Description: Plant domestication is a complex process in which natural and cultural factors play important roles delimiting evolutionary pathways of plants under cultivation. In order to deal with and understand the changes generated during this process, multi-disciplinary research is required, especially when a full picture of the domestication history of a taxon is to be assessed. We present here some advances in the study of Cucurbita maxima (squash) domestication from an integrated perspective, including experimental, morphometric and archaeobotanical approaches, which are discussed in the light of new data from physiological analyses. Modern material includes plants obtained from experimental fields, derived from crosses between domesticated ( C. maxima ssp. maxima ) and spontaneous/wild forms ( C. maxima ssp. andreana ), resulting in F1 and F2 generations. The archaeobotanical material includes remains recovered from sites in southern Peru and northwest Argentina ranging in date from 3,000 to 800 bp . Morphological and anatomical analyses were conducted on seeds, pericarps and peduncles (the stem of the flower or fruit) for reconstructing squash size and shape evolution under domestication. The results suggest the presence of hybrid forms, mainly from the earlier sites, but also from more recent ones. As expected, a linear evolutionary pathway was not found. Diversity and multiple crossings seem to have been a constant in squash cultivation over time, emphasising the role of gene flows between domestic and wild variants in the domestication process. Finally, we hypothesize the possible linkage between past gene flow and different dormancy patterns as part of management practices, allowing the maintenance of squash populations adapted to different environmental conditions.

Description: In the early 1980s Naomi Miller changed the field of palaeoethnobotany; her research into whether the ancient seed eaters of southwest Asia were human or herbivore opened an ongoing debate over the impact that burning of animal dung had on the formation of archaeobotanical assemblages, and how researchers can differentiate between human and animal food remains. As the number of systematic archaeobotanical studies across West Asia and many other parts of the world increase, we are continually confronted with the question of the significance of dung burning. Herd animal dung is the dominant fuel source in many parts of West Asia today and the high densities of seeds of wild plants in archaeobotanical assemblages suggest that people were using dung as fuel across Inner Asia for millennia. Seed assemblages that represent herd animal dung are assisting scholars in understanding palaeoecology and herd animal diet in the past as well as human economy and pasturing practices. However, interpreting these assemblages is not always simple and there are predictable biases that need to be taken into account, notably an overrepresentation of endozoochoric seeds (seeds dispersed through animal ingestion). In West Asia, the most prominent of such seeds in dung assemblages are from the Amaranthaceae family, notably Chenopodium .

Description: Tracking changes in biodiversity through time requires an understanding of the relationship between modern diversity and how this diversity is preserved in the fossil record. Fossil pollen is one way in which past vegetation diversity can be reconstructed. However, there is limited understanding of modern pollen-vegetation diversity relationships from biodiverse tropical ecosystems. Here, pollen (palynological) richness and diversity (Hill N 1 ) are compared with vegetation richness and diversity from forest and savannah ecosystems in the New World and Old World tropics (Neotropics and Palaeotropics). Modern pollen data were obtained from artificial pollen traps deployed in 1-ha vegetation study plots from which vegetation inventories had been completed in Bolivia and Ghana. Pollen counts were obtained from 15 to 22 traps per plot, and aggregated pollen sums for each plot were 〉 2,500. The palynological richness/diversity values from the Neotropics were moist evergreen forest = 86/6.8, semi-deciduous dry forest = 111/21.9, wooded savannah = 138/31.5, and from the Palaeotropics wet evergreen forest = 144/28.3, semi-deciduous moist forest = 104/4.4, forest-savannah transition = 121/14.1; the corresponding vegetation richness/diversity was 100/36.7, 80/38.7 and 71/39.4 (Neotropics), and 101/54.8, 87/45.5 and 71/34.5 (Palaeotropics). No consistent relationship was found between palynological richness/diversity, and plot vegetation richness/diversity, due to the differential influence of other factors such as landscape diversity, pollination strategy, and pollen source area. Palynological richness exceeded vegetation richness, while pollen diversity was lower than vegetation diversity. The relatively high global diversity of tropical vegetation was found to be reflected in the pollen rain.

Description: This paper reviews vegetation and climate reconstructions for different time scales based on palynological studies in China. It discusses examples of significant developments in palynological research topics within China: (1) Modern pollen—a modern pollen database (East Asia Surface Pollen Database) has been established through the collaboration of Chinese palynologists. Based on these data, modern pollen distributions and their quantitative relationship with vegetation and climate have been thoroughly studied. (2) Pre-Quaternary vegetation and climate dynamics—scientists have mapped pollen and palaeobotanical data from the Palaeogene. The vegetation distributions confirm a north–south zonal pattern during the Palaeogene that changed to an east–west monsoonal pattern during the Miocene and Pliocene. These results provide key evidence for understanding monsoon evolution. (3) Late-Quaternary vegetation—biome reconstructions based on fossil pollen data show spatial and temporal changes in vegetation since the Last Glacial Maximum, permitting a better understanding of climate change across China. (4) Quantitative climate reconstructions—some reconstructions have successfully detected Holocene climate variability thereby providing insights into monsoon history. At present, there are no comprehensive spatial reconstructions. Major possible future developments should focus on: (1) long-term vegetation reconstructions from lakes to study Asian monsoon dynamics at orbital scales; (2) quantitative reconstructions of vegetation and climate change to help stronger integration with palaeoclimate models and dynamic vegetation models; (3) land-cover and land-use change across China over the last 6,000 years to understand human impacts and provide empirical data for climate modellers; and (4) integration of pollen data with vegetation and climate modelling to understand the CO 2 -vegetation relationship and climate dynamics.

