Mid-Holocene vegetation history, climate change and Neolithic landscape transformation : archaeopalynology in La Draga and Lake Banyoles (NE Iberian Peninsula) /

Departament responsable de la tesi: Departament de PrehistòriaAbans del Neolític, l'evolució del paisatge estava principalment controlada pel canvi climàtic, però, en canvi, a partir del ca. 7.4-7.0 cal ka AP, l'impacte humà va començar a interferir en el desenvolupament natural de la vegetació a la Península Ibèrica. Així, el procés de Neolitització va suposar una profunda transformació socioeconòmica i ecològica. Els canvis en la producció d'aliments, en la gestió dels recursos naturals i en els patrons d'assentament van originar una nova forma d'interacció entre societat i medi. En aquest context, les evidències arqueoecològiques obtingudes amb les anàlisis desenvolupades en el marc d'aquesta tesis han aportat dades importants respecte tres objectius principals: 1) Història de la vegetació, canvi climàtic i impacte humà durant l'Holocè Mig en el Pla de l'Estany; 2) Conseqüències socio-ecològiques de la Neolitització al NE de la Península Ibèrica i 3) Potencial i contribució de l'arqueopalinologia a la recerca en assentaments lacustres. Aquesta tesi es presenta com un compendi d'articles científics publicats, tots ells basats en l'aplicació d'anàlisis multi-proxy en dipòsits arqueològics i naturals per tal de reconstruir l'evolució ambiental i la transformació del paisatge durant el Neolític. Els mètodes aplicats han estat l'anàlisi de pol·len i palinomorfs no polínics (NPP), macrofòssils, sedimentologia i carbons sedimentaris, així com de la integració de dades procedents d'altres estudis arqueològics i bioarqueològics. Els boscos caducifolis van tenir la seva màxima expansió a l'Estany de Banyoles durant la fase 9.0-7.5 cal ka AP, una davallada en 7.5-6.5/5.55 cal ka AP, i una recuperació posterior, mostrant la persistència de les rouredes com vegetació dominant fins ben entrat l'Holocè recent. La regressió dels boscos de caducifolis va ocórrer en el context de l'arribada de les primeres comunitats pageses a l'àrea en 7.27 cal ka AP, però també en el context d'una fase de refredament, mostrant així l'important paper que va jugar el canvi climàtic per amplificar l'empremta de l'impacte humà durant el Neolític, així com també en les dinàmiques d'assentament en la vora de l'Estany de Banyoles. La pràctica d'un model agrícola-ramader intensiu, implicant un cultiu a petita escala i amb una alta inversió de treball, va deixar una lleu evidència de l'impacte de l'agricultura en registres pol·línics naturals. Mentre un model agrícola-ramader intensiu i sostenible hauria comportat un impacte limitat sobre la vegetació durant el Neolític Antic, l'explotació intensiva i reiterada de les rouredes associada amb un poblament permanent va provocar una transformació significativa del paisatge. L'estudi arqueopalinològic desenvolupat a La Draga ha permès obtenir dades significatives per comprendre els processos de formació del jaciment, així com també la reconstrucció de l'evolució paleoambiental a escala local i obtenir noves dades sobre les pràctiques socioeconòmiques i l'ús de l'espai a l'interior de l'assentament. Aquest treball ha demostrat la importància de portar a terme anàlisis espacials en els estudis palinològics en jaciments arqueològics, degut a l'heterogeneïtat espacial causada per l'impacte humà en termes d'erosió de sòls, arranjament d'estructures i la introducció de plantes a l'assentament (recol·lecció, cultiu, emmagatzematge, farratge).Landscape evolution was mostly controlled by climate change until the Neolithisation (after ca. 7.4-7.0 cal ka BP in the Iberian Peninsula) when human impact started to interfere in the natural development of vegetation. Thus, the Neolithisation process involved significant socioeconomic and ecological transformations. Changes in food production, in natural resource management and in settlement patterns originated a new way in which humans and the environment interacted. In that context, archaeoecological evidence obtained by the analyses developed in the framework of this thesis provided relevant data about three main objectives: 1) Vegetation history, climate change and human impact during the Middle Holocene in the Lake Banyoles area; 2) Socio-ecological consequences of Neolithisation in the NE Iberian Peninsula and 3) Potential and contributions of archaeopalynology in lakeside settlement research. This thesis is presented as a compilation of published scientific papers, all based on the application of multi-proxy analysis of both intra-site and off-site deposits in order to reconstruct environmental evolution and Neolithic landscape transformation. The methods applied have been pollen and non-pollen palynomorph (NPP) analysis, macrofossils, sedimentology and sedimentary charcoal analysis, as well as the integration of data from other archaeological and bioarchaeological studies. Broadleaf deciduous forests around Lake Banyoles reached their maximum expansion in the phase 9.0-7.5 cal ka BP, a decline in 7.5-6.5/5.5 cal ka BP, but a recovery afterwards, showing the persistence of oak forests as the dominant vegetation until the Late Holocene. The regression of deciduous forests occurred in the context of the arrival of the first farming societies in the area in 7.27 cal ka BP but also in the context of a cooling phase evidencing the important role of climate change in amplifying the footprint of Neolithic human impact, as well as in settlement dynamics in the Lake Banyoles shore. The practice of intensive farming models during the Early Neolithic, implying small-scale and labour-intensive cultivation, left little evidence of the impact of agriculture in off-site pollen records. While a sustainable small-scale and intensive farming system would have left scarce evidence of the impact of agriculture during the Early Neolithic, the intensive and reiterative exploitation of natural resources associated with permanent settlements led to significant landscape transformation. The archaeopalynological study developed at La Draga was able to obtain relevant data for comprehending site formation processes, the reconstruction of palaeo-environmental evolution and human impact at a local scale and provided new data about socioeconomic practices during the Early Neolithic as well as about the use of space within a pile-dwelling site. This work evidenced the need to carry out spatial analysis in palynological studies at archaeological sites, owing to the spatial heterogeneity of results caused by human impact in terms of soil erosion, arrangement of structures and in the input of plants to the settlement (gathering, cultivation, storage, foddering)

