Site Catchment Research Articles

Temporal inequality in catchment discharge and solute export

A framework is developed for characterizing the temporal inequality of stream discharge and solute loads to receiving waters using Lorenz diagrams and the associated Gini coefficient, G. These descriptors are used to illustrate a broad range of observed flow variability with a synthesis of multidecadal flow data from 22 rivers in Florida. Multidecadal phosphorus load data from four of the primary tributaries to Lake Okeechobee, Florida, and sodium and nitrate load data from nine of the Hubbard Brook, New Hampshire, long‐term study site catchments are used to examine the relation between the inequality of flow and load. The intra‐annual loads to Lake Okeechobee are shown to be highly unequal, such that 90% of the annual load is delivered in as little as 15% of the time. Analytic expressions are developed for measures of inequality in terms of parameters of the lognormal distribution under general conditions that include periods of zero flow. In cases where variability of concentrations is low compared to that of flows (chemostatic conditions), such as for phosphorus in the Lake Okeechobee basin and sodium in Hubbard Brook, the temporal inequality of flow is a strong surrogate for load inequality. However, in cases where variability of concentrations is high compared to that of flows (chemodynamic conditions), such as for nitrate in the Hubbard Brook catchments, load inequality is greater than flow inequality. The measured degree of correspondence between flow and load inequality for these data sets is shown to be well described using the general inequality framework introduced here.

Site Catchment Analysis of Balathal

The excavations at Balathal (Udaipur district, Rajasthan), have produced evidence in respect to the origin of early farming community of Central India and brought to light traces of infant urbanization or proto-urbanization. There is also strong indications of a class-structured society and craft specialization. Site catchment analysis of Balathal will help to assess economic potential of the site; exploitation of natural resources, the nature of interaction with the sites located in the catchment area of Balathal and beyond and also determine the reasons for location of the site in a particular environmental niche.

A GIS method for assessing the zone of human-environmental impact around archaeological sites: a test case from the Late Neolithic of Wadi Ziqlâb, Jordan

Assessing the impact of prehistoric sites on their local environment is difficult to accomplish with standard archaeological methods. Simulation modeling offers a solution to this issue, but it is first necessary to delimit a site catchment, or “zone of impact”, around archaeological sites in which to carry out human–environment interaction modeling. To that end, I have developed a new method for GIS-based catchment reconstruction and distilled it into a custom module ( r.catchment) for GRASS GIS, which calculates catchments of a given area based on anisotropic travel costs from a point of origin. One method of applying this new module in exploratory catchment modeling is discussed using the pastoral economy of the Late Neolithic period in Wadi Ziqlâb, Northern Jordan as a test case. A model of Late Neolithic herding economy and ecology is constructed, which combines data from archaeology, phytogeography, range science, agronomy, and ethnohistory. Four sizes of pastoral catchments are then derived using r.catchment, and the herd ecology model is used to estimate the stocking-rate (carrying capacity) of mixed goat and sheep herds for each catchment. The human populations these herd numbers could support (between 3 and 630 people in the Wadi) are then compared with human population estimates derived from household architectural analyses (between 18 and 54 people in the Wadi) to determine the most probable catchment configurations. The results indicate that the most probable zone of impact around the known Late Neolithic sites in Wadi Ziqlâb was somewhere between 9 and 20 square kilometers, delineated by 3 and 4.5 km pasture radii respectively.

Ecological quality of small mountainous Mediterranean streams (river type R-M4) and performance of the European intercalibration metrics

Ten small streams of high altitude were assigned to the R-M4 intercalibration river type (small/medium Mediterranean mountainous rivers) and examined to determine their benthic macroinvertebrate fauna, their physicochemical and hydromorphological parameters and their water quality, quarterly for two consecutive years. Physicochemical variables were consistent with the mountainous character of the streams and fluctuated within the European Community legislation limits for drinking water. Benthic macroinvertebrate fauna communities were diverse and sensitive to organic pollution, and samples were grouped by time more strongly than place. Site size and catchment area influenced the macroinvertebrate community more than the rest of the measured abiotic variables. The water quality was good or high, but at the smaller streams its interpretation was affected by summer drought. The water quality boundaries of the Hellenic Evaluation System were harmonised with the water quality boundaries of a European benchmark database, according to the methodology followed by the Mediterranean Intercalibration Group.

Scaling of dominant runoff generation processes: Nested catchments approach using multiple tracers

