Earliest expansion of animal husbandry beyond the Mediterranean zone in the sixth millennium BC

Abstract

Since their domestication in the Mediterranean zone of Southwest Asia in the eighth millennium BC, sheep, goats, pigs and cattle have been remarkably successful in colonizing a broad variety of environments. The initial steps in this process can be traced back to the dispersal of farming groups into the interior of the Balkans in the early sixth millennium BC, who were the first to introduce Mediterranean livestock beyond its natural climatic range. Here, we combine analysis of biomolecular and isotopic compositions of lipids preserved in prehistoric pottery with faunal analyses of taxonomic composition from the earliest farming sites in southeast Europe to reconstruct this pivotal event in the early history of animal husbandry. We observe a marked divergence between the (sub)Mediterranean and temperate regions of Southeast Europe, and in particular a significant increase of dairying in the biochemical record coupled with a shift to cattle and wild fauna at most sites north of the Balkan mountain range. The findings strongly suggest that dairying was crucial for the expansion of the earliest farming system beyond its native bioclimatic zone.

Milk as a pivotal medium in the domestication of cattle, sheep and goats

“…Studies have shown that cattle prefer water-rich environments (Gander et al, 2003), whereas caprines can survive in areas of aridity like the Mediterranean and the Balkans (Boyazoglu and Morand-Fehr, 2001). Milk exploitation was a component of early Neolithic farming across most regions of Europe (Helmer and Vigne, 2004;Helmer et al, 2007;Vigne and Helmer, 2007;Evershed et al, 2008;Debono Spiteri et al, 2016;Ethier et al, 2017) with caprines and cattle being the main milk producers along the Mediterranean and in Central Europe, respectively. There is little evidence for dairying in areas of the initial expansion of Neolithic cultures in Greece and South-East Europe, although by the time Neolithic culture have spread to the Cycladic islands caprines appear to be managed for milk (Debono Spiteri et al, 2016).…”

“…Mediterranean livestock were introduced beyond their natural climatic range by farming groups dispersing into the interior of the Balkans by 7.6 kyBP. Climate-driven selective pressures led to a better adaptation of the livestock to their new environment (Ethier et al, 2017).…”

“…Husbandry practices had a role in shaping the breeds that exist today, through natural selection of animals adapted to feed scarcity or ability to reduce metabolism in winter (Ethier et al, 2017) and artificial selection of phenotypes with advantageous traits, such as milk production and ability to let-down milk with little intervention. Genetic changes linked to milk production were actively selected for in the last century.…”

Pottery Studies and Archaeometry: Between Scientific Analyses and Archaeological Interpretation

“…To se posebno odnosi na istraživanja laktolipida (na primer Craig et al 2005;Copley et al 2005aCopley et al , 2005bCopley et al , 2005c, koja su pokazala da je mleko korišćeno u ishrani još od rane praistorije, ili širenja zajednica s pastoralnom ekonomijom u različitim ekološkim nišama u vreme neolitske revolucije (Ethier et al 2017). Iako su nesumnjivo važna, fokus ovih istraživanja je, međutim, veoma udaljen od keramičkih studija: u njima je keramika samo izvor podataka, ali ne i predmet istraživanja.…”

Separating caprine (Capra/Ovis) distal tibiae: A case study from the Polish Neolithic

“…As Neolithic agriculture spread from its centre of independent origins in the Near East, its pathway bifurcated in the eastern Mediterranean, with one expansion north through Eastern Europe and another westward along the European shores of the Mediterranean (McClure, ; Rowley‐Conwy, ). The westward expansion maintained the pattern of predominantly caprine husbandry seen in the eastern Mediterranean, whereas the northward expansion gave rise to an increasing frequency of cattle (Manning et al, ), probably as an adaptation to continental life north of the Alps (Ethier et al, ; McClure, ). Despite this adaptive change to temperate ecosystems (Ivanova, De Cupere, Ethier, & Marinova, ) in favour of cattle (Manning et al, ), caprines ( Ovis sp./ Capra sp.)…”