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- The DistoX2: a methodological solution to archaeological mapping in poorly accessible environmentsPublication . Almeida-Warren, Katarina; Braun, David R.; Carvalho, SusanaSpatial information is crucial to archaeological field research. From the plane-table to the total station, recent technological advances have enabled data collection to become fully digital and highly accurate. Nevertheless, the recent expansion of archaeological expeditions to novel environments often incompatible with modern mapping equipment, e.g. tropical forests or ephemeral shorelines, calls for further methodological innovations. Such projects, as well as those under logistic or financial limitations, are still largely reliant on more time consuming, less accurate, traditional approaches, e.g. offset or tape and compass methods. The DistoX2 is a digital, highly portable, and versatile hand-held instrument originally developed for speleological surveys where total stations and DGPSs are not feasible. However, the potential of the DistoX2 system as a spatial mapping tool in above-ground contexts has been surprisingly overlooked. Here, we present a first assessment of the applicability of the DistoX2 for archaeological mapping in non-speleological environments. We investigate precision and accuracy in controlled above-ground settings relative to two common methods of data collection - total station, and tape and compass. We test the relative precision of the DistoX2 when mounted on a tripod or operated in hand-held mode and discuss its applicability, and potential combined used, in the context of other increasingly popular methods - GNSS and SfM photogrammetry. With a mean error of approximate to 5.00 cm for horizontal readings and approximate to 2.00 cm for vertical readings, the DistoX2 is considerably more accurate than the tape and compass method (mu approximate to 67.00 cm horizontal; mu approximate to 3.00 cm vertical). While the DistoX2 exceeds the error thresholds of projects that require high spatial sensitivity (e.g. Palaeolithic excavations), it provides a reliable, low-cost and more accurate alternative to many projects that resort to more traditional methods. This fills an existent methodological and financial gap amongst the growing diversity of archaeological expeditions.
- Primate Archaeology, Developments of a New Research FieldPublication . Luncz, Lydia V.; Almeida-Warren, Katarina
- Using nonhuman culture in conservation requires careful and concerted actionPublication . Carvalho, Susana; Wessling, Erin G.; Abwe, Ekwoge E.; Almeida-Warren, Katarina; Arandjelovic, Mimi; Boesch, Christophe; Danquah, Emmanuel; Diallo, Mamadou Saliou; Hobaiter, Catherine; Hockings, Kimberley; Humle, Tatyana; Ikemeh, Rachel Ashegbofe; Kalan, Ammie K.; Luncz, Lydia; Ohashi, Gaku; Pascual‐Garrido, Alejandra; Piel, Alex; Samuni, Liran; Soiret, Serge; Sanz, Crickette; Koops, KathelijneDiscussions of how animal culture can aid the conservation crisis are burgeoning. As scientists and conservationists working to protect endangered species, we call for reflection on how the culture concept may be applied in practice. Here, we discuss both the potential benefits and potential shortcomings of applying the animal culture concept, and propose a set of achievable milestones that will help guide and ensure its effective integration existing conservation frameworks, such as Adaptive Management cycles or Open Standards.
- Landscaping the behavioural ecology of primate stone tool usePublication . Almeida-Warren, Katarina; Camara, Henry Didier; Matsuzawa, Tetsuro; Carvalho, SusanaEcology is fundamental in the development, transmission, and perpetuity of primate technology. Previous studies on tool site selection have addressed the relevance of targeted resources and raw materials for tools, but few have considered the broader foraging landscape. In this landscape-scale study of the ecological contexts of wild chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus) tool use, we investigated the conditions required for nut-cracking to occur and persist in discrete locations at the long-term field site of Bossou, Guinea. We examined this at three levels: selection, frequency of use, and inactivity. We collected data on plant foods, nut trees, and raw materials using transect and quadrat methods, and conducted forest-wide surveys to map the location of nests and watercourses. We analysed data at the quadrat level (n = 82) using generalised linear models and descriptive statistics. We found that, further to the presence of a nut tree and availability of raw materials, abundance of food-providing trees as well as proximity to nest sites were significant predictors of nut-cracking occurrence. This suggests that the spatial distribution of nut-cracking sites is mediated by the broader behavioural landscape and is influenced by non-extractive foraging of perennial resources and non-foraging activities. Additionally, the number of functional tools was greater at sites with higher nut-cracking frequency, and was negatively correlated with site inactivity. Our research indicates that the technological landscape of Bossou chimpanzees shares affinities with the 'favoured places' model of hominin site formation, providing a comparative framework for reconstructing landscape-scale patterns of ancient human behaviour. A French translation of this abstract is provided in theelectronic supplementary information: EMS 2.
