Holocene history of environment and human impact on two islands in the Ostholstein lakeland area, Northern Germany

Littoral landforms and pedosedimentary sequences indicating late Holocene lake-level changes in northern central Europe — A case study from northeastern Germany

“…A review of lake-level records from northern Poland shows inconsistent water levels for the last c. 1000 years (Starkel, 2003) that were probably influenced by both climatic and anthropogenic factors, triggering different hydrological responses of lakes. In the Ostholstein Lakeland area (NW Germany) extremely high lake levels were reconstructed for the period between c. 1300 and 1800 AD, which may correspond with both the cold-humid climate influence of the Little Ice Age and artificial control (damming) of the regional river system (Wieckowska et al, 2012). A compilation of several lake-level records in southern Sweden came to the conclusion that the successively increased humidity during the late Holocene resulted in a general rise in lake levels, particularly from c. 500 AD onwards (Berglund et al, 1996).…”

A Day at the Bog: Preliminary Interpretation of Prehistoric Human Occupation at Ancient Lake Duvensee (Germany) by GPR Structures

“…Such care would already be suppressing other trees, because hazel has a much higher nut yield in the sun rather than in the shade. Large amounts of micro-charcoal together with plant disturbance and erosion indicators, as demonstrated on other islands in lakes of eastern Schleswig-Holstein in Mesolithic stratigraphies [55,56], could be the result of such cultivation. Thinning that that allowed light back into the interior of the crown was also important for high yield and was easy to perform.…”

“…Thinning that that allowed light back into the interior of the crown was also important for high yield and was easy to perform. Other explanations point in the opposite direction, that the maintenance of hazel on the islands is thought to have served to produce numerous tasty young shoots to attract hunting prey [55][56][57]. However, since remains of roe deer, red deer, or elk were largely absent from the archaeological sites in the Duvensee microregion, but hazelnuts were collected and consumed in large quantities instead, this latter explanation seems less plausible.…”

Towards a refined understanding of the use of coastal zones in the Mesolithic: New investigations on human–environment interactions in Telemark, southeastern Norway

“…These woodland disturbances are indicated by short-term fluctuations in arboreal pollen, abrupt changes in tree pollen curves, and increases in palynological diversity within the light-demanding and/or nitrophilous taxa (Bishop et al, 2015;Bos et al, 2005;Boyd and Dickson, 1986;Brown, 1997;Edwards, 2004;Gumiński and Michniewicz, 2002;Hörnberg et al, 2005;Huntley, 1993;Iversen, 1973;Kuneš et al, 2008;Latalowa, 1992;Poska et al, 2004;Wacnik, 2005). Furthermore, the presence of microscopic charcoal particles (Edwards, 1990;Edwards et al, 2007;Innes et al, 2010;Mason, 2000;Mighall et al, 2008;Wieckowska et al, 2012) and the occurrence of certain non-pollen-palynomorphs (NPP) indicative of grazing, local burning, soil erosion or accumulation of dead organic material provide additional evidence of disturbance within the vegetation (Edwards, 1990;Innes et al, 2010;Mason, 2000;Mighall et al, 2008;Wieckowska et al, 2012).…”