What burned the forest? Wildfires, climate change and human activity in the Mesolithic – Neolithic transition in SE Iberian Peninsula

Climate variability such as higher or lower temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, shifts in plant communities and other climate-related changes have particularly affected areas with Mediterranean-type climates. A multi-proxy analysis including pollen, sedimentary charcoal, mineralogy and Summed Probability Distributions (SPD) of archaeological 14C dates, allowed the reconstruction of landscape change, geomorphological evolution and fire history at the Laguna de Villena, in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula, during the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition. The Villena paleolake was sensitive to Early Holocene and Middle Holocene regional climatic variability that included several arid phases (around 8.2 ka cal BP, 6.8 ka cal BP and 5.9 ka cal BP) according to geochemical and pollen data. During this period, landscape dynamics show the degradation of oak forests and expansion of pyrophytic pine forests and shrublands, as well as open spaces predominated by grasses. The charcoal record shows a decreasing trend of biomass burned from 8.5 ka cal BP onwards, although fire peaks occurred recurrently during the Early and Middle Holocene. The most intense phase of fire activity was experienced in the last millennia of the Early Holocene, with five fire episodes from 9.1 to 8.4 ka cal BP, coinciding with a phase of higher archaeological evidence in the area. A decrease in archaeological evidence coincides with a gap in fire episodes during the Early Holocene-Middle Holocene transition, suggesting an effect of the abrupt 8.2 ka cal BP event on human activity and on landscape dynamics. After 8.0 ka cal BP, lowerer biomass burned is explained by the configuration of a more open landscape due to the combination of climate (increasing aridity) and increasing human activities in the region. The mineralogical and palynological data highlighted the interaction between human activities, climate and fire dynamics. The sedimentary charcoal record evidenced how most of the fire peaks did not occur in the context of dry episodes, as often assumed, deriving on an anthropogenic explanation related to Early and Late Mesolithic burning practices during a phase of higher archaeological evidence in the Villena paleolake surroundings. Afterwards, combined agropastoral activities from the Early Neolithic onwards and increasing aridity during the Middle Holocene maintained the forest clearances, in the context of fire episodes characterised by decreased biomass burned. This study shows how Middle Holocene palaeoecological records reflect complex histories blending climate and anthropogenic processes that derived in major landscape changes explaining the origin of current landscapes.This research has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (Grant agreement No. 683018) to JFLdP. Additional analyses on the pollen data sets have been produced in the context of the research project PID2020-113664RB-100 supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation. JFLdP is additionally supported by the Plan Gen-T program (Ref. CIDEGENT-18/040) of the Generalitat Valenciana. CSG is currently supported by a Margarita Salas fellowship (ref. MARSALAS21-22) funded by the European Union-Next Generation EU, the Spanish Ministry of Universities and the University of Alicante. JR, IE and FB are members of the research group GAPS (2017 SGR 836). JR acknowledges postdoctoral fellowship support from the Spanish “Juan de la Cierva Incorporación (IJC2020)” program (MICINN, Spain). The Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana I Evolució Social (IPHES-CERCA) has received financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through the “María de Maeztu'' program for Units of Excellence (CEX2019-000945-M). LS is granted by the ICREA Academia Program

