Doi Pha Kan, a new lithic assemblage in the Hoabinhian chrono-cultural context

International audiencenon communiqu

The past vertebrate biodiversity of Southeast Asia and its relevance to ongoing environmental issues: current limitations and perspectives

International audienceThe study of past faunal assemblages and of their evolution during the last millennia can enable us to describe the long-term modification of the fauna and to understand how, when, and why, it evolved. In Southeast Asia, such studies are rare which makes complex the understanding of the trajectories of the Human/Biodiversity interactions on the middle and long terms. Data regarding past wildlife faunas could also be extremely useful to document the original ecological niche of species later forced to adapt under human activity pressure. The lack of such information can have important consequences regarding biodiversity conservation/restauration policies implementation. This contribution, focused on Southeast Asian past vertebrate assemblages, present the current scientific knowledge regarding the Pleistocene and Holocene past biodiversity of this region and discuss what could be done to improve it. Such an improvement could be done by the excavation of additional sites presenting different depositional conditions, by the construction of appropriate paleontological and anatomical reference points, by informing open access databases, and by the training of more local scientists

The past vertebrate biodiversity of Southeast Asia and its relevance to ongoing environmental issues: current limitations and perspectives

International audienceThe study of past faunal assemblages and of their evolution during the last millennia can enable us to describe the long-term modification of the fauna and to understand how, when, and why, it evolved. In Southeast Asia, such studies are rare which makes complex the understanding of the trajectories of the Human/Biodiversity interactions on the middle and long terms. Data regarding past wildlife faunas could also be extremely useful to document the original ecological niche of species later forced to adapt under human activity pressure. The lack of such information can have important consequences regarding biodiversity conservation/restauration policies implementation. This contribution, focused on Southeast Asian past vertebrate assemblages, present the current scientific knowledge regarding the Pleistocene and Holocene past biodiversity of this region and discuss what could be done to improve it. Such an improvement could be done by the excavation of additional sites presenting different depositional conditions, by the construction of appropriate paleontological and anatomical reference points, by informing open access databases, and by the training of more local scientists

Doi Pha Kan, a new lithic assemblage in the Hoabinhian chrono-cultural context

International audiencenon communiqu

A sustainable review of the Middle Pleistocene benchmark sites including the Ailuropoda–Stegodon faunal complex: The Proboscidean point of view

International audienceThe different ecologies, times of extinction and 'last stand' of both Elephas and Stegodon in Southeast Asia is covering almost two million years. For Middle Pleistocene, both taxa belong to the complex Ailuropoda-Stegodon. This regional complex is considered to have a chronological significance and further palaeoecological, palaeobiogeographical or biochronological studies are using this assemblage as a benchmark. Nevertheless, such studies do not provide sufficient information regarding site formation and duration to be consistent enough to do so at an appropriate resolution (MIS timescale). Focussing attention on the occurrence of Proboscideans, a critical review of the robustness of the geological, taphonomical and chronological data of Middle Pleistocene faunal assemblages suggests to undertake a deep reappraisal of this "biochronological benchmark". Recomandations were provided in the 1980s not to use mixtures of faunal assemblages and progress in geochronology for two decades are available. Nevertheless, reviewing Proboscideans suggests the necessity of a severe revision and leads to be very sceptical on the use of the Ailuropoda-Stegodon complex as an ecological marker. Extended to other taxa such a review casts serious doubts on former and current paleoecological modellings and studies

The recent fossil turtle record of the central plain of Thailand reveals local extinctions

