scholarly journals The Moyjil site, south-west Victoria, Australia: fire and environment in a 120,000-year coastal midden — nature or people?

2018 ◽  
Vol 130 (2) ◽  
pp. 71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim M. Bowler ◽  
David M. Price ◽  
John E. Sherwood ◽  
Stephen P. Carey
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Susceptibility ◽  
Strong Correlation ◽  
The Other ◽  
Last Interglacial ◽  
Human Occupation ◽  
Thermal Alteration ◽  
South West ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Dark Staining ◽  
Mis 5E

At Moyjil (Point Ritchie), a cliffed site at the mouth of the Hopkins River at Warrnambool, south-eastern Australia, an erosional disconformity of Last Interglacial age on both a rock stack and the adjacent headland represents a surface of possible human occupation. Shells of edible marine molluscs occur on the disconformity, together with a distinctive population of transported stones derived from a calcrete of MIS 7 age and bearing variable dark grey to near-black colouration suggestive of fire. Experimental fire produced similar thermal alteration of calcrete. A strong correlation exists between intensity and depth of dark staining on one hand and increased magnetic susceptibility on the other. Thermal luminescence analyses of blackened stones provide ages in the MIS 5e range, 100–130 ka, consistent with independent stratigraphic evidence and contemporaneous with the age of the surface on which they lie. The distribution of fire-darkened stones is inconsistent with wildfire effects. Two hearth-like features closely associated with the disconformity provide further indications of potential human agency. The data are consistent with the suggestion of human presence at Warrnambool during the Last Interglacial.

Application of mineral magnetism to describe profile development of toposequences of a sedimentary soil in south-eastern Australia

Soil Research ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 927 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. H. Crockford ◽  
I. R. Willett
Keyword(s):  
Particle Size ◽  
Grain Size ◽  
Magnetic Susceptibility ◽  
Magnetic Particles ◽  
Size Range ◽  
The Other ◽  
Particle Sizes ◽  
Mineral Magnetism ◽  
Particle Size Range ◽  
Eastern Australia

Mineral magnetism and chemical properties of soil profiles across a valley with an erosion gully in a Yellow Dermosol sedimentary soil suggest that the magnetic profile resulted from a combination of alluviation and pedogenesis. The concentration of soil magnetic minerals in a range of particle sizes (3.36–2 mm to <2 μm) diminished from the surface downwards to a minimum (referred to as layer P), then increased to high values (layer H), after which it decreased to bed rock level at the base layer. It is proposed that the H layer was the surface of a buried soil, and that the ferrimagnetic mineral through the profiles was dominantly maghemite, formed by fire enhancement. The magnetic pattern of the profiles compressed as the soil became shallower up-slope, from 3 m in depth at the lowest site to 0.7 m at a site 40 m up-slope. Above this site the high susceptibility H layer was absent, which is consistent with the H layer being an earlier soil surface. Except for the profile at the very top of the slope (depth of 0.63 m), the magnetic grain size did not vary with depth. In the P layers, there was a greater proportion of paramagnetic minerals than in the other layers. The changes in magnetic susceptibility through the profiles were influenced by ferrimagnetic, paramagnetic, and canted anti-ferromagnetic material. For all depths in all profiles the magnetic susceptibility changed consistently through the particle size range, decreasing from the larger sizes to the 10–20 m size then increasing slightly to the smallest size (<2 μm). The mean magnetic grain size also decreased through the particle size range. Magnetic particles of 3 concentration levels were extracted by a hand magnet from the 4 largest particle sizes and showed the same magnetic-particle size relationships, for both mass susceptibility and magnetic grain size, as the other particle sizes. This showed that the proportion of highly magnetic particles effectively determined the susceptibility and magnetic grain size features of the bulk samples of each particle size class. The particle size/magnetic susceptibility pattern described in this paper occurs in all sedimentary soils and derived river sediments studied in this part of Australia. However, soils and sediments of granitic origin have an inverse pattern. These differences are attributed to pedogenic and geomorphological process. The difficulties in using mineral magnetic properties as a means of sourcing mobile sediments in catchments are discussed.