Mid-Holocene Palaeoenvironment, Plant Resources and Human Interaction in Northeast Iberia: An Archaeobotanical Approach

MDPI accés obert UTPThe role of the adoption of farming economies in the transformation of mid-Holocene landscapes in Northeast Iberia is under discussion given that the Neolithization coincides with the cold climatic phase dated ca. 7500-7000 cal BP. The main aim of this paper is to assess whether human activities or climate were the main driver of vegetation changes during the Middle Holocene through the study of the archaeobotanical data from three case studies: Cova del Sardo, La Draga, and Coves del Fem. The application of diverse archaeobotanical techniques to the different plant remains provides a complete picture of the vegetation composition and plant uses. During the early Neolithic, settlement surroundings were intensively exploited for firewood, wood raw material, timber, and plant fibers. The resources were obtained mainly from deciduous and pine forests, de-pending on the site localization, but also from riparian zones. The diversity of plants exploited was high, not only trees but shrubs and herbs. Evidence of deforestation has been identified in the settlement surroundings in La Draga and Cova del Sardo. The combination of plant exploitation with other agropastoral activities favored the expansion of colonizing species and enhanced biodiversity at a local scale

From influence to impact: the multifunctional land-use in Mediterranean prehistory emerging from palynology of archaeological sites (8.0-2.8 ka BP)

Archaeobotany is used to discover details on local land uses in prehistoric settlements developed during the middle and beginning of late Holocene. Six archaeological sites from four countries (Spain, Italy, Greece, and Turkey) have pollen and charcoal records showing clear signs of the agrarian systems that had developed in the Mediterranean basin during different cultural phases, from pre-Neolithic to Recent Bronze Age. A selected list of pollen taxa and sums, including cultivated trees, other woody species, crops and annual or perennial synanthropic plants are analysed for land use reconstructions. In general, cultivation has a lower image in palynology than forestry, and past land uses became visible when oakwoods were affected by human activities. On-site palynology allows us to recognise the first influence of humans even before it can be recognised in off-site sequences, and off-site sequences can allow us to determine the area of influence of a site. Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeological sites show similar land use dynamics implying oak exploitation, causing local deforestation, and cultivation of cereal fields in the area or around the site. Although a substantial difference makes the Neolithic influence quite distant from the Bronze Age impact, mixed systems of land exploitation emerged everywhere. Multiple land use activities exist (multifunctional landscapes) at the same time within the area of influence of a site. Since the Neolithic, people have adopted a diffuse pattern of land use involving a combination of diverse activities, using trees\u2013crops\u2013domesticated animals. The most recurrent combination included wood exploitation, field cultivation and animal breeding. The lesson from the past is that the multifunctional land use, combining sylvo-pastoral and crop farming mixed systems, has been widely adopted for millennia, being more sustainable than the monoculture and a promising way to develop our economy

