1) Sediment cores and archaeological evidence from the El Collado site in Spain show how changes in the coastal ecosystem affected human occupation from 9500-5800 BP. 2) As sea levels rose, a coastal lagoon migrated inland over time, shrinking in size and changing from brackish to fresh water. 3) Early Mesolithic communities intensively exploited diverse lagoon resources, but occupation became more ephemeral as the lagoon contracted and marine resources declined. 4) By 5800 BP, the disappearing lagoon no longer supported human settlements in the coastal area.

1. Reconstruction and impact of seascape
evolution on Mesolithic communities
in the Mediterranean Iberia
Elodie Brisset, J. Fernández-López de Pablo, F. Burjachs
(IPHES, Univ. Rovira i Virgili, ICREA - Spain)
MARIE SKLODOWSKA-CURIE
ACTION MedCoRes: n°704822

2. Context
Global scale : sea-level rise projection
Local/regional scale : erosion, flooding, biodiversity loss, …
Challenges for resilience of society in coastal areas

3. Early Holocene
• Rapid sea level rise
• Economic intensification
Benjamin et al. 2017 (Quat. Int.)
To what extent changes on coastal ecosystem affected
patterns of human exploitation and occupation?
Working hypothesis
An analogue
to better understand
human resilience
• change in ecosystem resources
• loss of settlement area
Expectation

4. Integrated research framework
• parallel investigation of environmental and archaeological records
• interpretation together
Case study: Western Mediterranean (Valencia, Spain)
ARCHAEOLOGICAL DATA
• Lithostratigraphy
• Lithic industry
• Human burial, paleodiet
• Biotic content
• Radiocarbon chronology
1. Detailed dataset comparisons
2. Confrontation data/model
Approach / methods
SEDIMENTARY RECORD
• Transect of sediment cores
• Sedimentology
• Biotic content
• Radiocarbon chronology

5. Study site
El Collado
archaeological site
new cores
integration of previous works
Dense coverage of the basin
Viñals and Fumanal, 1995

6. Results
- Sedimentary facies characterisation
Lagoonal brackish waters
Dupré et al., 1988
pre-Holocene
coastal lagoon
marine
sands
marine
sands
coastal
lagoon
coastal
lagoon
(Ammonia beccarii, Cerastauderma glaucum)
colluvial
-11 m >
pre-Holocene

7. Results
- Architecture of the sedimentary facies
4 levels of
lagoon facies
Backward migration
of the coastline
Maximal inland
sea position (4 km)
New lagoon
formation
- Chronostratigraphy
19 14C ages (cal. BP)
9500
8200
7300
5800

8. - El Collado: Mesolithic cemetery
14 individual burials
Lithic industry
LEVEL I
LEVEL II
LEVEL IV
EPIPALEOLITHIC
EARLY
MESOLITHIC
LATE
MESOLITHIC
Aparicio, 2008
Results

9. Fernández-López de Pablo
and Gabriel (2016)
Early
Mesolithic
Initial
occupation
Late
Mesolithic
Marine gasteropods, bivalves + fishs
Habitat: brackish waters, sand/mud flats
C. glaucum
frequency + size decrease
Results
- El Collado: Mollusc assemblages

10. Interpretation
Reproduced coastal lagoon offered a diversity of resource
sustaining human consumption for generations
Long-lasting occupation,
lagoon species collection, 25%
marine proteins in human diet
Brisset et al. (2018)
Global and Planetary Change
1020-1960 yrs (2σ)

11. Interpretation
Contraction of the coastal lagoon explains the less intense marine
exploitation and more ephemeral occupations
More ephemeral occupation
↘ marine mollusc and ↘ size
Long-lasting occupation,
lagoon species collection, 25%
marine proteins in human diet
Brisset et al. (2018)
Global and Planetary Change

12. Interpretation
More ephemeral occupation
↘ marine mollusc and ↘ size
No evidence of coastal
occupation
Long-lasting occupation,
lagoon species collection, 25%
marine proteins in human diet
Lagoon disappearance reduced the carrying capacity of the
ecosystem rendering coastal areas less attractive to last foragers
Brisset et al. (2018)
Global and Planetary Change

13. Conclusion
Interdisciplinary approach of past socio-ecosystems
Methodology
- Multiproxies records (both environmental and human)
- Comparable, high-resolution chronologies
Comparison of the empirical data
To prove the contemporaneity between events
To identify plausible links (cascade of responses)
• Long-lasting lagoonal resources sustained human consumption for
generations
• Tension on resource led to less intense exploitation and more
ephemeral occupation
• Ecosystem losses rendered the coastal band less attractive

14. MARIE SKLODOWSKA-CURIE ACTION
MedCoRes: n°704822
El Collado