The rôle of man in European vegetation history

Behre, Karl-Ernst

doi:10.1007/978-94-009-3081-0_17

Cited by 251 publications

(184 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Behre 1988;Lang 1994;Gaillard 2007). Through impacts on processes such as evapo-transpiration, changes in albedo, soil stabilization and acidification, mineralization and (de)nitrification, these changes have had strong affects on hydrology, terrestrial and fluvial erosion rates, nutrient cycles, climate and biodiversity (Bonan 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantitative landscape dynamics in Denmark through the last three millennia based on the Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm approach

Nielsen

Odgaard

2010

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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This paper explores the spatial and temporal land-cover variability within the main cultural landscape units in Denmark during the last 3,000 years. Quantitative estimates of the cover of trees, grasses, Cerealia and Calluna around nine Danish lakes were obtained using the recently developed Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm (LRA) (Sugita 2007a, b). The performance of the approach was evaluated by comparing reconstructed vegetation based on A.D. 1800 pollen spectra to land cover from historical maps of the same period. Although the model tended to overestimate grassland cover by 10-20%, the reconstructed vegetation was much more similar to the observed than the uncorrected pollen proportions. The LRA was then applied to 3,000 year long pollen records to reconstruct the vegetation development around each of the nine sites. The results support earlier conclusions regarding the relative stability of woodland, agrarian and heathland dominated landscapes in Denmark (Odgaard and Rasmussen 2000), with the distribution of the main landscape types determined by topography and soil characteristics. The present study indicates that the transition zones between agricultural and forest dominated landscapes were the most dynamic, acting as buffer zones where most of the expansions and contractions of agricultural activities took place. The quantitative vegetation reconstructions underline the importance of farming and especially pastoral activities in shaping the Danish landscapes throughout the study period.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantitative landscape dynamics in Denmark through the last three millennia based on the Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm approach

Nielsen

Odgaard

2010

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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“…The palaeoecological studies from central-eastern and southeastern Europe indicate that humans started to shape the landscape approximately 7000 years ago, and intensified during the last 4000 years. Human activities were complex and marked by changes in the forest composition due to deforestation, forest grazing, extension of pasturelands, and agriculture (Behre, 1988;Ammann, 1989;Willis, 1994Willis, , 1997Willis and Bennett, 1994;Willis et al, 1998;Rösch, 1998;Gardner, 2002;Andriç and Willis, 2003;RalskaJasiewiczowa et al, 2003;Sümegi, 2004). The climate has influenced both natural vegetation and human activities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of human activities in the Gutaiului Mountains, Romania

Feurdean¹,

Astaloş²

2005

Studia UBB Geologia

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ABSTRACT. The examination of pollen and charcoal from the Gutâiului Mountains in northwestern Romania and the archaeological evidence from surroundings provides some information on how past human activities have changed the vegetation in this region. The first evidence of potential human influence upon the woodlands is manifested by fire clearance recorded at approximately 7900 cal. yr BP coinciding with the Early Neolithic. The charcoal peaks at ca. 5750, 3300, 2700, 1500, 1000 cal. yr BP, and during the last 300 years are associated with episodes of decline of main woodland constituents (Ulmus, Tilia, Fraxinus, and Corylus), and the expansion of fire-precursors (Betula, Alnus, and Corylus), and of herb species that indicate an anthropogenic disturbance. The small openings created within the woodlands were probably used as grazing areas. The first signs of agriculture appear at ca. 1500 cal. yr BP. Only during the last 300 years does pollen of the cereals e.g. Secale, Hordeumgroup, Poaceae >40 µm, suggest the spread of arable field in the lowlands (Oaş Depression), but not in the proximity of the study basins.

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“…''wheat of Allah'', Zohary and Hopf 1988). In addition, migration and the cultural exchange pattern should be considered: the late Bronze as well as the Roman Iron ages were the periods of intensified cultural/ agricultural activities throughout Europe (Behre 1988(Behre , 1998Harding 2000;Lang 2007).…”

Section: Human-environment Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Linking past cultural developments to palaeoenvironmental changes in Estonia

Sillasoo

Poska

Seppä

et al. 2009

Veget Hist Archaeobot

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Connections between environmental and cultural changes are analysed in Estonia during the past c. 4,500 years. Records of cereal-type pollen as (agri) cultural indices are compared with high-resolution palaeohydrological and annual mean temperature reconstructions from a selection of Estonian bogs and lakes (and Lake Igelsjön in Sweden). A broad-scale comparison shows increases in the percentage of cereal-type pollen during a decreasing trend in annual mean temperatures over the past c. 4,300 years, suggesting a certain independence of agrarian activities from environmental conditions at the regional level. The first cereal-type pollen in the region is found from a period with a warm and dry climate. A slow increase in pollen of cultivated land is seen around the beginning of the late Bronze Age, a slight increase at the end of the Roman Iron Age and a significant increase at the beginning of the Middle Ages. In a few cases increases in agricultural pollen percentages occur in the periods of warming. Stagnation and regression occurs in the periods of cooling, but regression at individual sites may also be related to warmer climate episodes. The cooling at c. 400-300 cal B.P., during the 'Little Ice Age' coincides with declines in cereal-type and herb pollen curves. These may not, however, be directly related to the climate change, because they coincide with war activities in the region.

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The rôle of man in European vegetation history

Cited by 251 publications

References 17 publications

Quantitative landscape dynamics in Denmark through the last three millennia based on the Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm approach

Quantitative landscape dynamics in Denmark through the last three millennia based on the Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm approach

The impact of human activities in the Gutaiului Mountains, Romania

Linking past cultural developments to palaeoenvironmental changes in Estonia

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