scholarly journals The Moyjil site, south-west Victoria, Australia: prologue — of people, birds, shell and fire

2018 ◽  
Vol 130 (2) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
John E. Sherwood
Keyword(s):  
Animal Origin ◽  
Human Origin ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Last Interglacial ◽  
South West ◽  
Shell Deposit ◽  
Cultural Status ◽  
Recent Phase ◽  
Mis 5E ◽  
New Phase

Moyjil (also known as Point Ritchie) is the site of an unusual shell deposit in south-west Victoria showing many characteristics of a midden. Earlier research established an age of 60 ka or older for the shell deposit but could not establish whether humans or animals such as seabirds were responsible for its formation. This paper, the first of six in this special issue, summarises the most recent phase (~10 years) of investigations. The site’s age is now fixed as Last Interglacial and following the stage MIS 5e sea-level maximum (i.e. younger than 120–125 ka). Fragmentation and the limited size distribution of the dominant marine shellfish (Lunella undulata syn. Turbo undulatus) confirm the site as a midden. There is also evidence for fire (charcoal and discoloured and fractured stones) and two hearth-like features, one of which has been archaeologically excavated. None of the evidence collected is able to conclusively demonstrate a human versus animal origin for the site. Significantly, a human origin remains to be disproved. These papers provide the basis for a new phase of research into the possible cultural status of the Moyjil site.

scholarly journals The Moyjil site, south-west Victoria, Australia: stratigraphic and geomorphic context

2018 ◽  
Vol 130 (2) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Stephen P. Carey ◽  
John E. Sherwood ◽  
Megan Kay ◽  
Ian J. McNiven ◽  
James M. Bowler
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Human Activity ◽  
Last Interglacial ◽  
Human Influence ◽  
Calcareous Sand ◽  
South West ◽  
Coastal Marine ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Shell Deposit ◽  
Early Human

Shelly deposits at Moyjil (Point Ritchie, Warrnambool), Victoria, together with ages determined from a variety of techniques, have long excited interest in the possibility of a preserved early human influence in far south-eastern Australia. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the stratigraphy of the host Bridgewater Formation (Pleistocene) at Moyjil and provides the context to the shelly deposits, evidence of fire and geochronological sampling. We have identified five superposed calcarenite–palaeosol units in the Bridgewater Formation, together with two prominent erosional surfaces that may have hosted intensive human activity. Part of the sequence is overlain by the Tower Hill Tuff, previously dated as 35 ka. Coastal marine erosion during the Last Interglacial highstand created a horizontal surface on which deposits of stones and shells subsequently accumulated. Parts of the erosional surface and some of the stones are blackened, perhaps by fire. The main shell deposit was formed by probable mass flow, and additional shelly remains are dispersed in the calcareous sand that buried the surface.

A Foothold in Paris

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison Forrestal
Keyword(s):  
Early Career ◽  
The Other ◽  
South West ◽  
University Level ◽  
Royal Household

This introductory chapter examines the early career of Vincent de Paul between 1581 and 1611, moving from his birth and education to his arrival in Paris in 1608, and his immersion in the dévot environment there. It begins with a summary of his birth in south-west France and his years of education to university level. It then outlines his appointment as an almoner in the royal household of Marguerite de Valois in early 1610, after he had taken up residence in Paris two years earlier. It concludes with an analysis of the other aspects of his material livelihood during these years, including his acquisition of the abbey of Saint-Léonard-de-Chaumes in western France.

scholarly journals Identifying Heated Rocks Through Feldspar Luminescence Analysis (pIRIR290) and a Critical Evaluation of Macroscopic Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Pop ◽  
F. H. Reidsma ◽  
T. Reimann ◽  
M. J. Sier ◽  
C. E. S. Arps ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Method ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Middle Palaeolithic ◽  
Proof Of Concept ◽  
Last Interglacial ◽  
Luminescence Analysis ◽  
Thermal Alteration ◽  
Concept Study ◽  
Visual Identification ◽  
Visual Assessments

