Holocene coastal environmental changes inferred by multi-proxy analysis from Lago Formoso sediments in Maranhão State, northeastern Brazil

Formoso Stilt Village: An Incised-Punctate/Arauquinoid Tradition Phase in Maranhão, Brazilian Amazon

“…In this set, a Russian peat corer was carried out in which 3 dates were performed (Figure 10). The archaeological package is 48 centimeters deep and is composed of sediments and sand-colored Greenish black 5 GY 2/1 (Alves et al, 2021). The first 11 centimeters of the stratigraphy have less organic material dating from 856 -988 cal AD/1094 -962 cal BP.…”

Millennial-scale variability of vegetation and fire activity in a northern Cerrado driven by an east-west rainfall gradient during the Holocene

“…A pollen data-based reconstruction showed that the Cerrado biome represented a pathway between both rainforests during glacial epochs (De Oliveira et al, 2020; Ledru and Araújo, 2023). During mid and Late-Holocene, in a region covered today by a xeric shrubland vegetation (Caatinga in Portuguese), moister vegetation were observed in the central-eastern region (de Moraes et al, 2020; Oliveira et al, 1999) and in the northern mountains (Montade et al, 2014), while rainforest (Alves de Moraes et al, 2021; Moraes et al, 2022) and woody cerrado (Ledru et al, 2006) predominated in the northwestern coastal lowlands. In NEB, the Cerrado is distributed in the western region, from Piauí to Maranhão States, covering 14% of the area (Castro et al, 2007; Ratter et al, 2003) with ecotones with the two neighboring biomes, the Caatinga and the Amazon forest (Figure 1a) (Sano et al, 2009).…”

“…Changes in the intensity and position of Intertropical Convergence Zone and sea surface temperature variability in the tropical Atlantic during the Mid-Late Holocene have been associated with environmental changes and establishment of the rainforest in the southeastern Amazon-NEB boundary (Hermanowski et al, 2012). Paleoecological studies in NEB are located in the north-western coastal region (Alves de Moraes et al, 2021; Ledru et al, 2006; Moraes et al, 2022), in the northernmost mountain range (Montade et al, 2014) and in the central semi-arid region (de Moraes et al, 2020; Oliveira et al, 1999). Consequently, past vegetation dynamic reconstructions are limited as (1) the records are mostly located in the easternmost region which is under the Intertropical Convergence Zone influence, (2) the low resolution of pollen analysis could mask the occurrence of small scale variations, (3) half of the records showed vegetation changes strongly coupled with sea level oscillations and thermal variability of tropical Atlantic ocean (e.g.…”

“…Consequently, past vegetation dynamic reconstructions are limited as (1) the records are mostly located in the easternmost region which is under the Intertropical Convergence Zone influence, (2) the low resolution of pollen analysis could mask the occurrence of small scale variations, (3) half of the records showed vegetation changes strongly coupled with sea level oscillations and thermal variability of tropical Atlantic ocean (e.g. Alves de Moraes et al, 2021; Ledru et al, 2006; Moraes et al, 2022). The high-resolution pollen record from Lake Caçó north-western NEB does not show the last 3000 years.…”

Ancestral Waters: Material Culture, Notion of Transformation and Shamanism in the Stilt Villages in Eastern Amazonia

“…The name of the sites derived from the wooden posts that supported the villages built in the lakes of the estuarine region of Baixada Maranhense, in order to avoid contact with the waters (Alves de Moraes et al . 2021; Gonçalves et al . 2021; Navarro 2018a,b; Navarro et al 2017).…”