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Antoine E, Marquer L, Muigg B, Tegel W, Bisson U, Bolliger M, Herzig F, Heussner KU, Hofmann J, Kontic R, Kyncl T, Land A, Lechterbeck J, Leuschner HH, Linderholm HW, Neyses-Eiden M, Rösch M, Rzepecki A, Walder F, Weidemüller J, Westphal T, Seim A. Legacy of last millennium timber use on plant cover in Central Europe: Insights from tree rings and pollen. Sci Total Environ 2024; 922:171157. [PMID: 38412879 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
Throughout history, humans have relied on wood for constructions, tool production or as an energy source. How and to what extent these human activities have impacted plant abundance and composition over a long-term perspective is, however, not well known. To address this knowledge gap, we combined 44,239 precisely dated tree-ring samples from economically and ecologically important tree species (spruce, fir, pine, oak) from historical buildings, and pollen-based plant cover estimates using the REVEALS model from 169 records for a total of 34 1° × 1° grid cells for Central Europe. Building activity and REVEALS estimates were compared for the entire study region (4-15°E, 46-51°N), and for low (<500 m asl) and mid/high elevations (≥500 m asl) in 100-year time windows over the period 1150-1850. Spruce and oak were more widely used in wooden constructions, amounting to 35 % and 32 %, respectively, compared to pine and fir. Besides wood properties and species abundance, tree diameters of harvested individuals, being similar for all four species, were found to be the most crucial criterion for timber selection throughout the last millennium. Regarding land use changes, from the 1150-1250's onwards, forest cover generally decreased due to deforestation until 1850, especially at lower elevations, resulting in a more heterogeneous landscape. The period 1650-1750 marks a distinct change in the environmental history of Central Europe; increasing agriculture and intense forest management practices were introduced to meet the high demands of an increasing population and intensifying industrialization, causing a decrease in palynological diversity, especially at low elevations. Likely the characteristic vegetation structure and composition of contemporary landscapes originated from that period. We further show that land use has impacted vegetation composition and diversity at an increasing speed leading to a general homogenization of landscapes through time, highlighting the limited environmental benefits of even-aged plantation forestry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma Antoine
- Department of Botany, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Laurent Marquer
- Department of Botany, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Bernhard Muigg
- Amt für Archäologie, Kanton Thurgau, Frauenfeld, Switzerland; Forest History, Institute of Forest Sciences, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Willy Tegel
- Amt für Archäologie, Kanton Thurgau, Frauenfeld, Switzerland; Forest Growth and Dendroecology, Institute of Forest Sciences, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Ugo Bisson
- Department of Botany, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Matthias Bolliger
- Archaeological Service of Canton Bern, Prehistoric- and Underwaterarchaeology, Dendrochronology, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Franz Herzig
- Bavarian State Office for Monument Protection, Thierhaupten, Germany
| | | | - Jutta Hofmann
- Jahrringlabor Hofmann und Reichle, Nürtingen, Germany
| | | | | | - Alexander Land
- University of Hohenheim, Institute of Biology (190a), Stuttgart, Germany
| | | | - Hanns Hubert Leuschner
- Department of Palynology and Climate Dynamics, Georg-August-University, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Hans W Linderholm
- University of Gothenburg, Department of Earth Sciences, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Mechthild Neyses-Eiden
- State of Rhineland-Palatinate Museum Trier, Laboratory of Dendrochronology, Trier, Germany
| | - Manfred Rösch
- Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte und Vorderasiatische Archäologie, Universität Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Andreas Rzepecki
- State of Rhineland-Palatinate Museum Trier, Laboratory of Dendrochronology, Trier, Germany
| | - Felix Walder
- Competence Center for Underwater Archaeology and Dendrochronology, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Julia Weidemüller
- Bavarian State Office for Monument Protection, Thierhaupten, Germany
| | - Thorsten Westphal
- Laboratory of Dendroarchaeology, Department of Prehistoric Archaeology, University of Cologne, Germany
| | - Andrea Seim
- Department of Botany, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria; Forest Growth and Dendroecology, Institute of Forest Sciences, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
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Pichler T, Nicolussi K, Goldenberg G, Hanke K, Kovács K, Thurner A. Charcoal from a prehistoric copper mine in the Austrian Alps: dendrochronological and dendrological data, demand for wood and forest utilisation. J Archaeol Sci 2013; 40:992-1002. [PMID: 23565025 PMCID: PMC3617598 DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2012.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2012] [Revised: 09/05/2012] [Accepted: 09/07/2012] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
During prehistory fire-setting was the most appropriate technique for exploiting ore deposits. Charcoal fragments found in the course of archaeological excavations in a small mine called Mauk E in the area of Schwaz/Brixlegg (Tyrol, Austria) are argued to be evidence for the use of this technology. Dendrochronological analyses of the charcoal samples yielded calendar dates for the mining activities showing that the exploitation of the Mauk E mine lasted approximately one decade in the late 8th century BC. Dendrological studies show that the miners utilised stem wood of spruce and fir from forests with high stand density for fire-setting and that the exploitation of the Mauk E mine had only a limited impact on the local forests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Pichler
- Institute of Geography, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
- Institute of Mountain Research: Man and Environment, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Technikerstraße 21a, Otto Hittmair-Platz 1, ICT, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
| | - Kurt Nicolussi
- Institute of Geography, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
| | - Gert Goldenberg
- Institute of Archaeologies, University of Innsbruck, Langer Weg 11, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
| | - Klaus Hanke
- Institute of Basic Sciences in Civil Engineering, Surveying and Geoinformation, University of Innsbruck, Technikerstraße 13, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
| | - Kristóf Kovács
- Institute of Basic Sciences in Civil Engineering, Surveying and Geoinformation, University of Innsbruck, Technikerstraße 13, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
| | - Andrea Thurner
- Institute of Geography, University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, Innsbruck 6020, Austria
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