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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

The origins of Amazonian landscapes: Plant cultivation, domestication and the spread of food production in tropical South America

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Author(s):
Iriarte, Jose [1] ; Elliott, Sarah [2] ; Maezumi, S. Yoshi [3] ; Alves, Daiana [4] ; Gonda, Regina [1] ; Robinson, Mark [1] ; de Souza, Jonas Gregorio [5] ; Watling, Jennifer [6] ; Handley, Josephine [7]
Total Authors: 9
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Exeter, Coll Humanities, Dept Archaeol, Laver Bldg, North Pk Rd, Exeter EX4 4QE, Devon - England
[2] Bournemouth Univ, Dept Archaeol & Anthropol, Poole BH12 5BB, Dorset - England
[3] Univ Amsterdam, Inst Biodivers & Ecosyst Dynam, Ecosyst & Landscape Dynam, Sci Pk 904, Postbus 94240, NL-1090 Amsterdam - Netherlands
[4] Fed Univ Para, Dept Anthropol, Guama Campus, R Augusto Correa 01, BR-66075110 Belem, Para - Brazil
[5] Univ Pompeu Fabra, Culture & Socioecol Dynam, Edifici Merce Rodoreda C Ramon Trias Fargas 25-27, Barcelona 08005 - Spain
[6] Univ Sao Paulo, Museum Archaeol & Ethnol, Av Prof Almeida Prado 1466, Cidade Univ, BR-05508070 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil
[7] Univ Reading, Dept Archaeol, Reading RG6 6AX, Berks - England
Total Affiliations: 7
Document type: Journal article
Source: QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS; v. 248, NOV 15 2020.
Web of Science Citations: 11
Abstract

During the last two decades, new archaeological projects which systematically integrate a variety of plant recovery techniques, along with palaeoecology, palaeoclimate, soil science and floristic inventories, have started to transform our understanding of plant exploitation, cultivation and domestication in tropical South America. Archaeobotanical studies are providing a far greater appreciation of the role of plants in the diets of early colonists. Since similar to 13ka, these diets relied mainly on palm, tree fruits, and underground tubers, along with terrestrial and riverine faunal resources. Recent evidence indicates two areas of precocious plant cultivation and domestication: the sub-Andean montane forest of NW South America and the shrub savannahs and seasonal forests of SW Amazonia. In the latter area, thousands of anthropic keystone structures represented by forest islands show a significant human footprint in Amazonia from the start of the Holocene. While radiocarbon date databases show a decline in population during the middle Holocene, important developments happened during this epoch, including the domestication of cacao, the adoption of maize and the spread of manioc across the basin. The late Holocene witnessed the domestication of rice and the development of agricultural landscapes characterised by raised fields and Amazonian Dark Earths (ADEs). Our multi-proxy analysis of 23 late Holocene ADEs and two lakes from southern Amazonia provides the first direct evidence of field polyculture agriculture including the cultivation of maize, manioc, sweet potato, squash, arrowroot and leren within closed-canopy forest, as well as enrichment with palms, limited clearing for crop cultivation, and low-severity fire management. Collectively, the evidence shows that during the late Holocene Amazonian farmers engaged in intensive agriculture marked by the cultivation of both annual and perennial crops relying on organic amendments requiring soil preparation and maintenance. Our study has broader implications for sustainable Amazonian futures. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 17/25157-0 - Peoples, plants and landscapes in Amazônia
Grantee:Jennifer Watling
Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Young Investigators Grants