Hülya Caner

Palynology of sapropelic layers from the Marmara Sea

Palynological records of the sediments from the deep basins of the Marmara Sea revealed four palynological zones indicating the changing climatic conditions during Late Glacial to Holocene. The lower two zones were defined by the high abundance of Artemisia and Chenopodiaceae that suggest the climate of the source area was cold and arid. However, the establishment of Mediterranean warm and wet climate and corresponding regression of continental aridity were shown by the decreasing Chenopodiaceae and increasing pollen grains of humid-type vegetation in Zone C. The highest total pollen with the dominance of Quercus identifies the deglaciation and coincides with the formation of sapropelic layers in the Marmara Sea. The warmer and humid condition of deglaciation was indicated with diversified moisture-demanding deciduous and coniferous pollen grains in Zone B. These pollen assemblages and their distribution pattern indicate that the source area was warm and wet, during the deposition of sapropelic layers in the Marmara Sea, and also reflect signals of Black Sea origin.

The archaeology of deforestation in south coastal Turkey

The Rough Cilicia Archaeological Survey Project investigates landscape transformation as a component to its regional survey of ancient Rough Cilicia (south coastal Turkey opposite Cyprus). Rough Cilicia was celebrated during antiquity for pristine cedar forests that stood between 1500 and 1800 m in altitude along the slopes of the Taurus Mountains. Today along the front range of the Taurus Mountains this forest is completely denuded or otherwise replanted with recent growth in the past 80 years. We employ paleoenvironmental analysis of relic cedar forests in the Taurus Mountains to construct a timeline of anthropogenic disturbances associated with population growth over time and thereby assess the sustainability of ancient forestry practices. To obtain these data, the team recovers pollen and carbon samples from geomorphologic trenches excavated in the cedar zone, tree ring data from dendrochronological survey of the existing forest, and archaeological data from remains of ancient highland settlements. Preliminary results indicate that current perspectives about the timing of deforestation in this region are flawed and that the initial deforestation coincided with regional site abandonment and population decline at the end of antiquity.

Analysis of Fossil Pollen Record from the Late Holocene in the Turkish Highland (Middle Taurus,Turkey)

In this study, we have investigated changes of vegetation in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey approximately for the last 5000 years using pollen analysis . There were some differences in the past vegetation, but principally vegetation structure has shown similarity with the modern one. Main difference appeared with the existence of Betula.