Vegetation dynamics during the early to mid-Holocene transition in NW Malta, human impact versus climatic forcing

Djamali, Morteza; Gambin, Belinda; Marriner, Nick; Andrieu‐Ponel, Valérie; Gambin, Timmy; Gandouin, Emmanuel; Lanfranco, Sandro; Mèdail, Frédéric; Pavon, Daniel; Ponel, Philippe; Morhange, Christophe

doi:10.1007/s00334-012-0380-0

Cited by 39 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 57 publications

(84 reference statements)

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“…These unusually high percentages for Pistacia, generally considered underrepresented in records (Collins et al, 2012), produce low to moderate pollen quantities that are poorly dispersed (Beer et al, 2007), suggestive of very dense areas of Pistacia scrubland within the Burmarrad catchment area. This high percentage was also recorded by Djamali et al (2012) in the same plain (BM1 core). However, it was not part of the pollen records from Carroll et al (2012) taken from Salina Bay, situated within the same catchment area as the BM1 and BM2 cores.…”

Section: Mid Neolithic To Early Temple Periodmentioning

confidence: 53%

“…1d). This will allow for: a. completing the previous results from Burmarrad obtained by Djamali et al (2012), that covered a shorter period during the early to mid-Holocene (7350-5600 cal BP);…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…This vegetation does not appear abundant on the Maltese Islands during this period (Carroll et al, 2012;Djamali et al, 2012), though it has been postulated that deciduous forest was the dominant vegetation at this time (Grech, 2001). Evidence for the environment during this early Neolithic period in Burmarrad suggests an initially open landscape at ca.…”

Section: Early Neolithicmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This earlier Pistacia peak and subsequent decline were also noted in Crete (Bottema and Sarpaki, 2003) and western Greece (Jahns, 2003). Djamali et al (2012) provide a concise account of the life cycle, distribution, and possible expansion time frame difference of this genus in relation to the Malta record. The trigger for this Pistacia increase has been proposed as being climatic in origin.…”

Section: Mid Neolithic To Early Temple Periodmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1a) provides a key site to study these dynamics in an island context during the Holocene. However, with no peat bogs or lake deposits, suitable sites for palaeovegetation data collection are very limited; notwithstanding this situation some recent research has been carried out on coastal areas (Carroll et al, 2012;Djamali et al, 2012;Fenech, 2007;Marriner et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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7300 years of vegetation history and climate for NW Malta: a Holocene perspective

et al. 2016

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Abstract. This paper investigates the Holocene vegetation dynamics for Burmarrad in Northwest Malta and provides a pollen-based quantitative palaeoclimatic reconstruction for this centrally located Mediterranean archipelago. The pollen record from this site provides new insight into the vegetation changes from 7280 to 1730 cal BP which correspond well with other regional records. The climate reconstruction for the area also provides strong correlation with southern (below 40 • N) Mediterranean sites. Our interpretation suggests an initially open landscape during the early Neolithic, surrounding a large palaeobay, developing into a dense Pistacia scrubland ca. 6700 cal BP. From about 4450 cal BP the landscape once again becomes open, coinciding with the start of the Bronze Age on the archipelago. This period is concurrent with increased climatic instability (between 4500 and 3700 cal BP) which is followed by a gradual decrease in summer moisture availability in the late Holocene. During the early Roman occupation period (1972-1730 cal BP) the landscape remains generally open with a moderate increase in Olea. This increase corresponds to archaeological evidence for olive oil production in the area, along with increases in cultivated crop taxa and associated ruderal species, as well as a rise in fire events. The Maltese archipelago provides important insight into vegetation, human impacts, and climatic changes in an island context during the Holocene.

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