Persistent effects of pre-Columbian plant domestication on Amazonian forest composition.
Published
Journal Article
The extent to which pre-Columbian societies altered Amazonian landscapes is hotly debated. We performed a basin-wide analysis of pre-Columbian impacts on Amazonian forests by overlaying known archaeological sites in Amazonia with the distributions and abundances of 85 woody species domesticated by pre-Columbian peoples. Domesticated species are five times more likely than nondomesticated species to be hyperdominant. Across the basin, the relative abundance and richness of domesticated species increase in forests on and around archaeological sites. In southwestern and eastern Amazonia, distance to archaeological sites strongly influences the relative abundance and richness of domesticated species. Our analyses indicate that modern tree communities in Amazonia are structured to an important extent by a long history of plant domestication by Amazonian peoples.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Levis, C; Costa, FRC; Bongers, F; Peña-Claros, M; Clement, CR; Junqueira, AB; Neves, EG; Tamanaha, EK; Figueiredo, FOG; Salomão, RP; Castilho, CV; Magnusson, WE; Phillips, OL; Guevara, JE; Sabatier, D; Molino, J-F; López, DC; Mendoza, AM; Pitman, NCA; Duque, A; Vargas, PN; Zartman, CE; Vasquez, R; Andrade, A; Camargo, JL; Feldpausch, TR; Laurance, SGW; Laurance, WF; Killeen, TJ; Nascimento, HEM; Montero, JC; Mostacedo, B; Amaral, IL; Guimarães Vieira, IC; Brienen, R; Castellanos, H; Terborgh, J; Carim, MDJV; Guimarães, JRDS; Coelho, LDS; Matos, FDDA; Wittmann, F; Mogollón, HF; Damasco, G; Dávila, N; García-Villacorta, R; Coronado, ENH; Emilio, T; Filho, DDAL; Schietti, J; Souza, P; Targhetta, N; Comiskey, JA; Marimon, BS; Marimon, B-H; Neill, D; Alonso, A; Arroyo, L; Carvalho, FA; de Souza, FC; Dallmeier, F; Pansonato, MP; Duivenvoorden, JF; Fine, PVA; Stevenson, PR; Araujo-Murakami, A; Aymard C, GA; Baraloto, C; do Amaral, DD; Engel, J; Henkel, TW; Maas, P; Petronelli, P; Revilla, JDC; Stropp, J; Daly, D; Gribel, R; Paredes, MR; Silveira, M; Thomas-Caesar, R; Baker, TR; da Silva, NF; Ferreira, LV; Peres, CA; Silman, MR; Cerón, C; Valverde, FC; Di Fiore, A; Jimenez, EM; Mora, MCP; Toledo, M; Barbosa, EM; Bonates, LCDM; Arboleda, NC; Farias, EDS; Fuentes, A; Guillaumet, J-L; Jørgensen, PM; Malhi, Y; de Andrade Miranda, IP; Phillips, JF; Prieto, A; Rudas, A; Ruschel, AR; Silva, N; von Hildebrand, P; Vos, VA; Zent, EL; Zent, S; Cintra, BBL; Nascimento, MT; Oliveira, AA; Ramirez-Angulo, H; Ramos, JF; Rivas, G; Schöngart, J; Sierra, R; Tirado, M; van der Heijden, G; Torre, EV; Wang, O; Young, KR; Baider, C; Cano, A; Farfan-Rios, W; Ferreira, C; Hoffman, B; Mendoza, C; Mesones, I; Torres-Lezama, A; Medina, MNU; van Andel, TR; Villarroel, D; Zagt, R; Alexiades, MN; Balslev, H; Garcia-Cabrera, K; Gonzales, T; Hernandez, L; Huamantupa-Chuquimaco, I; Manzatto, AG; Milliken, W; Cuenca, WP; Pansini, S; Pauletto, D; Arevalo, FR; Reis, NFC; Sampaio, AF; Giraldo, LEU; Sandoval, EHV; Gamarra, LV; Vela, CIA; Ter Steege, H
Published Date
- March 2017
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 355 / 6328
Start / End Page
- 925 - 931
PubMed ID
- 28254935
Pubmed Central ID
- 28254935
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1095-9203
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0036-8075
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1126/science.aal0157
Language
- eng