With more than 50 extant turtle species, Southeast Asia is currently a hotspot of turtle biodiversity. However, the distribution areas of most species are decreasing as a consequence of human activities. The causes of this decline are multiple: habitat and natural resources destruction, introduction of invasive species, hunting, etc. Historical data are however still lacking for a detailed understanding of that regional trend as well as for forecasting its evolution in the future. Indeed, while oral testimonies and text data can provide a rather good appreciation of the decline of biodiversity over the last few decades; nothing is known about the dynamic of turtle biodiversity over the Holocene. This lack of data is especially damaging in area where human activities are interacting for a long time with the wild fauna, as the central plain of Thailand, which is now dominated by agricultural landscape. In order to solve these issues, we investigated five Holocene localities in Thai central plain which provided assemblages of turtle remains ranging from Neolithic to Dvaravati periods (4000 to 1000 BP). The studied archaeological assemblages showed a very high species richness. Species such as Malayemys macrocephala, Cuora amboinensis, Heosemys annandalii, Heosemys grandis, Siebenrockiella crassicolis, Amyda ornata were among the most abundant. We also found several plates and a cranial material belonging to a species of the genus Batagur and tortoise remains including Indotestudo elongata and a few plates belonging to the genus Geochelone. The Batagur and Geochelone genera are absent from living turtle assemblages in the central plain but are present in Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia or Southern Thailand for Batagur and far in the West for Geochelone (Myanmar) respectively. Batagur is usually found in coastal areas and its disappearance from central plain is interpreted as resulting from the destruction of a fragile habitat and possibly from the rapid geomorphological evolution of the Chao-Phraya deltaic plain, the disappearance of tortoises could result from deforestation. Cutting traces showed that most turtles were used as food resources at these times, suggesting that turtle hunting was a common practise. Furthermore, occurrence of holes in the margin of the carapace of specimens from Kheed Khin (Saraburi Province) and Promthin Tai (Lopburi Province) suggests that turtles were sometimes kept captive alive or transported. This study shows that investigation of recent fossil localities allows for a better understanding of the role of past human populations in the alteration of the biodiversity through time, and for a more accurate estimation of the rates of species extinction.L’Asie du Sud-Est est aujourd’hui le hotspot de biodiversité concentrant le plus grand nombre de vertébrés sauvages menacés par les activités humaines. Avec plus de 50 espèces présentes dans la région, l’ordre des tortues est fortement impacté. Les causes de leur déclin sont multiples, mais ce déclin est mal documenté durant l’Holocène. Les témoignages directs et les traces écrites sont limités aux dernières dizaines d’années ou au dernier siècle et ne permettent pas de donner une image satisfaisante de la biodiversité originelle de zones fortement anthropisées depuis plusieurs siècles comme c’est le cas de la plaine centrale de Thaïlande. Afin de combler ces lacunes, nous avons étudié les assemblages de restes subfossiles de tortues dans 5 localités archéologiques de la plaine centrale de Thaïlande sur une période s’étendant du Néolithique à la période Dvaravati (de −2000 à +1000). Les assemblages étudiés montrent tous une diversité importante de taxons dominée par les espèces Malayemys macrocephala, Cuora amboinensis, Heosemys annandalii, Heosemys grandis, Siebenrockiella crassicolis et Amyda ornata. Des restes de tortues terrestres (Indotestudo elongata, Geochelone sp.) ainsi que du genre Batagur ont été également retrouvés. Ces trois derniers taxons sont aujourd’hui absents de la région et présentent pour certains une aire de distribution actuelle très éloignée de la plaine centrale. Ces absences actuelles peuvent être interprétées comme des extinctions locales. La disparition de la tortue fluviale et estuarienne Batagur pourrait avoir été amorcée par les changements hydrologiques et géomorphologiques associés à la régression marine holocène dans le golfe de Thaïlande. Des traces de découpe sur les restes subfossiles et des trous pratiqués sur le bord de la carapace montrent que l’exploitation des tortues par l’Homme s’est poursuivie au moins depuis le Néolithique et que cette pratique a également pu altérer la biodiversité de ces animaux. Plus généralement les effets de la destruction d’habitats fragiles dès l’âge des métaux peuvent expliquer ce déclin.1. Introduction 2. Geographical and archaeological settings 3. Taxonomic identification 3.1. Testudinoidea Batsch, 1788 3.2. Geoemydidae Theobald, 1868 3.3. Batagur affinis (Cantor, 1847) 3.4. Malayemys macrocephala (Gray, 1859) 3.5. Heosemys grandis (Gray, 1860) 3.6. Heosemys annandalii (Boulenger, 1903) 3.7. Cuora amboinensis (Riche, 1801) 3.8. Siebenrockiella crassicollis (Gray, 1830) 3.9. Testudinidae Batsch, 1788 3.10. Indotestudo elongata (Blyth, 1853) 3.11. Geochelone playtynota (Blyth, 1863) 3.12. Manouria emys phayrei (Schlegel et Müller, 1840) 3.13. Trionychidae Gray, 1825 3.14. Amyda oranata (Gray, 1861) 4. Faunal composition by site 5. Discussion 6. Conclusion

Doi Pha Kan (Thailand), Ban Tha Si (Thailand) and Laang Spean (Cambodia) Animal Bone Assemblages: A New Perception of Meat Supply Strategies for Early Holocene Mainland Southeast Asia?

International audienc

The Ban Don Mun artifacts: A chronological reappraisal of human occupations in the Lampang province of Northern Thailand

International audienceIndia, the timing and geography of human demographic expansions in continental Southeast Asia remains ambiguous. The recent discovery of a series of stone artifacts spread over a basalt level at Ban Don Mun in the Lampang province of northern Thailand presents an ideal opportunity for reevaluating lithic assemblages documented during the 1970s and 1980s in the same region. Both the position of these stone tools and new absolute dates indicate a Middle Pleistocene age and call into question the status of these artifacts as the oldest yet found in Southeast Asia. The uncertain geo-chronological context and technological analysis of the chopper industry from previous work in the Lampang area prompted us to undertake new surveys in continental Southeast Asia in order to help clarify the route and timing of Pleistocene human expansions in this part of the world

Discovery of an outstanding Hoabinhian site from the Late Pleistocene at Doi Pha Kan (Lampang province, northern Thailand)

International audienceIn Mainland Southeast Asia the Hoabinhian culture corresponds to the legacy of using massive tools made on cobbles, a techno-complex that persisted in a tropical environment for about 30,000 years. During this period, human burial practices also appear to be uniform and limited to burials in "flexed" position. However, stasis in cultural patterns is unlikely over such a long time period and large geographic area, and although new data is emerging on nuances in lithic technologies, the limited number of fully documented burials prevents debate on this issue. In a regional review of Hoabinhian burials we discuss the limitations of using the broad term 'flexed' burials, which can conceal important differences/similarities among cases. We use an archaeo-thanatological approach to describe in detail three burials at Doi Pha Kan site, Lampang province, northern Thailand. Differences are observed in the "flexed" positions of the bodies, the anatomical characteristics of the individuals, and the nature of the offerings. General similarities in burial practices among sites in south China and north Vietnam are now documented in northern Thailand at Doi Pha Kan. We promote the archaeo-thanatological approach to generate relevant descriptions of burials, allowing similarities and/or differences in burial practices over time and within/between regions to be accurately assessed. This approach is essential to establish relevant cultural frameworks that can, in the future, be compared with morphological and genetic data to describe population movements and/or cultural indigenous influences on funerary practices in Mainland Southeast Asia