Premathilake, R and Hunt, CO (2018) Late Pleistocene humans in Sri Lanka used plant resources: A phytolith record from Fahien rock shelter. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. ISSN 0031-0182

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Abstract

Little is known of the human use of rainforest plant resources of prehistoric Sri Lanka due to the lack of preservation of organic material and the effects of various destructive taphonomic processes. Phytoliths recovered from a AMS radiocarbon and OSL dated sequence at Fahien Rock Shelter indicate interactions of anatomically modern humans with the lowland rainforests of south-western Sri Lanka from 44,952–47,854 cal. BP to 11,936–12,239 cal. BP. During this period, the Rock Shelter occupants extracted their livelihood from a number of wild plants including bananas, rice, breadfruits, durians, canarium and species of palm and bamboo. These taxa are associated with present-day disturbed lowland rainforests. Gathering and processing of plant resources by existing modern rainforest foragers cannot directly be compared with the subsistence activities of the Late Pleistocene Rock Shelter occupants. © 2018 Elsevier B.V.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	0403 Geology, 0602 Ecology, 0603 Evolutionary Biology
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GF Human ecology. Anthropogeography
Divisions:	Natural Sciences & Psychology (closed 31 Aug 19)
Publisher:	Elsevier
Date Deposited:	11 Jun 2018 10:11
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2021 10:24
DOI or ID number:	10.1016/j.palaeo.2018.05.015
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/8819

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