We explored patterns of plant species richness at different spatial scales in 14 habitats in a Swedish rural landscape. Effects of physical conditions, and relationships between species richness and management history reaching back to the 17 (th) century were examined, using old cadastral maps and aerial photographs. The most species-rich habitats were dry open semi- natural grasslands, midfield islets and road verges. Alpha diversity (species richness within sites) was highest in habitats on dry substrates (excluding bedrock with sparse pines) and beta diversity (species richness among sites) was highest in moist to wet habitats. Alpha and beta components of species richness tended to be inversely related among habitats with similar species richness. Management history influenced diversity patterns. Areas managed as grasslands in the 17 th and 18 th century harboured more species than areas outside the villages. We also found significant relationships between species richness and soil type. Silt proved to be the most species- rich topsoil (10- 20 cm) in addition to thin soils top of on green- or limestone bedrock. The variation in species richness due to local relief or form of the site also showed significant relationships, where flat surfaces had the highest number of species. In contrast, no significant relationship was found between species richness and aspect. Our study suggests that present- day diversity patterns are much influenced by management history, and that small habitat, e. g., road verges and midfield islets, are important for maintaining species richness.

The influence of management history and habitat on plant species richness in a rural hemiboreal landscape, Sweden

The Viking Age town of Birka, which existed between AD 750 and 975, on the island of Bjorko in the Malar archipelago of the Baltic Sea, is known as the oldest centre used for large-scale international trading in Sweden. Birka had a strong defence: town rampart, hillfort and a water palisade. Studies of lithology, and microand macroremains in a sedimentary sequence accumulated offshore from Birka, outside the water palisade, revealed a stratigraphically distinct refuse stratum, referred to as the Birka Layer. We argue that the bulk material of the Birka Layer emanates from human activities in the town, e.g., latrine cleanings, cuttings of shore vegetation, cleaning of ditches and storage areas, and domestic animal dung. Organic remains from vegetation and animals, deposited during activities on the ice offshore from the town, e.g., winter markets, may also have contributed to the composition. The material constituting the Birka Layer started to accumulate after the construction of the protecting water pali...

Environmental changes and human impact as recorded in a sediment sequence offshore from a Viking Age town, Birka, southeastern Sweden

The maritime zone of the Baltic basin, in all the phases of its settlement history, was of special importance to the people living there. Only there did they have access to marine resources and to the transportation and communication routes. The Baltic shore was therefore utilized, occupied, settled and even modified by humans, despite the unstable environmental conditions due to the isostatic rebound and the eustatic rise in sea level, which made it necessary to constantly adapt to a changing environment. Changes in sea level and the shoreline are generally investigated by the earth sciences. The resulting data form the base for the calculation of sea-level curves and shore-displacement models. Especially in areas with high rates of shore displacement, the data and models can then be used to reconstruct environmental conditions and to date prehistoric coastal sites. Conversely, well-excavated and dated archaeological sites that were originally located on the shore can provide detailed information about the sea level at the time of their occupation and can be used as sea-level index points. In this chapter, the opportunities and problems arising from the use of shore-displacement models for the interpretation of archaeological sites are discussed, as is the utilization of data extracted from archaeological investigations. Both models and sites are introduced in case studies that represent not only the different areas and localities but also the different stages in the development of the Baltic Sea.

Settlement Development in the Shadow of Coastal Changes – Case Studies from the Baltic Rim

The coastal zone of the Baltic Sea was in all the phases of its settlement history of special importance to the people living there. Only there did they have access to marine resources and transportation and communication routes. The Baltic shore was therefore utilized, occupied, settled and even modified by humans, despite the unstable environmental conditions due to the isostatic rebound and the eustatic rise in sea level, which made it necessary to constantly adapt to a changing environment. Changes in sea level and the shoreline are generally investigated by the earth sciences. The resulting data form the base for the construction of sea level curves and shore-displacement models. Especially in areas with high rates of shore displacement, the data and models can then be used to reconstruct environmental conditions but in many cases also to date prehistoric coastal sites. Conversely, well-excavated and dated archaeological sites that were originally located on the shore can provide detailed information about the sea level at the time of their occupation and therefore can be considered as sea level index points. In this chapter, the opportunities and problems arising from the use of shore-displacement models for the interpretation of archaeological sites are discussed, as well as the utilization of data about sea level variations extracted from the archaeological record.

Geoarchaeological Research Strategies in the Baltic Sea Area: Environmental Changes, Shoreline-Displacement and Settlement Strategies

There are numerous studies in the form of graduate diploma works, licentiate and doctoral theses, which include investigations of material from sedimentary basins and archaeological sites in the Stockholm region. The reference list contains many of these titles, which are diffi cult to fi nd in other contexts. Research courses, workshops, excursions and symposia were arranged in connection with the current projects by the Nordic Academy for Advanced Studies (NorFA), and the Council of Europe interdisciplinary network PACT. These activities represent an integrated approach of scientifi c and archaeological methods and techniques for the benefi t of the European cultural and environmental heritage. A synthesis of biostratigraphical-palaeoecological interdisciplinary studies in the Stockholm region and neighbouring areas is presented as an example of collaboration between geologists, archaeologists, biologists, historians and physicists during the recent decades. Within these studies, parallel to pollen and diatom analyses, new parameters (phytoliths, Cladocera, ostracodes, magnetic susceptibility, elemental analysis) and complex analyses, e.g. coprolites and waste strata, have been developed and tested. Examples are given of comprehen- sive projects concerning, e.g. the Stone Age in the Grodinge area on Sodertorn peninsula, the Viking Age Birka on Bjorko island in the Lake Malaren, and landscape and vegetation history at the Arlanda airport area in Uppland. The results of the studies have in many cases created new insights and a re-evaluation of the events and history of the landscape, environment and settlement. An important role has been to bring the local and national networks to a wider international level.

Half a century of interdisciplinary studies on the development of the natural and cultural landscape in the Stockholm region

The existence, duration and amplitude of the Litorina 3 transgression during the Late Mesolithic and Early/Middle Neolithic in the Stockholm area is discussed here. The paper aims at evaluating the archaeological data in relation to shore displacement models. It is concluded that there are indications of influence from the Litorina Sea at one archaeological site from the Late Mesolithic and at several Middle Neolithic sites. It is only the material from the Late Mesolithic site that has been radiocarbon dated and proved to be the result of a long term process. The other indications are still to be evaluated against an improved absolute and relative chronology, but may be the result of smaller fluctuations during a regressive period.

Archaeological data and models of sea-level change c. 6000-3500 BP south of Stockholm, eastern Sweden

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Archaeological data and models of sea-level change c. 6000-3500 BP south of Stockholm, eastern Sweden