AbstractThroughout (pre)history, non-flint rocks have been used to structure fireplaces, to retain heat, to boil liquids, and to cook food. Thus far, the identification of heated non-flint rocks in archaeological contexts largely depends on a visual (macroscopic) assessment using criteria thought to be diagnostic for thermal alteration. However, visual identification can be subject to observer bias, and some heat-induced traces can be quite difficult to distinguish from other types of weathering or discolouration. In this paper, we present feldspar luminescence analysis as an independent, objective way to identify heated non-flint rocks and to evaluate the results against the established visual macroscopic method for the identification of such pieces. This is done by submitting manuported rocks with and without inferred macroscopic characteristics of heating, originating from the Last Interglacial, Middle Palaeolithic site Neumark-Nord 2/2 (Germany), to feldspar luminescence analysis (pIRIR290). Results of the feldspar luminescence analysis are compared with the visual assessments. This proof of concept study demonstrates the potential of luminescence analyses as an independent, quantitative method for the identification of heated rocks—and their prehistoric applications like hot-stone cooking, specifically for cases where macroscopic assessment cannot provide reliable determinations.

Two new species of Terebrasabella (Annelida: Sabellidae: Sabellinae) from Australia

Zootaxa ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 1434 (1) ◽  
pp. 51 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANNA MURRAY ◽  
GREG W. ROUSE
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
The Other ◽  
Barrier Reef ◽  
Lizard Island ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Two New Species ◽  
Coral Rock

Two new species of Terebrasabella Fitzhugh & Rouse, 1999 are described from eastern Australia. Terebrasabella hutchingsae sp. nov., was found from preserved coral rock debris collected in 1977 on the outer Barrier Reef near Lizard Island, Queensland. Terebrasabella fitzhughi sp. nov., was found alive in burrows in and among spirorbin serpulid tubes on intertidal rocks in Tasmania in 1996. Both species were found in mucoid tubes, and brood their young in a manner similar to the only other described species of Terebrasabella, T. heterouncinata Fitzhugh & Rouse, 1999. Terebrasabella hutchingsae sp. nov., is exceptional as it possesses a type of thoracic neurochaetal uncinus different from the other two species, and which is similar to the notochaetal acicular “palmate hook” seen in Caobangia. Descriptions of both species are given, and the diagnosis for Terebrasabella is emended. Larval and chaetal morphology and relationships among of the three known Terebrasabella spp. are discussed.

scholarly journals Morphological variation in Leptorhynchos squamatus (Gnaphalieae: Asteraceae)

2002 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Flann ◽  
Pauline Y. Ladiges ◽  
Neville G. Walsh
Keyword(s):  
High Altitude ◽  
Morphological Variation ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Leaf Size ◽  
Alpine Plants ◽  
The Other ◽  
Herbarium Specimens ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Low Altitude

A study of morphological variation in Leptorhynchos squamatus (Labill.) Less. across its range in south-eastern Australia was undertaken to test the hypothesis that L. squamatus includes two taxa. Phenetic pattern analyses of both field-collected and herbarium specimens on the basis of morphology confirmed two major groups. Bract, cypsela, pappus bristle and leaf characters were particularly important in separating the two groups. The taxa are separated by altitude differences with one being a low-altitude plant found in many habitats and the other being a high-altitude taxon that is a major component of alpine meadows. Lowland plants have dark bract tips, fewer and wider pappus bristles than alpine plants, papillae on the cypselas and more linear leaves. A somewhat intermediate population from the Major Mitchell Plateau in the Grampians shows some alpine and some lowland characters but is included in the lowland taxon. Seeds from five populations (two alpine, two lowland and Major Mitchell) were germinated and plants grown for 18 weeks under four controlled sets of environmental conditions. The experiment showed that leaf size and some other characters are affected by environmental conditions, but that there are underlying genetic differences between the lowland and alpine forms. Leptorhynchos squamatus subsp. alpinus Flann is described here to accommodate the highland taxon.