Low‐flow stream chemistry and rainfall event reactions of nested catchments in the mesoscale Dreisam catchment in the Black Forest Mountains, southwest Germany, were analyzed to investigate how the dominant runoff generation processes change with scale. The catchment sizes range from a 0.015 km2 headwater catchment to the 258 km2 Dreisam catchment. Synoptic sampling during low flows was used to address the spatial heterogeneity of the investigated tracers. Six events were sampled using three different experimental designs with the environmental tracers dissolved silica, oxygen‐18, deuterium, and potassium to investigate event processes at different scales. Results are elucidated with respect to the widely noticed Representative Elementary Area (REA) concept. Most of the observed differences between the catchments could be related to changes in the topography and other catchment properties (i.e., soils, geology, land use). The test site catchments less than 1–2 km2 were found to be nonrepresentative of the runoff generation in larger catchments due to the topographic structure and a reduced number of hydrological response units (HRU) and, consequently, generated runoff components. In catchments larger than 40 km2 an additional runoff component, the surface runoff from urban areas, became increasingly important. However, surprisingly small differences in the tracer responses at catchments between 1 and 40 km2 were observed. Although the lower threshold (1–2 km2) was similar for both methods (low‐flow and event investigations), results suggest that the thresholds depend on the investigated scale and hydrological parameters as well as the catchment properties. Applying microscale tracer methods at the mesoscale provided detailed insights into the scaling of the dominant runoff processes. The results show that this approach is an important component when addressing the scaling behavior besides the numerous microscale studies and modeling approaches. However, quantitative interpretations are limited owing to inherent heterogeneity at this scale.

Oikos/Anthropos: Rationality, Technology, Infrastructure

<i>Oikos/Anthropos</i>: Rationality, Technology, Infrastructure

Anthropogenic effects on the biodiversity of riparian wetlands of a northern temperate landscape

Land uses such as forestry and agriculture are presumed to degrade the biodiversity of riparian wetlands in the northern temperate regions of the United States. In order to improve land use decision making in this landscape, floral and faunal communities of 15 riparian wetlands associated with low-order streams were related to their surrounding land cover to establish which organismal groups are affected by anthropogenic disturbance and whether these impacts are scale-specific. Study sites were chosen to represent a gradient of disturbance. Vascular plants of wet meadow and shrub carr communities, aquatic macro-invertebrates, amphibians, fish and birds were surveyed, and total abundance, species richness and Shannon diversity were calculated. For each site, anthropogenic disturbances were evaluated at local and landscape scales (500, 1000, 2500 and 5000 m from the site and the site catchment) from field surveys and a geographic information system (GIS). Land use data were grouped into six general land use types: urban, cultivated, rangeland, forest, wetland and water. Shrub carr vegetation, bird and fish diversity and richness generally decrease with increasing cultivation in the landscape. Amphibian abundance decreases and fish abundance increases as the proportions of open water and rangeland increases; bird diversity and richness increase with forest and wetland extent in the landscape. Wet meadow vegetation, aquatic macro-invertebrates, amphibians and fish respond to local disturbances or environmental conditions. Shrub carr vegetation, amphibians and birds are influenced by land use at relatively small landscape scales (500 and 1000 m), and fish respond to land use at larger landscape scales (2500, 5000 m and the catchment). Effective conservation planning for these riparian wetlands requires assessment of multiple organismal groups, different types of disturbance and several spatial scales.1998 Academic Press

Environment and Animal Procurement by the Mogollon of the Southwest

Prehistoric horticulturalists of the American Southwest relied on crop complexes for much of their vegetal diet, but also relied heavily on hunting and trapping. Permanent settlement by the Mogollon resulted in resource depression of larger animal taxa (primarily artiodactyls) in some areas that could not withstand sustained human predation. This resulted in the predation of smaller animals (primarily jackrabbits, cottontail rabbits, and rodents) that could withstand intensive predation. The extent to which small animal taxa were incorporated into the prehistoric food regime is closely tied to the inability of the site catchment environments to support viable populations of larger taxa capable of withstanding human predation. This scenario is exemplified by five Mogollon sites from western and southwestern New Mexico.

An analysis of site catchment areas for chambered cairns on the island of Arran

This project evaluates the techniques of site catchment analysis with reference to six chambered cairns on Arran. By construction of a database derived from the measurement of 13 factors at a 200 m interval, it was possible on a quantitative basis to compare the results from different cairn area definitions and then to contrast the natures of these areas based on an assessment of the best definitions.. The effect of catchment size is demonstrated with larger sizes preferred; in addition delimitation using natural topography gives a better result. When the attributes of the cairn areas are compared, a clear distinction emerges between northern and southern cairns. It is suggested that the quantification of land attributes in site catchments should be considered of equal value to the typological classification of sites.

Formative Period Political Differentiation in the Southern Valley of Mexico: A Comment on Steponaitis

In his recent article, Steponaitis (AA 83: 320-363, 1981) presents an interpretation of the relationship between political differentiation, site size, and catchment productivity for the Formative Period in portions of the Valley of Mexico. This analysis focuses on data from the Texcoco, Ixtalapa, Chalco, and Xochimilco regions in the southern Valley of Mexico. In essence, Steponaitis suggests that larger sites reflect differences in population sizes, which are, in turn, a function of the productivity of a site's catchment and its position within a regional political hierarchy (p. 325). In exploring the relationship between these three major variables, Steponaitis indicates that, in the absence of political differentiation, there is a direct positive relationship between population (as measured by site size) and the productivity of a site's catchment (p. 326, Fig. 2a). As political differentiation emerges, higher-order sites will begin to occur. Second-order sites termed are argued to contain both economic producers and nonproducers (p. 327). The nonproducers in these local centers are said to be supported jointly by the producers that also reside there and by the extraction of tribute from nucleated villages that occur on the lowest tier of the regional hierarchy. Steponaitis argues that this process characterizes the emergence of local centers in the Late Formative Period in the