Assessing changes in global fire regimes

PAGES, Past Global Changes, is funded by the Swiss Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Sciences and supported in kind by the University of Bern, Switzerland. Financial support was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation award numbers 1916565, EAR-2011439, and EAR-2012123. Additional support was provided by the Utah Department of Natural Resources Watershed Restoration Initiative. SSS was supported by Brigham Young University Graduate Studies. MS was supported by National Science Centre, Poland (grant no. 2018/31/B/ST10/02498 and 2021/41/B/ST10/00060). JCA was supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 101026211. PF contributed within the framework of the FCT-funded project no. UIDB/04033/2020. SGAF acknowledges support from Trond Mohn Stiftelse (TMS) and University of Bergen for the startup grant ‘TMS2022STG03’. JMP participation in this research was supported by the Forest Research Centre, a research unit funded by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia I.P. (FCT), Portugal (UIDB/00239/2020). A.-LD acknowledge PAGES, PICS CNRS 06484 project, CNRS-INSU, Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine, University of Bordeaux DRI and INQUA for workshop support.Background The global human footprint has fundamentally altered wildfire regimes, creating serious consequences for human health, biodiversity, and climate. However, it remains difficult to project how long-term interactions among land use, management, and climate change will affect fire behavior, representing a key knowledge gap for sustainable management. We used expert assessment to combine opinions about past and future fire regimes from 99 wildfire researchers. We asked for quantitative and qualitative assessments of the frequency, type, and implications of fire regime change from the beginning of the Holocene through the year 2300. Results Respondents indicated some direct human influence on wildfire since at least ~ 12,000 years BP, though natural climate variability remained the dominant driver of fire regime change until around 5,000 years BP, for most study regions. Responses suggested a ten-fold increase in the frequency of fire regime change during the last 250 years compared with the rest of the Holocene, corresponding first with the intensification and extensification of land use and later with anthropogenic climate change. Looking to the future, fire regimes were predicted to intensify, with increases in frequency, severity, and size in all biomes except grassland ecosystems. Fire regimes showed different climate sensitivities across biomes, but the likelihood of fire regime change increased with higher warming scenarios for all biomes. Biodiversity, carbon storage, and other ecosystem services were predicted to decrease for most biomes under higher emission scenarios. We present recommendations for adaptation and mitigation under emerging fire regimes, while recognizing that management options are constrained under higher emission scenarios. Conclusion The influence of humans on wildfire regimes has increased over the last two centuries. The perspective gained from past fires should be considered in land and fire management strategies, but novel fire behavior is likely given the unprecedented human disruption of plant communities, climate, and other factors. Future fire regimes are likely to degrade key ecosystem services, unless climate change is aggressively mitigated. Expert assessment complements empirical data and modeling, providing a broader perspective of fire science to inform decision making and future research priorities.Peer reviewe

Mid-Holocene vegetation history, climate change and Neolithic landscape transformation. Archaeopalynology in La Draga and Lake Banyoles (NE Iberian Peninsula)

