No description available.

Strontium isotope analysis has provided archaeologists with an unprecedented opportunity to study the mobility of humans and animals in the past. However, a lack of systematic environmental baseline data has seriously restricted the full potential of the analytical technique; there is little biosphere data available against which to compare measured skeletal data. This thesis examines the extent to which geographic variation in biosphere 87Sr/86Sr composition can be spatially resolved within the lowland terrain of England, in a geographically and geologically coherent study area. Systematically collected samples of vegetation, stream water and surface soils, including new and archived material have been used. The potential of these sample media to provide reliable estimates of the 87Sr/86Sr composition of bioavailable strontium are evaluated under both high-density and low-density sampling regimes, and against new analyses of local archaeological material. Areas lying south of the Anglian glacial limit, display a pattern of geographic 87Sr/86Sr biosphere variation (0.7080¿0.7105) controlled by solid geology, as demonstrated by high-density biosphere mapping. Data collected at a wider geographic scale, including above superficial deposits, indicate the dominant influence of re-worked local rocks on the biosphere. These methods have enabled a reclassification of the archaeologically important Cretaceous Chalk domain. Analysis of rainwater and other indicators of atmospheric deposition show that, in this setting, local biosphere variation is not significantly perturbed by atmospheric inputs. Time-related data from archaeological cattle and sheep/goat tooth enamel suggest that the modern biosphere data can be used to understand livestock management regimes and that these are more powerful than using an average value from the enamel. A more complete understanding of possible patterns of mobility in a group of humans has been achieved through analysis of material from Winchester and comparison with the Chalk biosphere domain. / British Geological Survey¿s British University Funding Initiative (BUFI) and the School of Life Sciences at the University of Bradford joint funding.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate different scales of mobility and social networks in Southern Scandinavia around 7000 BC. An essential basis for this work is the hypothesis that the conical core pressure blade technology, a specific method for producing lithic blades, reached Scandinavia from the east. The process has been discussed and verified in several earlier studies. The study is based on investigations of lithic material and bone tools, as well as human skeletal remains; a multidisciplinary strategy has been applied, which combines technological analyzes of archaeological material with isotope analyzes of human teeth. Materials and data have been collected from a total of 111 sites located mainly in Scandinavia, but also in Finland, the Baltic countries and Russia. The Mesolithic site Norje Sunnansund in Blekinge, southern Sweden is in focus. Analyzes of the chaîne opératoire of lithic and osseous production make it possible to study technological processes as the transmission of culturally conditioned patterns; these patterns underlie the formative principles of each technology complex. By identifying specific traditional knowledge built into the material process, it becomes possible to define prehistoric human traditions and thereby study human interactions and migrations between geographical regions. The analyzes of strontium isotopes in human teeth from Norje Sunnansund enables an additional individual provenancing since the isotopes reflect a geographical-geological variation. The study provides a higher resolution of the arrival and spreading of the pressure blade technology from the northeast. It also strengthens the picture of a Mesolithic society in Southern Scandinavia based on geographically extensive social networks. An increased regionalization and territorialization has previously been proposed for western Scandinavia around 8800-7500 BC. The study confirms that during this period the population seem to consist of several subgroups related to specific territories, but with close and regular contact within a more extensive social network. This fits well with the picture of a group that may have inhabited Norje Sunnansund for extended periods, while social contacts were maintained over longer distances.

No description available.

No description available.

Mgr. Václav Hrnčíř Mobility of individuals and populations in the prehistoric period. Confrontation of archaeological, ethnological and natural scientific methods. Abstract of dissertation thesis This thesis focuses on the use of natural scientific methods and cross-cultural research to study the mobility of individuals and populations in the prehistoric period and confronts these methods with the results of traditional archaeological approaches. In the first part, the advantages and limits of multiple-tooth strontium isotope analysis are critically assessed. Analysis of published strontium data of more than 1,000 individuals across the world reveals a high degree of variability in childhood mobility patterns between different regions and periods. In the second part, the association between post-marital residence and dwelling size is tested using phylogenetic comparative analysis methods and a global sample of 86 pre-industrial societies. The results confirm that large dwellings are associated with matrilocality (whereas smaller with patrilocality) and suggest that average dwelling size can be used as a material proxy for inferring post-marital residence rules in prehistoric societies. The last part of the thesis combines various types of evidence (archaeological, strontium and ethnographic) to determine...