Dietary change in the Epi-Paleolithic and Neolithic of the Levant : the Sr/Ca evidence

Site catchment surveys, dental-wear analyses and conventional archaeological studies have provided a complex, often contradictory picture of the diet of Natufian and other Epi-Paleolithic peoples. In order to clarify the variability and possible diachronic changes in diet during this period, strontium-calcium ratios (Sr/Ca) were determined for all Kebaran, Natufian and PPNA sites in the Levant from which appropriate faunal and human samples were available. At all Kebaran and Early Natufian levels, including Kebara В and C, Hayonim Cave В and El Wad B, a moderate consumption of cereal foods was detectable. However the consumption of cereal foods was found to markedly decrease in the later Natufian at Mallaha and Nahal Oren. With the domestication of cereals in the PPNA, these foods were found to regain their previous importance in human diets.

Site exploitation territories and topography: Two case studies from palaeolithic spain

Several methods of relating on-site and off-site data for developing and testing hypotheses about man-environment relationships and prehistoric subsistence economies have been devised since the original proposal for site-catchment analysis in 1970. We review the principles involved in these methods, and emphasize the importance of distinguishing clearly between Site Catchments (SCs) and Site Exploitation Territories (SETs). We propose that the distorting effects of variable topography have crucial importance in understanding the tactical reasons for using particular sites in regional exploitation strategies and demonstrate a simple technique for calculating this distortion. Two case studies from the Upper Palaeolithic of Spain show the potential of the technique. One focuses on the relationships between site clusters, the other explores the relationships between sites within site clusters.

Site-Catchment Analysis: Applications to Iowa Archaeology

AbstractThe on-going archaeological evaluation of federally funded projects in Iowa requires a comprehensive research program if the results obtained are to be of value. Site-catchment analysis is seen as a useful way to integrate these diversified projects and systematically to study the archaeological findings from them. Site-catchment principles are applied to Iowa archaeology by establishing an environmental diversity index for site catchments that measures the potential of an area for the presence of archaeological sites and for the extent and intensity of human use. Three examples from Iowa based on this approach are presented; they show how site-catchment studies have been used to predict site locations, analyze the environmental contexts of sites, and to determine site function, size, and distribution.

Geoarchaeology: The Geologist and Archaeology

Geoarchaeology is the contribution from earth sciences to the resolution of geology-related problems in archaeology. Its scope is wide, encompassing (1) locating archaeological sites, (2) evaluating the geomorphic landscape for site catchment activities and site location, (3) studying regional stratigraphic and microstratigraphic materials for relative dating and recognition of lateral and vertical distribution of activity areas, (4) analyzing sediments for the elucidation of site-forming processes and quantification of microarchaeological (sub-macroscopic) remains, (5) analyzing paleoenvironments, (6) studying artifacts to determine manufacturing practices, procurement range, trade, and exchange networks, (7) modeling cultural/environmental interactions, (8) conserving archaeological resources, and (9) geochronology.

Demographic Correlations of the Wari Conquest of Junin

The shift from llama pastoralism to potato agriculture in the Jauja-Huancayo basin of highland Peru has previously been considered a result of the Wari conquest. An alternative hypothesis, based on population pressure, is suggested here. As an adjunct to the description of population distribution, the concepts of an exploitable territory threshold model and of site catchment as a part of central place theory are explored.

Agricultural decline in the Siraf region, Iran

The region around the 9th-llth century city of Siraf, Iran, is examined to show how intensive surveys can help in the assessment of the economic geography of archaeological sites. Agricultural land, much of it terraced, was found to spread over 6 km inland from the city occupying land which is shunned by modern cultivators. Frequently this land was stripped and fragmented by sheet or gully erosion but cultural remains enabled me original ground surfaces to be re-constructed The total area of Siraf period agricultural land manured from city refuse is represented cartographically and the resulting distribution is shown to be clustered around the city in response to both economic and physical controls. It is hoped that similar studies if applied to earlier archaeological sites may aid in the interpretation of site catchment analyses.

Prehistoric Economy in the Mount Carmel Area of Palestine: Site Catchment Analysis

This study is concerned with the exploitation of resources by human groups in the Carmel area over a period of about 50,000 years. To this end an attempt is made to evaluate the changing economic potential of the ‘catchments’ of individual sites, for this enables us to make a comparative analysis of hunting-gathering and agricultural economies.Although the study of prehistoric sites is now usually complemented by some treatment of their setting, the situation in their immediate vicinity—the principal concern of the inhabitants—tends to be neglected or at any rate overshadowed by generalized statements regarding the physiographic, vegetational, climatic or kindred zones of which they form a (not necessarily typical) part. The difficulty that is encountered by attempts to harmonize the findings of the various specialists who nowadays contribute to archaeological studies may, in fact, be due to the limitations of a zonal approach, for the populations or phenomena with which each of them is concerned do not necessarily refer to a single ‘catchment’ area and may have little connection with the picture of the exploited territory that is imprinted on the site record.