Suzanne E. Pilaar Birch

Human Response to Climate Change in the Northern Adriatic During the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene

Climate and sea level constrain the abundance of primary producers (plants) and habitat size. These directly affect the seasonal density and distribution of animal species, which inevitably have implications for human decisions regarding what to eat, where to live, how long to stay there, and when to move. Are diversification strategies such as the inclusion of low-ranked terrestrial resources and marine species in the diet effective coping mechanisms for climate-driven environmental change and habitat loss due to sea level rise? Is intensification of resource exploitation indicative of dietary stress? How might these adaptations affect the seasonal round? Our paper discusses these questions, spanning the transition from post-glacial foraging lifestyles at the Pleistocene/Holocene boundary (12,000 BP) to the introduction of pastoralism during the early Neolithic (7,000 BP), using zooarchaeological material from the upland cave site of Vela Spilja on the island of Losinj in the Kvarner Gulf of Croatia.

Opinion: Why we need a centralized repository for isotopic data

Organizational structure for the proposed IsoBank. A central executive group would oversee four subcommittees (SC): Information technology, integrative disciplinary, education and training, and analytical expertise. GNIP, Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation; IAEA, International Atomic Energy Association; QA/QC, quality assurance/quality control.

Late Pleistocene/Early Holocene Migratory Behavior of Ungulates Using Isotopic Analysis of Tooth Enamel and Its Effects on Forager Mobility

Zooarchaeological and paleoecological investigations have traditionally been unable to reconstruct the ethology of herd animals, which likely had a significant influence on the mobility and subsistence strategies of prehistoric humans. In this paper, we reconstruct the migratory behavior of red deer (Cervus elaphus) and caprids at the Pleistocene-Holocene transition in the northeastern Adriatic region using stable oxygen isotope analysis of tooth enamel. The data show a significant change in δ18O values from the Pleistocene into the Holocene, as well as isotopic variation between taxa, the case study sites, and through time. We then discuss the implications of seasonal faunal availability as determining factors in human mobility patterns.

Subsistence continuity, change, and environmental adaptation at the site of Nugljanska, Istria, Croatia

Abstract This paper investigates changes in subsistence strategies at the upland cave site of Nugljanska (Croatia) at the end of the last ice age, during a time of rapid sea level rise and changing environment. We analysed the faunal assemblage from archaeological levels spanning the Pleistocene–Holocene transition (15,000–8000 years BP) and evaluated changes in relative abundance of species, measured species diversity, and compared the representation of terrestrial mammal and marine resources. We found a significant shift in the most abundant prey species exploited (from red deer, Cervus, to wild boar, Sus). There was some correlation between dietary diversification and periods of increased moisture availability and the spread of deciduous forest in the area. Our results suggest that there was a continuing reliance on terrestrial resources throughout time and that changes in dietary patterns were likely due to local environmental change and potentially, changing seasonal mobility strategies, at the Pleistocene–Holocene transition.

Spread of Domestic Animals across Neolithic Western Anatolia: New Zooarchaeological Evidence from Uğurlu Höyük, the Island of Gökçeada, Turkey

The zooarchaeological research presented here investigates Neolithic and Chalcolithic (ca. 6500–5000 cal. BC) animal exploitation strategies at Uğurlu Höyük on the Turkish island of Gökçeada in the northeastern Aegean Sea. Toward this end, we first discuss the results of our analysis of the zooarchaeological assemblages from Uğurlu Höyük and then consider the data within a wider regional explanatory framework using a diachronic approach, comparing them with those from western and northwestern Anatolian sites. The first settlers of Gökçeada were farmers who introduced domestic sheep, goats, cattle and pigs to the island as early as 6500 years BC. Our results align well with recently published zooarchaeological data on the westward spread of domestic animals across Turkey and the Neolithization of southeast Europe. Using an island site as a case study, we independently confirm that the dispersal of early farming was a polynucleated and multidirectional phenomenon that did not sweep across the land, replace everything on its way, and deliver the same “Neolithic package” everywhere. Instead, this complex process generated a diversity of human-animal interactions. Thus, studying the dispersal of early farmers from southwest Asia into southeast Europe via Anatolia requires a rigorous methodological approach to develop a fine-resolution picture of the variability seen in human adaptations and dispersals within complex and rapidly changing environmental and cultural settings. For this, the whole spectrum of human-animal interactions must be fully documented for each sub-region of southwest Asia and the circum-Mediterranean.

From the Aegean to the Adriatic: Exploring the Earliest Neolithic Island Fauna

ABSTRACT Frameworks for understanding Neolithization have increasingly recognized the complex and multifaceted nature of the spread of domesticates from Southwest Asia into Europe. But how do these factors interplay in unique island settings as compared to the continental scale? This article takes a comparative approach using sites located on islands from the Aegean and the Adriatic to discuss subsistence in the earliest Neolithic, between approximately 7000 and 6000 cal BC. Based on zooarchaeological evidence, I explore differences between island and mainland use of terrestrial and marine fauna, and consider the role of island size, vegetation, and access to water resources. Located along a “crossroads” and presenting distinct environmental challenges, the islands of both the Aegean and the Adriatic are ideally situated for considering human ecodynamics at this pivotal transition from hunting and gathering to farming and herding.

TrowelBlazers: Accidentally Crowdsourcing an Archive of Women in Archaeology

The TrowelBlazers project provides an example of how public participation can radically influence an archival heritage project. Conceived as a Tumblr site where a limited group could post content celebrating female archaeologists, geologists, and palaeontologists, we soon allowed ‘guest’ posts, which rapidly broadened the scope of our project. Through our participatory social media networks, TrowelBlazers became involved in STEM, feminist, and heritage actions. Contact with organisations promoting women’s involvement in science led to collaborations with broader feminist networks including The Women’s Room UK, Finding Ada Project, and ScienceGrrl alongside invited contributions to science education events (e.g. by the UK Environment and Science Research Council). TrowelBlazers hosted very successful Wikipedia edit-athons for Ada Lovelace Day at the Natural History Museum, London, and took part in Brown University’s event. More importantly, the accessibility and frequently crowdsourced nature of our content have allowed TrowelBlazers to directly engage with the nonacademic public to promote awareness of women’s contributions to heritage to a much broader public through activities like a feature in a magazine for pre-teen girls, a video project with a performance artist who plays an idealised girl’s role model, and even a toy maker.

Applied Zooarchaeology: Five Case Studies. STEVE WOLVERTON, LISA NAGAOKA, and TORBEN C. RICK. 2016. Eliot Werner Publications, New York. xi + 117 pp.

larger global economies of capitalism and reflect the social inequalities of capitalism. The volume benefits from numerous chapters authored by researchers not based in North America, and the editors’ efforts to be inclusive to global archaeologies of capitalism are applauded. The one shortcoming I found in the second edition is the paucity of material culture analyses. Each chapter includes limited studies of artifacts and archaeological landscapes, but it many cases it seems that they are secondary to the historical narratives. Material objects are an important aspect of capitalism, and I feel that there should be a greater focus on material culture in studies of capitalism. Overall, the chapters in the second edition, much like the first, are well-formed narratives on capitalism, making this volume a significant contribution to the field.