Revisiting the current phyto-scape of Boomplaas Cave (South Africa) and the possible implications of this for past day-range foraging

Lombard, Marlize; Pargeter, Justin

doi:10.1080/0067270x.2024.2348407

Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa

2024

DOI: 10.1080/0067270x.2024.2348407

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Revisiting the current phyto-scape of Boomplaas Cave (South Africa) and the possible implications of this for past day-range foraging

Marlize Lombard,

Justin Pargeter

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The Current Phyto-Scape and Foodplants of Holley Shelter, KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Its Potential for Past Foragers

Lombard,

Bader,

Will

2024

Afr Archaeol Rev

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Current phyto-scapes (plant populations in their geo-spatial context) are not exact replicas of past foraging potential, yet they provide valuable data about the carrying capacity or potential of a foraging-scape. Knowledge about contemporary micro-ecologies and ethno-historical plant use can inform on behavioral aspects, should such plants be found in archaeological deposits. It is in this context that we explore existing information (data and literature) to establish the current vegetation types and micro-ecologies around Holley Shelter, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, that contains Middle and Later Stone Age occupations. We present the first plant species inventory consisting of > 1500 taxa growing approximately a day’s foraging distance from the site, compiled from records provided by the South African National Biodiversity Institute and other sources. From this list, we generated separate checklists for foodplants (n = 450) and plants that have other uses (n = 337), to gain insight into the site’s current phyto-fitness potential. The resulting database is intended as a modern proxy for future work on the site’s archaeo-botany and palaeo-climatic reconstructions. The data is also applicable to other sites on the Savanna/Grassland Biomes of southern Africa with records of the same species. Here we use the foodplant checklist and what is known about the edible plant parts, their seasonality and the distribution of some species to speculate about land-use patterns. These hypotheses can be tested for the past with future archaeo-botanical work. We demonstrate that, compared to archaeological sites in the Eastern and Western Cape for which comparable data exist, Holley Shelter is rich in foodplants, and especially so in plant foods that are known to buffer against famine during the periodical droughts of inland South Africa.

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The Current Phyto-Scape and Foodplants of Holley Shelter, KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Its Potential for Past Foragers

Lombard,

Bader,

Will

2024

Afr Archaeol Rev

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Revisiting the current phyto-scape of Boomplaas Cave (South Africa) and the possible implications of this for past day-range foraging

Cited by 1 publication

References 45 publications

The Current Phyto-Scape and Foodplants of Holley Shelter, KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Its Potential for Past Foragers

The Current Phyto-Scape and Foodplants of Holley Shelter, KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Its Potential for Past Foragers

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