Archaeology

February 23, 2024February 23, 2024

Canaries in the genetic coal mine

Specialism in science being what it is, it’s understandably unusual to see papers which combine combine analysis of genetic diversity in humans over time with that of crops, or indeed livestock. It’s less understandable why it should also be unusual in science journalism, and examples should be celebrated. So hats off to Warren Cornwall for his very readable synthesis in Science of the history of human and crop genetic diversity in the Canaries over the past two thousand years. Well worth a read.

References

The genomic history of the indigenous people of the Canary Islands

The demography of the Canary Islands from a genetic perspective

Demographic history of Canary Islands male gene-pool: replacement of native lineages by European

An Evolutionary Approach to the History of Barley (Hordeum vulgare) Cultivation in the Canary Islands

Farmer fidelity in the Canary Islands revealed by ancient DNA from prehistoric seeds

Agriculture and crop dispersal in the western periphery of the Old World: the Amazigh/Berber settling of the Canary Islands (ca. 2nd–15th centuries CE)

November 7, 2023November 7, 2023

Nibbles: Fonio beer, ICRISAT seed kits, Dark Emu, China potatoes, 3D genebank, Bioculture, Microbiome genebank, Nutrition, Michigan kiwi

You can make beer from fonio.
ICRISAT providing Niger and Chad with sorghum and pearl millet seed kits. Fonio next?
No, Echinochloa turneriana next. In Australia. I love the Dark Emu Hypothesis, and not least for its name.
CIP is helping China improve its potato crop.
Won’t be long before China’s genebank has 3D images of all its holdings. I’d love to see the potatoes.
Want to see the earliest known site of domestication of teosinte?
UK builds first crop biome cryobank.
How the private sector can help with a more nutrition-sensitive agriculture. Should it want to.
You can grow kiwi in Michigan. Should you want to.

October 20, 2023

Nibbles: Heirloom mixology, Renaissance breeding, Heirloom watermelon, Heirloom apples, British horses, Ancient grapes & wine, Potato cryo, Arboretum, Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Rice breeding

A self-described seed mixologist calls for a science fiction, rather than historical, approach to growing heirloom varieties. Excellent reading.
The Renaissance approach to genetic mixology explained in a new book The Perfection of Nature.
Sometimes, though, you just want a good old watermelon.
Or a good old apple.
Or indeed ‘the Swiss army knife of equines.’
Or you want to know what ancient people ate and drank.
So it’s a good thing we have genebanks, genebanks, genebanks…
Including for rice.

September 25, 2023September 20, 2023

Brainfood: Biodiversity review, History, Maize history, Maya ag, Agroecology, Ancient curry, IK, Culture & policy, Breeding review, Pacific PGRFA, Pacific breeding, Epidemics, Xylella

Biodiversity: Concepts, Patterns, Trends, and Perspectives. It may not be the sixth mass extinction, but it’s still bad, and we’re to blame. Interestingly for such a high-level review, genetic diversity of domesticated species is actually mentioned.
Seeds of knowledge: paving the way to integrated historical and conservation science research. Conserving the genetic diversity of domesticated species needs to combine history and science.
Maize and precolonial Africa. Maize contributed to slavery. History indeed.
Agriculture in the Ancient Maya Lowlands (Part 1): Paleoethnobotanical Residues and New Perspectives on Plant Management. There was more diversity than formerly thought, at various levels. So not just history, but archaeology as well?
Current agricultural diversification strategies are already agroecological. Ancient Maya Lowland agriculture sounds very agroecological.
Earliest curry in Southeast Asia and the global spice trade 2000 years ago. Yes, definitely archaeology is needed too.
Co-conserving Indigenous and local knowledge systems with seeds. Conserving the genetic diversity of domesticated species needs to combine traditional knowledge and seeds.
Culture and agricultural biodiversity conservation. Conserving the genetic diversity of domesticated species needs to combine culture and policy.
What plant breeding may (and may not) look like in 2050? Using the genetic diversity of domesticated species needs to increase selection intensity. Citizen science to the rescue?
Conventional breeding of Pacific Island staple crops: A paradox. Using the genetic diversity of domesticated species needs to increase in the Pacific. And fast.
Unlocking the inherent potential of plant genetic resources: food security and climate adaptation strategy in Fiji and the Pacific. Maybe selection intensity is not the thing in the Pacific.
What Can Be Learned by a Synoptic Review of Plant Disease Epidemics and Outbreaks Published in 2021? Using the genetic diversity of domesticated species needs to increase. Very fast.
Apulian Autochthonous Olive Germplasm: A Promising Resource to Restore Cultivation in Xylella fastidiosa-Infected Areas. Using the genetic diversity of domesticated species is increasing.

August 14, 2023August 10, 2023

Brainfood: Pre-Neolithic starch, Neolithic sheep, Maghreb Neolithic, Neolithic Europe, Neolithic transition, Macedonian Neolithic, Ancient Iranian crops, Early chickens, Pre-Columbian landscapes,

New evidence of plant food processing in Italy before 40ka. Did modern humans outcompete Neanderthals in Italy by grinding up and eating wild cereals? No, probably not, but still.
Early Dalmatian farmers specialized in sheep husbandry. Did early Dalmatian farmers outcompete local hunter gatherers by eating sheep? No, probably not, but still.
Northwest African Neolithic initiated by migrants from Iberia and Levant. Iberians brought farming to the Maghreb, where local hunter-gatherers were both outcompeted and enticed to change their lifestyles, and the whole thing happened again later when pastoralism arrived from the Levant.
Genetic continuity, isolation, and gene flow in Stone Age Central and Eastern Europe. This outcompeting thing happened to different extents in different parts of Europe.
Why did foraging, horticulture and pastoralism persist after the Neolithic transition? The oasis theory of agricultural intensification. Lower rainfall and lower biodiversity allowed early intensive agriculture around the world to outcompete other lifestyles.
New research on crop diversity of the early farmers in southeastern Europe (ca. 6400-5700 BCE). Some crops were outcompeted by others as agriculture spread into Europe.
The early adoption of East Asian crops in West Asia: rice and broomcorn millet in northern Iran. Starting in East Asia, broomcorn millet reached the Caspian Sea’s southern coast by 2050 BC by infiltrating and rice by 120 BC by leapfrogging. No word on what they outcompeted.
Redefining the timing and circumstances of the chicken’s introduction to Europe and north-west Africa. It took a long time for chickens to outcompete other sources of food. For a long time they were just exotic pets.
Pre-Columbian legacy and modern land use in the Bolivian Amazon. Modern farming practices are taking advantage of ancient farming practices in the Llanos de Moxos. Unclear who is outcompeting whom.