History of the Litovelské Pomoraví woodland (NE Czech Republic): A comparison of archaeo-anthracological, pedoanthracological, and pollen data

Abstract

Although charcoal and pollen analyses have been used for many years for the reconstruction of the vegetation history, the combination and comparison of their records is still not commonly used. Our study focuses on the lowland region of Litovelské Pomoraví in NE Czech Republic, which is characterised by the presence of long-term human activities. The archaeo-anthracological records were used to reconstruct a species composition of woodland in the vicinity of archaeological sites. This vegetation was characterised by an abundant presence of heliophilous and stress tolerant arboreal taxa. The pedoanthracological record documented a history of local vegetation, which was usually more distant from archaeological sites. Although pedoanthracological profiles were excavated from analogical locations, with the recent dominance of Quercus, the species composition confirmed the importance of environmental differences in the vicinity of the localities. The cluster analysis of our charcoal dataset differentiated six woodland types in the study area, and the pollen analysis provided a record of the vegetation history from another habitat. The pollen analysis reveal not only closed local canopy vegetation but also influence of fire events and human impact on pollen rain. The cross-correlation of archaeo-anthracological, pedoanthracological and pollen data provided a comprehensive reconstruction and interpretation of the vegetation history of this lowland habitat.