First evidence of agro-pastoral farming and anthropogenic impact in the Taman Peninsula, Russiaстатья
Статья опубликована в высокорейтинговом журнале
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Дата последнего поиска статьи во внешних источниках: 28 мая 2015 г.
Аннотация:The debate on the complex coevolution that has shaped the interactions between forested ecosystems and humans through constantly evolving land-use practices over the past millennia has long been centered on the Mediterranean as this wide area was the cradle to the birth and growth of agricultural activities. Here we argue that the transition from hunting-gathering by Mesolithic foragers to the food-producing economy of Neolithic farmers was a main trigger of biological changes not only in the Mediterranean but also on the Black Sea and Azov Sea coasts through woodcutting, herding, fire and agriculture. Although the ecological erosion was clearly focused on forested ecosystems, this process seems to have fostered an increased biodiversity. We show, by focusing on the fertile coast of the Azov Sea, that (i) the first evidence of cereal cultivation and human-induced fire occurred in southern Russia 7000 years ago (the northern Pontic steppe belt ); (ii) the early development of agriculture was a major but discontinuous process; (iii) the coastal ecosystems (may be better – inland landscape) were rapidly disturbed by anthropogenic activities; and (iv) the Neolithic revolution was a critical threshold for the coastal forested ecosystems. (in this region - not only, but mainly by follow-up reductions in humidity) The impact of early anthropogenic pressures seem to have been largely neglected or underestimated for the period encompassing the Neolithic cultural phase.