Abans del Neolític, l’evolució del paisatge estava principalment controlada pel canvi climàtic, però, en canvi, a partir del ca. 7.4-7.0 cal ka AP, l’impacte humà va començar a interferir en el desenvolupament natural de la vegetació a la Península Ibèrica. Així, el procés de Neolitització va suposar una profunda transformació socioeconòmica i ecològica. Els canvis en la producció d’aliments, en la gestió dels recursos naturals i en els patrons d’assentament van originar una nova forma d’interacció entre societat i medi. En aquest context, les evidències arqueoecològiques obtingudes amb les anàlisis desenvolupades en el marc d’aquesta tesis han aportat dades importants respecte tres objectius principals: 1) Història de la vegetació, canvi climàtic i impacte humà durant l’Holocè Mig en el Pla de l’Estany; 2) Conseqüències socio-ecològiques de la Neolitització al NE de la Península Ibèrica i 3) Potencial i contribució de l’arqueopalinologia a la recerca en assentaments lacustres. Aquesta tesi es presenta com un compendi d’articles científics publicats, tots ells basats en l’aplicació d’anàlisis multi-proxy en dipòsits arqueològics i naturals per tal de reconstruir l’evolució ambiental i la transformació del paisatge durant el Neolític. Els mètodes aplicats han estat l’anàlisi de pol·len i palinomorfs no polínics (NPP), macrofòssils, sedimentologia i carbons sedimentaris, així com de la integració de dades procedents d’altres estudis arqueològics i bioarqueològics. Els boscos caducifolis van tenir la seva màxima expansió a l’Estany de Banyoles durant la fase 9.0-7.5 cal ka AP, una davallada en 7.5-6.5/5.55 cal ka AP, i una recuperació posterior, mostrant la persistència de les rouredes com vegetació dominant fins ben entrat l’Holocè recent. La regressió dels boscos de caducifolis va ocórrer en el context de l’arribada de les primeres comunitats pageses a l’àrea en 7.27 cal ka AP, però també en el context d’una fase de refredament, mostrant així l’important paper que va jugar el canvi climàtic per amplificar l’empremta de l’impacte humà durant el Neolític, així com també en les dinàmiques d’assentament en la vora de l’Estany de Banyoles. La pràctica d’un model agrícola-ramader intensiu, implicant un cultiu a petita escala i amb una alta inversió de treball, va deixar una lleu evidència de l’impacte de l’agricultura en registres pol·línics naturals. Mentre un model agrícola-ramader intensiu i sostenible hauria comportat un impacte limitat sobre la vegetació durant el Neolític Antic, l’explotació intensiva i reiterada de les rouredes associada amb un poblament permanent va provocar una transformació significativa del paisatge. L’estudi arqueopalinològic desenvolupat a La Draga ha permès obtenir dades significatives per comprendre els processos de formació del jaciment, així com també la reconstrucció de l’evolució paleoambiental a escala local i obtenir noves dades sobre les pràctiques socioeconòmiques i l’ús de l’espai a l’interior de l’assentament. Aquest treball ha demostrat la importància de portar a terme anàlisis espacials en els estudis palinològics en jaciments arqueològics, degut a l’heterogeneïtat espacial causada per l’impacte humà en termes d’erosió de sòls, arranjament d’estructures i la introducció de plantes a l’assentament (recol·lecció, cultiu, emmagatzematge, farratge).Landscape evolution was mostly controlled by climate change until the Neolithisation (after ca. 7.4-7.0 cal ka BP in the Iberian Peninsula) when human impact started to interfere in the natural development of vegetation. Thus, the Neolithisation process involved significant socioeconomic and ecological transformations. Changes in food production, in natural resource management and in settlement patterns originated a new way in which humans and the environment interacted. In that context, archaeoecological evidence obtained by the analyses developed in the framework of this thesis provided relevant data about three main objectives: 1) Vegetation history, climate change and human impact during the Middle Holocene in the Lake Banyoles area; 2) Socio-ecological consequences of Neolithisation in the NE Iberian Peninsula and 3) Potential and contributions of archaeopalynology in lakeside settlement research. This thesis is presented as a compilation of published scientific papers, all based on the application of multi-proxy analysis of both intra-site and off-site deposits in order to reconstruct environmental evolution and Neolithic landscape transformation. The methods applied have been pollen and non-pollen palynomorph (NPP) analysis, macrofossils, sedimentology and sedimentary charcoal analysis, as well as the integration of data from other archaeological and bioarchaeological studies. Broadleaf deciduous forests around Lake Banyoles reached their maximum expansion in the phase 9.0-7.5 cal ka BP, a decline in 7.5-6.5/5.5 cal ka BP, but a recovery afterwards, showing the persistence of oak forests as the dominant vegetation until the Late Holocene. The regression of deciduous forests occurred in the context of the arrival of the first farming societies in the area in 7.27 cal ka BP but also in the context of a cooling phase evidencing the important role of climate change in amplifying the footprint of Neolithic human impact, as well as in settlement dynamics in the Lake Banyoles shore. The practice of intensive farming models during the Early Neolithic, implying small-scale and labour-intensive cultivation, left little evidence of the impact of agriculture in off-site pollen records. While a sustainable small-scale and intensive farming system would have left scarce evidence of the impact of agriculture during the Early Neolithic, the intensive and reiterative exploitation of natural resources associated with permanent settlements led to significant landscape transformation. The archaeopalynological study developed at La Draga was able to obtain relevant data for comprehending site formation processes, the reconstruction of palaeo-environmental evolution and human impact at a local scale and provided new data about socioeconomic practices during the Early Neolithic as well as about the use of space within a pile-dwelling site. This work evidenced the need to carry out spatial analysis in palynological studies at archaeological sites, owing to the spatial heterogeneity of results caused by human impact in terms of soil erosion, arrangement of structures and in the input of plants to the settlement (gathering, cultivation, storage, foddering)

The distribution and use of box (Buxus sempervirens L.) in the Northeastern Iberian peninsula during the Holocene

