016;Kübler et al, 2019;Eckmeier et al, 2020;Junginger and Kübler, 2020;Kübler et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lithological and Topographic Impact on Soil Nutrient Distributions in Tectonic Landscapes: Implications for Pleistocene Human-Landscape Interactions in the Southern Kenya Rift

et al. 2021

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Tectonically active regions are characterized by complex landscapes comprising soils with heterogeneous physicochemical properties. Spatial variability of nutrient sources enhances landscape biodiversity and creates heterogeneous habitats potentially attractive for animals and humans. In this study, we analyze the role of geological processes in the distributions of soil nutrients in the southern Kenya Rift, a key region in the interpretation of early human-landscape interactions. Our aim is to determine how spatial variations in rock chemistry, as well as topographic gradients and localized zones of rock fracturing from tectonic faulting determine the distributions of plant-available soil nutrients in soils. We hypothesize that present-day soil nutrient levels reflect the long-term chemical and geomorphological characteristics of the landscape and underlying parent material, and that regions with high nutrient availability occur along pathways correlating with locations of hominin fossil sites. Analyses of 91 topsoil samples from the main geological units show that Calcium (Ca) deficiencies predominately occur in shallow soils developed on trachytic volcanic rocks and granitic gneisses, while high Ca levels are associated with basaltic parent material and sedimentary deposits of mixed sources. XRF analysis of rock samples confirms that CaO levels in trachyte rocks are significantly lower than those in basalts, and Ca mobilization in basalt is more effective than in trachyte. Along two toposequences in densely faulted basaltic and trachytic rocks, we observed slope dependent soil nutritional gradients and a systematic increase of the concentrations of Ca, Mg and SOC in topsoils of colluvial sediments downslope of active normal faults. Known hominin sites in the region are located either along corridors of long-term Ca availability or at short-term nutrient hotspots potentially related to active CO2 degassing along active fault zones. This implies a strategic advantage of Ca-rich regions for hominin subsistence strategies, such as provision of predictable constraints on the distribution and mobility of grazing animals in complex tectonic landscapes. Our study implies that geological processes impact nutrient distributions in the southern Kenya Rift. Results of this study have further implications for understanding the role of soils in the interpretation of hominin-landscape interactions in the early stages of human evolution.

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Section: Soil Nutrients and Hominin-landscape Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 88%

Section: Soil Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lithological and Topographic Impact on Soil Nutrient Distributions in Tectonic Landscapes: Implications for Pleistocene Human-Landscape Interactions in the Southern Kenya Rift

et al. 2021

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“…The Harrat al Birk is a major landscape feature interrupting the low-lying Tihamat Asir coastal plain that is bounded by the Arabian escarpment and the present-day coastline. Elevation data: ASTER GDEM 30 m [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com] prey King & Bailey, 2006), and lastly, the volcanic deposits may provide favorable edaphic properties in the thin soils developed on them making them particularly attractive to prey animals (Kubler, Owenga, Reynolds, Rucina, & King, 2015;Kübler, King, Devès, Inglis, & Bailey 2018).…”

Section: Wadi Dabsamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tufa and other carbonate deposits precipitated by flowing and ponding of carbonate‐rich water are common in the wadis, indicating past periods of increased water flow (Dabbagh et al, ). The steep topography of the wadis, and the roughness of the basaltic surface within the Harrat, may have allowed the tracking and trapping of prey by hominin populations, as well as facilitating movement from the coastline into the interior (Kübler, King, Devès, Inglis, & Bailey ).…”

Section: Study Area: the Harrat Al Birkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Paleolithic artifact deposits at Wadi Dabsa, Saudi Arabia: A multiscalar geoarchaeological approach to building an interpretative framework

et al. 2019

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Surface artifacts dominate the archaeological record of arid landscapes, particularly the Saharo‐Arabian belt, a pivotal region in dispersals out of Africa. Discarded by hominins, these artifacts are key to understanding past landscape use and dispersals, yet behavioral interpretation of present‐day artifact distributions cannot be carried out without understanding how geomorphological processes have controlled, and continue to control, artifact preservation, exposure and visibility at multiple scales. We employ a geoarchaeological approach to unraveling the formation of a surface assemblage of 2,970 Palaeolithic and later lithic artifacts at Wadi Dabsa, Saudi Arabia, the richest locality recorded to date in the southwestern Red Sea coastal region. Wadi Dabsa basin, within the volcanic Harrat Al Birk, contains extensive tufa deposits formed during wetter conditions. We employ regional landscape mapping and automatic classification of surface conditions using satellite imagery, field observations, local landform mapping, archaeological survey, excavation, and sedimentological analyses to develop a multiscalar model of landscape evolution and geomorphological controls acting on artifact distributions in the basin. The main artifact assemblage is identified as a palimpsest of activity, actively forming on a deflating surface, a model with significant implications for future study and interpretation of this, and other, surface artifact assemblages.

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Refloating the Aegean Lost Dryland: An Affordance-Based GIS Approach to Explore the Interaction Between Hominins and the Palaeolandscape

McNabb

2023

Themes in Contemporary Archaeology

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Tectonic Geomorphology and Soil Edaphics as Controls on Animal Migrations and Human Dispersal Patterns

Cited by 8 publications

References 47 publications

Lithological and Topographic Impact on Soil Nutrient Distributions in Tectonic Landscapes: Implications for Pleistocene Human-Landscape Interactions in the Southern Kenya Rift

Lithological and Topographic Impact on Soil Nutrient Distributions in Tectonic Landscapes: Implications for Pleistocene Human-Landscape Interactions in the Southern Kenya Rift

Paleolithic artifact deposits at Wadi Dabsa, Saudi Arabia: A multiscalar geoarchaeological approach to building an interpretative framework

Refloating the Aegean Lost Dryland: An Affordance-Based GIS Approach to Explore the Interaction Between Hominins and the Palaeolandscape

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