Phytoliths from modern plants in the Canary Islands as a reference for the reconstruction of long-term vegetation change and culture-environment interactions
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12200516 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Alvaro Castilla-Beltrán (0000-0002-0540-9062, Universidad de La Laguna, corresponding author), Enrique Fernández‐Palacios (0000-0002-3055-0009, Universidad de La Laguna), L Vrydaghs (0000-0002-2250-2883, Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Carolina Mallol (0000-0001-5143-4253, Universidad de La Laguna), José María Fernández‐Palacio (0000-0001-9741-6878, Universidad de La Laguna), Lea de Nascimento (0000-0003-1085-2605, Universidad de La Laguna) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 33 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 705-723 |
| Publication date | 2024-04-15 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Vegetation History and Archaeobotany (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0939-6314 • E-ISSN: 1617-6278 |
| Publisher | Springer Science+Business Media (PUBLISHER • DE) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s00334-024-00995-9 |
| OpenAlex | W4394815698 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 43 |
The Canary Islands were the first part of the Macaronesian archipelago to have been settled by humans. The various ways in which the indigenous inhabitants and later European colonisers interacted with the native and endemic flora is a central topic for archaeologists, geographers and ecologists. Floristic changes can be studied from phytoliths which are plant microfossils with a high potential for preservation in sediment deposits and they can help reconstruct past ways of life and vegetation changes through time. However, there is no comprehensive and systematic study and reference collection of phytoliths produced by the flora of the Canary Islands, so far. To make a start with a first phytolith reference collection of a selection of plants relevant for the study of past socio-ecological interactions there, we processed over a hundred modern plant specimens collected on the islands of Tenerife, Gran Canaria and La Palma to obtain the phytoliths from them, using the dry-ashing method. We then described the phytolith morphologies, and counted the numbers of morphotypes for each species. We have categorised taxa according to their phytolith concentration and production of morphotypes with diagnostic potential. Our results suggest that among the selected taxa, species within the Arecaceae, Boraginaceae, Cyperaceae, Poaceae and Urticaceae families are the main native producers of phytoliths in the archipelago. We also identified phytoliths with diagnostic potential in particular species within the Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Cistaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Lamiaceae, Lauraceae, Ranunculaceae and Rubiaceae. We discuss how phytolith assemblages can be interpreted in archaeological sites and sediment records. Our growing reference collection is a significant step towards the application of phytolith analysis to disentangle the long-term climatic and human-driven transformation of this biodiversity hotspot, as well as the cultural use of plant resources
Acanthaceae · Archipelago · Biology · Botany · Cyperaceae · Endemism · Flora (microbiology · Floristics · Geography · Paleoecology · Phytolith · Poaceae · Pollen · Taxon · Urticaceae · Vegetation (pathology · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research · Silicon Effects in Agriculture · Ecology · Paleontology
Understanding Fossil Phytolith Preservation
International Code for Phytolith Nomenclature (ICPN) 2.0
Phytolith analysis
Late Quaternary palynology in marine sediments
Woodworking in the cliffs? Xylological and morpho-technological analyses of wood remains in the Prehispanic granaries of Gran Canaria (Canary Islands, Spain)
Prehistoric agricultural transformations in tropical Remote Oceania
Vitrified wood charcoal and burnt bones from the pre-Hispanic site of Chasogo (Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain)
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The impact of human activities on the natural environment of the Canary Islands (Spain) during the pre-Hispanic stage (3rd–2nd Century BC to 15th Century AD)
Reconstructing Holocene vegetation on the island of Gran Canaria before and after human colonization
Agriculture and crop dispersal in the western periphery of the Old World
Reconstructing formation processes at the Canary Islands indigenous site of Belmaco Cave (La Palma, Spain) through a multiproxy geoarchaeological approach
Archaeoentomological indicators of long-term food plant storage at the Prehispanic granary of La Fortaleza (Gran Canaria, Spain)
The phytolith archaeological record
Directions in current and future phytolith research
A Comparative Analysis of Wet and Dry Ashing Techniques for the Extraction of Phytoliths from Plant Material
Quantitative Phytolith Study of Hearths from the Natufian and Middle Palaeolithic Levels of Hayonim Cave (Galilee, Israel)
An Evolutionary Approach to the History of Barley (Hordeum vulgare) Cultivation in the Canary Islands
Global change in microcosms
Fuel sources, natural vegetation and subsistence at a high-altitude aboriginal settlement in Tenerife, Canary Islands
Du laurier dans les greniers de Grande Canarie
| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 2 |