Migratory insects are vital components of global ecosystems and provide important ecosystem services, yet the migration phenomenon is understudied in insects compared to vertebrates. In this thesis, I aim to deepen our understanding of insect migration, using the monarch butterfly Danaus plexippus (L.) and the painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui (L.) as model systems. Studying insect migration is notoriously difficult given the small size, high abundance, and short lifespans of insects. Isotope geolocation has shown promise for overcoming these obstacles. Here, I develop and apply metals and metal isotopes, specifically strontium isotope ratios (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr), to increase the spatial precision of isotope geolocation and demonstrate how isotopic geolocation tools can advance our understanding of insect migration at the population level. In the first chapter, I test the validity of using ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, lead isotopes, and a suite of 23 metals and metalloids to estimate the natal origins of migratory insects, by investigating the pathways of metal incorporation into butterfly wing tissues. Using an 8-week diet-switching experiment, I show that the concentrations of many metals in insect wings can be altered through the adult diet or dust deposition, making them poor candidates for geolocation but potentially interesting tools to study insect physiology, diet, or toxicology. For example, lead was found to accumulate on butterfly wings from external sources, and lead isotopes could potentially be used to quantify the exposure of migratory insects to metal pollution. Some metals, including Ba, Cs, Mg, Na, Rb, Sr, Ti, Tl, and U, are good candidates for developing geolocation tools. I focused on ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr and demonstrated that, despite some caveats, this tool is valid for isotope geolocation. In the second chapter, I outline the steps required to use ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr for the geolocation of insects, including the calibration of a spatial model of isotopic variation (i.e., an isoscape) using random forest regression. I then combine hydrogen isotope values (δ²H) and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr into a dual assignment framework to estimate the natal origins of a single generation of monarch butterflies in eastern North America. I demonstrate that combining these two isotopes provides a more spatially constrained estimate of natal origin than using either isotope alone. In the third chapter, I apply this framework to characterize the migratory patterns and migratory connectivity of an insect species across a geographical barrier, the Sahara. Painted ladies journeying northwards across the Sahara appear to do so in a gradual progression, although spatiotemporal sampling limitations prevented a complete characterization of this movement. In contrast, painted ladies migrating southwards appear to journey in a broad front, parallel migration pattern with little longitudinal movement. Evidence for a leapfrog migration pattern was found in the western region, wherein butterflies of northernmost origin journey farther south than butterflies bred in more southerly regions. This leapfrog migration pattern suggests distinct migratory behaviours within painted lady butterflies wherein some individuals migrate longer distances than others. In the fourth chapter, I apply isotope geolocation to characterize the migration distances of multiple individuals and assess the potential genetic differentiation of butterflies migrating distinct distances. I use δ²H and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr-based geographic assignment to confirm that some painted ladies migrate up to 4,000 km from Europe to sub-Saharan Africa, while others migrate shorter distances from Europe to the circum-Mediterranean region. Despite these differences in migration distance, genome-wide analysis revealed a lack of adaptive variation between short- and long-distance migrants. Instead, variation in migration distance in painted lady butterflies is likely the result of a plastic response to environmental conditions. Overall, the methodological developments presented in this thesis are a step forward in studying insect migration. The development and application of metals and metal isotopes for insect geolocation opens new avenues to study the migration phenomenon at different scales with widespread relevance for conservation and pest management.

L'authenticité et la traçabilité des aliments gagnent un intérêt croissant au cours de la dernière décennie puisque la connaissance de la provenance des aliments est considérée comme une garantie supplémentaire de leur qualité. Les consommateurs ont également des inquiétudes et des préoccupations par l'origine de la nourriture qu'ils consomment car divers produits sont sujets à l'adultération ou à la fausse dénomination. L'intérêt accru à l’égard de la protection des consommateurs et de la lutte antifraude ont entraîné un accroissement de la recherche scientifique appliquée et le développement d'outils efficaces pour contrôler l'authenticité des produits alimentaires. Entre techniques analytiques appliquées à l'authenticité et à la traçabilité des aliments, les méthodes les plus prometteuses sont basées sur les empreintes d'éléments lourds mesurées par la spectroscopie atomique. La spectrométrie de masse à multicollection à couplage à plasma induit (MC-ICP-MS) est reconnue comme la méthode optimale pour effectuer des mesures de haute précision de nombreux éléments du tableau périodique en contrôlant simultanément les rapports entre leurs isotopes stables. Cette étude présente une nouvelle stratégie analytique basée sur des isotopes stables non-traditionnels combinés avec des éléments traces déterminés par ICP-MS. Les avantages de combiner les informations de deux systèmes isotopiques, l'un traçant le sol (Sr), et l'autre traçant la pollution environnementale ambiante (Pb), ont permis d'obtenir de nouvelles informations exceptionnelles sur la traçabilité et l'authenticité des matrices alimentaires sélectionnées : vins de Bordeaux, jambons secs et thé. En utilisant des techniques analytiques complémentaires telles que les empreintes des élémentaires traditionnelles, la spécification régionale, ainsi que le traçage du processus de préparation des aliments sont possibles. Traitée par la chimiométrie, cette approche analytique constitue un nouvel outil efficace et prometteur pour détecter des fraudes alimentaires, y compris l’imitation de produits de grande valeur, l’étiquetage erroné et la substitution par des produits moins cher. / Food authenticity and traceability have received an increasing interest during the last decade since the knowledge of food provenance is regarded as an additional warranty of its quality. The world's globalization brought to the consumers is more and more concerned with the origin of the food they eat because various products are subjected to adulteration or false denomination. The augmentative interest in anti-fraud and consumer protection has led to the extension of scientific research and development of effective tools of food authenticity control. Among the analytical technics applied to food authenticity and traceability, one of the most rapidly developing and promising method is based on fingerprinting of heavy elements detected by atomic spectroscopy. The multicollection inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) is recognized as a method of choice for the high precision measurement of numerous elements of the periodic table as well as ratios of their stable isotopes. This study present a new analytical strategy based on combined non-traditional stable isotopes and trace elements determination by ICP-MS. The benefits of combining information from two isotopic systems, one tracing the soil (Sr), and the other tracing environmental ambient pollution (Pb), allowed to obtain an exceptional new information about traceability and authenticity of selected food matrixes: prestigious Bordeaux wines, dry-cured hams and tea. Using complementary analytical techniques such as traditional elemental fingerprinting, the regional specification, as well as tracing of the food preparation process are possible. When combined with chemometrics, these analytical advances constitute an efficient and promising tool to detect food frauds, including adulteration of high value products with cheaper substitutes, forgery and falsification.