Description: From the anthracological study of considerable quantities of charcoal recovered from the excavation of the settlement at Los Castillejos de Montefrío, a synthesis was made of the vegetation dynamics during Recent Prehistory of the area, from the middle of the sixth millennium bc to the beginning of the second millennium bc . The vegetation dynamics mark four anthracological phases over this sequence. From the Late Neolithic (end of the fifth millennium bc ) the influence of different activities such as livestock raising, burning and agriculture become evident in the development of the natural vegetation, altering species composition and appearance frequency. The last anthracological phase, MF4, spanning the second half of the third millennium bc , saw the regeneration of the tree vegetation as certain former activities ceased, indicating the environmental singularity of this enclave within the context of the southern Iberian Peninsula.

Description: With regard to Near Eastern archaeobotanical investigations, Lebanon is still underrepresented. Archaeobotanical data have been obtained from only a few excavation sites, mostly from the Phoenician settlement of Tell el-Burak. The site is situated on the southern coastal plain of Sidon, between Sidon and Tyre. Continuous sampling throughout six seasons of excavations have enabled the detailed investigation of the archaeobotanical material from the site. Due to the fine stratigraphic resolution there, it is possible to examine the development of agricultural resources through the 400 years of Phoenician occupation. Additionally, systematic sampling has allowed investigation of the spatial distribution of botanical remains within certain building structures. The combination of the archaeological results with the data from the charcoal and seeds reinforces the assumption that Tell el-Burak was established by the city of Sidon or the nearby city of Sarepta as a production and trade centre for wine and possibly olive oil. The agricultural resources of grapes and olives were most probably cultivated in the immediate vicinity of the settlement and probably along the western slopes of the hill country further inland.

Description: Until recently the plant economy of the Northern European Bronze Age was only investigated locally or within modern boundaries. New results from the project “Settlements of the Bronze Age” by the Academy of Science and Literature Mainz allow us to now fill part of the remaining gaps in research. Summarizing all available data concerning the plant economy of the Northern European Bronze Age has shown that it constitutes a time of innovation and continuous change. In addition to the omnipresent Triticum dicoccum (emmer) and Hordeum vulgare (barley), this period is marked by the emergence of various new cultivars like T. spelta (spelt) or Camelina sativa (gold-of-pleasure). A comparison between the cereal spectra from several regions in Northern Germany and Scandinavia revealed differences and similarities which allowed for the reconstruction of multiple possible contact zones and various influences from adjacent cultures. Northern Germany and especially Schleswig–Holstein served as an important link for trading over land and by water between the southern areas and Scandinavia. The rising diversity of crop plants in the Late Bronze Age, which is for the first time comparable to the southern regions, reflects the increased trade and therefore stronger influence from beyond the Northern European Bronze Age, which resulted in an accelerated assimilation of innovations and new technologies.

Description: This essay is a contribution to the historiography of Lennart von Post and the early development of quantitative pollen analysis. Based on von Post’s own publications and source material from the archives of Stockholm University College, where he was appointed professor in 1929, the essay offers four points on von Post’s scientific identity and the collective work through which quantitative pollen analysis, or “pollen statistics”, came into being. The four points are, first, that von Post made his career as a geologist; second, that he framed pollen analysis as a means to tackle Quaternary geological issues; third, that his work benefitted from collective work, both in the field and in the laboratory; and fourth, that quantitative pollen analysis was not accepted without criticism, taking some years to break through beyond the Geological Survey, where von Post worked before he became professor.

Description: Quantification of vegetation cover from pollen analysis has been a goal of palynologists since the advent of the method in 1916 by the great Lennart von Post. Pollen-based research projects are becoming increasingly ambitious in scale, and the emergence of spatially extensive open-access datasets, advanced methods and computer power has facilitated sub-continental analysis of Holocene pollen data. This paper presents results of one such study, focussing on the Mediterranean basin. Pollen data from 105 fossil sequences have been extracted from the European Pollen database, harmonised by both taxonomy and chronologies, and subjected to a hierarchical agglomerative clustering method to synthesise the dataset into 16 main groupings. A particular focus of analysis was to describe the common transitions from one group to another to understand pathways of Holocene vegetation change in the Mediterranean. Two pollen-based indices of human impact (OJC: Oleaceae, Juglans, Castanea ; API: anthropogenic pollen indicators) have been used to infer the degree of human modification of vegetation within each pollen grouping. Pollen-inferred cluster groups that are interpreted as representing more natural vegetation states show a restricted number of pathways of change. A set of cluster groups were identified that closely resemble anthropogenically-disturbed vegetation, and might be considered anthromes (anthopogenic biomes). These clusters show a very wide set of potential pathways, implying that all potential vegetation communities identified through this analysis have been altered in response to land exploitation and transformation by human societies in combination with other factors, such as climatic change. Future work to explain these ecosystem pathways will require developing complementary datasets from the social sciences and humanities (archaeology and historical sources), along with synthesis of the climatic records from the region.

Description: The development of palynology since its recognised launch in 1916 by Lennart von Post is examined in terms of its historiography, the biographies of pollen analysts and the role of those who have influenced the discipline. Emphasis is placed upon research beginnings in Scandinavia (especially Sweden), Great Britain and Ireland. Within an analytical narrative which includes archival and published sources, special consideration is given to a ‘proclamation’ on methodology which appeared in 1909, on a supposed geology/botany dichotomy stemming from von Post’s background, on the forgotten early practitioners in Britain and Ireland and their connections, on the role of women up to the end of the Second World War and on issues related to wartime hostilities. Present day palynology can trace a continuity from von Post and palynologists are part of an extended disciplinary genealogy. Ignorance of these can be seen as a loss of heritage and to represent an intellectual impoverishment.