The Iberian Peninsula has been central to the discussion as it was considered to be a 'last refuge' for the species at a time when H. sapiens occupation spread throughout Europe. Much speculation... Show moreThe Iberian Peninsula has been central to the discussion as it was considered to be a 'last refuge' for the species at a time when H. sapiens occupation spread throughout Europe. Much speculation has centred around the idea that extreme climate fluctuations during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 like Heinrich Stadial 4 (HS-4) were possible drivers for their disappearance. In other words, the extreme warm / cold fluctuations created an uninhabitable setting for Neanderthals, helping the dispersal of H. Sapiens intoIberia. These arguments were originally based on marine and ice core records of far-reaching origin that could provide little information at the local level. At the time this evidence was sufficient, as no other records were available. In recent years, studies have presented terrestrial palaeoclimate records from Iberia during the last glacial, but more are required to adequately understand the local response to Atlantic marine influences. Moreover, few terrestrial records are connected to known archaeological sites. The research presented in this thesis provides a more comprehensive understanding of palaeoclimate change during the Last Glacial Period and the potential implications for Neanderthal / H. sapiens movements in Iberian Peninsula. To achieve this, we examine the importance of a robust and direct U-Th chronology in conjunction with establishing local, terrestrial palaeoclimate records for the coastal Iberian Peninsula during the Holocene and Last Glacial Period. Show less
NIKULINA, A.; MacDonald, K.; Scherjon, F.; Pearce, E.A.; Davoli, M.; Svenning, J.-C.; ... ; Roebroeks, W. 2022
We review palaeoenvironmental proxies and combinations of these relevant for understanding hunter-gatherer niche construction activities in pre-agricultural Europe. Our approach consists of two... Show moreWe review palaeoenvironmental proxies and combinations of these relevant for understanding hunter-gatherer niche construction activities in pre-agricultural Europe. Our approach consists of two steps: (1) identify the possible range of hunter-gatherer impacts on landscapes based on ethnographic studies; (2) evaluate proxies possibly reflecting these impacts for both the Eemian (Last Interglacial, Middle Palaeolithic) and the Early–Middle Holocene (Mesolithic). We found these paleoenvironmental proxies were not able to unequivocally establish clear-cut differences between specific anthropogenic, climatic and megafaunal impacts for either time period in this area. We discuss case studies for both periods and show that published evidence for Mesolithic manipulation of landscapes is based on the interpretation of comparable data as available for the Last Interglacial. If one applies the ‘Mesolithic’ interpretation schemes to the Neanderthal record, three common niche construction activities can be hypothesised: vegetation burning, plant manipulation and impact on animal species presence and abundance. Our review suggests that as strong a case can be made for a Neanderthal impact on landscapes as for anthropogenic landscape changes during the Mesolithic, even though the Neanderthal evidence comes from only one high-resolution site complex. Further research should include attempts (e.g. by means of modelling studies) to establish whether hunter-gatherer impact on landscapes played out at a local level only versus at a larger scale during both time periods, while we also need to obtain comparative data on the population sizes of Last Interglacial and Holocene hunter-gatherers, as these are usually inferred to have differed significantly. Show less