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the distribution of box (Buxus sempervirens L.) in the Holocene vegetation of NE Spain and its use during prehistory. The scarcity of box in pollen records contrasts with the frequent presence of box charcoal at archaeological sites in the north-eastern Iberian Peninsula. Box charcoal has been documented in 41 Holocene sites, indicating its systematic use as firewood. To date, wooden artefacts have only been documented at La Draga, an early Neolithic site (5324?4977 cal BC) located on the shore of Lake Banyoles (Spain). The abundance of B. sempervirens among the artefacts is remarkable, with 85 out of 155 objects made from this wood, including sickle handles, digging sticks, wedges, adze handles, needles, combs and other objects of unknown function. The evaluation of B. sempervirens charcoal and pollen data from different Holocene sites, and the evidence of its use for the manufacture of objects, demonstrate the importance of this species for prehistoric societies.Fil: Piqué, Raquel. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; EspañaFil: Morera, Núria. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; EspañaFil: Revelles, Jordi. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; EspañaFil: Castells, Eva. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; España. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Centre de Recerca Ecológica I Aplicacions Forestals; EspañaFil: López-Bultó, Oriol. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; EspañaFil: Franch, Anna. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas; ArgentinaFil: Burjachs, Francesc. Institucio Catalana de Recerca I Estudis Avancats; . Universitat Rovira I Virgili; España. Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Institut Català  de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social; Españ

Un modelo bayesiano para la cronología del yacimiento neolítico de La Draga (Banyoles, Girona). Un caso de estudio con ChronoModel 2.0

En este capítulo se analizan las 40 dataciones 14C disponibles para el yacimiento neolítico de La Draga y se calcula un modelo cronológico bayesiano utilizando el programa informático ChronoModel 2.0, cuyos aspectos generales se han presentado en el capítulo 17. El programa nos permite integrar la estratigrafía de los diferentes sectores excavados, expresada en un formato semejante al de una Matriz de Harris expandida usando álgebras de Allen (cf. capítulo 9). Los resultados se comentan a la luz de los estudios dendrocronológicos, aún en curso, de los postes de madera conservados de las estructuras palafíticas de este yacimiento. El análisis sigue el mecanismo general de inferencia cronológica expuesto en el capítulo 11 de este libro

Landscape transformation and economic practices among the first farming societies in Lake Banyoles (Girona, Spain)

This paper focuses on the high-resolution pollen analysis of one new pollen record from Lake Banyoles (Girona, Spain) and its contextualisation with other archaeobotanical records (charcoal, seed and wood remains) from the early Neolithic lakeshore settlement of La Draga. Around ca.7250 cal BP, coinciding with the first settlement phase of La Draga, a rapid fall of the pollen values of deciduous Quercus sp. is observed, and a stabilisation of these values is found until ca. 6000 cal BP. The causes for such changes in vegetation cover are discussed, taking into consideration environmental data to calibrate the role of climate in vegetation dynamics, as well as archaeobotanical data to evaluate impact of the management of vegetal resources on the landscape. The discussion of the data shows that climate could not have been the main cause for the decrease of broadleaf deciduous forests, and that the need of gathering raw material for the construction of dwellings played a major role in this change. The fact that these plant community does not recover during the occupation or after the abandonment of La Draga would confirm that human impact continued over time and that forest clearances were maintained for various purposes.This research was undertaken through the following projects ‘Organización social de las primeras comunidades agrícola-ganaderas a partir del espacio doméstico: Elementos estructurales y áreas de producción y consumo de bienes (HAR2012-38838-C02-01) / Arquitectura en madera y áreas de procesado y consumo de alimentos (HAR2012-38838-C02- 02)’, funded by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad- Subdirección General de Proyectos de Investigación (Spain) and ‘La Draga i les ocupacions lacustres prehistòriques de l’Estany de Banyoles dins del context de la l’Europa Occidental. Anys 2008-2013’ funded by Generalitat de Catalunya. The research has been done in the frame of the research group AGREST (2009 SGR 734). Jordi Revelles is currently a pre-doc FPU fellow of the Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte (Spain) and Marian Berihuete is currently a post-doc fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. We would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for the thorough corrections of an earlier version of this paper, which contributed to its significant improvement.Peer reviewe