Coupled systems of two-dimensional turbulence

2013 ◽  
Vol 732 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rick Salmon
Keyword(s):  
Hamiltonian System ◽  
Energy Conservation ◽  
Strong Correlation ◽  
Conservation Law ◽  
Hamiltonian Dynamics ◽  
Coupled Systems ◽  
The Other ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Coherent Vortices ◽  
Fluid Particles

AbstractOrdinary two-dimensional turbulence corresponds to a Hamiltonian dynamics that conserves energy and the vorticity on fluid particles. This paper considers coupled systems of two-dimensional turbulence with three distinct governing dynamics. One is a Hamiltonian dynamics that conserves the vorticity on fluid particles and a quantity analogous to the energy that causes the system members to develop a strong correlation in velocity. The other two dynamics considered are non-Hamiltonian. One conserves the vorticity on particles but has no conservation law analogous to energy conservation; the other conserves energy and enstrophy but it does not conserve the vorticity on fluid particles. The coupled Hamiltonian system behaves like two-dimensional turbulence, even to the extent of forming isolated coherent vortices. The other two dynamics behave very differently, but the behaviours of all four dynamics are accurately predicted by the methods of equilibrium statistical mechanics.

Hymenoscyphus fraxineus (ash dieback).

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Needham ◽  
Joan Webber
Keyword(s):  
North Africa ◽  
Fungal Pathogen ◽  
The Other ◽  
New Disease ◽  
Ash Dieback ◽  
South West ◽  
Hymenoscyphus Fraxineus ◽  
Natural Range

Abstract H. fraxineus is an anamorphic fungal pathogen that causes ash dieback. Due to the severity of ash dieback H. pseudoalbidus has been on the EPPO Alert list since 2007. It is not known what caused the emergence of this 'new' disease (NAPPO, 2009). Its spread in Europe is thought to be mainly by ascospores, but infected nursery saplings may carry the fungus to new areas. The entire natural range of known hosts, including North Africa, Russia and south-west Asia (USDA-ARS, 2009), is currently threatened by ash dieback, with large areas already affected (Pautasso et al., 2013). Little is known about the susceptibility of the other species of ash in temperate zones.

Description, distribution and ecology of endemic Tasmanian quillwort, Isoetes jarmaniae, sp. nov. (Isoetaceae; Lycopodiopsida)

Phytotaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 522 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-37
Author(s):  
DANIEL F. BRUNTON ◽  
MICHAEL GARRETT ◽  
PAUL C. SOKOLOFF ◽  
GINTARAS KANTVILAS
Keyword(s):  
Diploid Species ◽  
Geographic Range ◽  
The Other ◽  
South American ◽  
The South ◽  
Triangular Shape ◽  
South West ◽  
Distribution And Ecology ◽  
River Valleys

Isoetes jarmaniae sp. nov. is described as a new lycophyte endemic to Tasmania, Australia, where it is confined to peat-bound karstic wetlands in several river valleys in the south-west wilderness. While seemingly morphologically closest to I. drummondii, this quillwort has features that are globally uncommon in Isoetes and unknown in other Australasian taxa. Most notable are its markedly flattened, strongly recurved leaves and disproportionately large sporangium ligules that are more suggestive of South American than Australian taxa. As well, the exceptionally thin and wide (alate) megaspore equatorial ridge is swollen at suture intersections, presenting a slightly triangular shape suggestive of the Indian taxon I. udupiensis. The microspores of I. jarmaniae exhibit exceptionally, perhaps uniquely, fine-papillate ornamentation. An original key placing I. jarmaniae in context with the other Tasmanian Isoetes species is provided. This diminutive, apparently diploid species is evidently maintaining a self-sustaining population within a regionally unique habitat and small geographic range.

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