title: Direct evidence for human reliance on rainforest resources in late Pleistocene Sri Lanka.
abstract: Human occupation of tropical rainforest habitats is thought to be a mainly Holocene phenomenon. Although archaeological and paleoenvironmental data have hinted at pre-Holocene rainforest foraging, earlier human reliance on rainforest resources has not been shown directly. We applied stable carbon and oxygen isotope analysis to human and faunal tooth enamel from four late Pleistocene-to-Holocene archaeological sites in Sri Lanka. The results show that human foragers relied primarily on rainforest resources from at least ~20,000 years ago, with a distinct preference for semi-open rainforest and rain forest edges. Homo sapiens' relationship with the tropical rainforests of South Asia is therefore long-standing, a conclusion that indicates the time-depth of anthropogenic reliance and influence on these habitats.
authors.affiliation: School of Archaeology, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, Dyson Perrins Building, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK. patrick.roberts@rlaha.ox.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: Postgraduate Institute of Archaeology, 407 Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 00700, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Nimal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Perera
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology, Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Oshan
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Wedage
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology, Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Siran
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Deraniyagala
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology, Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Jude
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Perera
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology, Sir Marcus Fernando Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Saman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eregama
authors.affiliation: Division of Geographic, Archaeological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, UK.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gledhill
authors.affiliation: School of Archaeology, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, Dyson Perrins Building, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK.
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Petraglia
authors.affiliation: School of Archaeology, Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, Dyson Perrins Building, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK.
authors.forename: Julia A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lee-Thorp
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001106:Archaeology; D002247:Carbon Isotopes / Q000032:analysis; D003743:Dental Enamel / Q000737:chemistry; D004032:Diet; D005580:Fossils; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D010103:Oxygen Isotopes / Q000032:analysis; D010161:Paleodontology; D010944:Plants; D065947:Rainforest; D013188:Sri Lanka; D013995:Time; D014197:Trees
chemical_list: D002247:Carbon Isotopes; D010103:Oxygen Isotopes