- Primate archaeology 3.0Publication . Pascual‐Garrido, Alejandra; Carvalho, Susana; Almeida-Warren, KatarinaThe new field of primate archaeology investigates the technological behavior and material record of nonhuman primates, providing valuable comparative data on our understanding of human technological evolution. Yet, paralleling hominin archaeology, the field is largely biased toward the analysis of lithic artifacts. While valuable comparative data have been gained through an examination of extant nonhuman primate tool use and its archaeological record, focusing on this one single aspect provides limited insights. It is therefore necessary to explore to what extent other non-technological activities, such as non-tool aided feeding, traveling, social behaviors or ritual displays, leave traces that could be detected in the archaeological record. Here we propose four new areas of investigation which we believe have been largely overlooked by primate archaeology and that are crucial to uncovering the full archaeological potential of the primate behavioral repertoire, including that of our own: (1) Plant technology; (2) Archaeology beyond technology; (3) Landscape archaeology; and (4) Primate cultural heritage. We discuss each theme in the context of the latest developments and challenges, as well as propose future directions. Developing a more "inclusive" primate archaeology will not only benefit the study of primate evolution in its own right but will aid conservation efforts by increasing our understanding of changes in primate-environment interactions over time. Uncovering the full potential of primate archaeology. Promising novel areas of research include: Plant technology; Archaeology of non-technological behaviors; Landscape archaeology; and Primate cultural heritage.image
- Archaeology of the Perishable Ecological Constraints and Cultural Variants in Chimpanzee Termite FishingPublication . Pascual-Garrido, Alejandra; Almeida-Warren, KatarinaSelection and transport of materials for tools is ubiquitous throughout our species' evolutionary history. Yet our understanding of early human material culture is heavily skewed toward lithic technology. This poses challenges when reconstructing our technical origins, as organic raw materials, especially plants, likely played a significant role despite their absence from the record until 300 kya. Studies of plant-tool use by living apes can serve as a proxy to reconstruct such aspects of human behavior. Employing archaeological methods, we investigated raw material procurement for termite-fishing tools by three chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) populations in Tanzania: Gombe, Issa, and Mahale. All communities exploited plant sources from the immediate vicinity of termite mounds, as well as farther away, and reused them. However, at Issa, more parts were sourced per plant, with the number of removals decreasing as distance from the mound increased. These disparities are likely caused by environmental differences. Issa apes might try to minimize transport costs in what is a comparably more open and drier habitat with fewer suitable sources available near mounds. Despite similar raw material types being available, Issa and Mahale chimpanzees exclusively used bark for tool manufacture, while at Gombe, various materials were employed; these differences may reflect cultural variants. Our study highlights how environmental and cultural factors shape chimpanzee technology and identifies similarities to raw material selection processes inferred for Oldowan tool users. The archaeology of the perishable, even if at its infancy, is providing a new framework for reconstructing archaeologically invisible aspects of early human behavior and our own technological origins.
- Modeling Oldowan tool transport from a primate perspectivePublication . Reeves, Jonathan S.; Proffitt, Tomos; Almeida-Warren, Katarina; Luncz, Lydia V.Living nonhuman primates have long served as a referential framework for understanding various aspects of hominin biological and cultural evolution. Comparing the cognitive, social, and ecological contexts of nonhuman primate and hominin tool use has allowed researchers to identify key adaptations relevant to the evolution of hominin behavior. Although the Oldowan is often considered to be a major evolutionary milestone, it has been argued that the Oldowan is rather an extension of behaviors already present in the ape lineage. This is based on the fact that while apes move tools through repeated, unplanned, short-distance transport bouts, they produce material patterning often associated with longdistance transport, planning, and foresight in the Oldowan. Nevertheless, remain fundamental differences in how Oldowan core and flake technology and nonhuman primate tools are used. The goal of the Oldowan hominins is to produce sharp-edged flakes, whereas nonhuman primates use stone tools primarily as percussors. Here, we present an agent-based model that investigates the explanatory power of the ape tool transport model in light of these differences. The model simulates the formation of the Oldowan record under the conditions of an accumulated short-distance transport pattern, as seen in extant chimpanzees. Our results show that while ape tool transport can account for some of the variation observed in the archaeological record, factors related to use-life duration severely limit how far an Oldowan core can be moved through repeated short-distance transport bouts. Thus, the ape tool transport has limitations in its ability to explain patterns in the Oldowan. These results provide a basis for discussing adaptive processes that would have facilitated the development of the Oldowan. (c) 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- A Home Range Approach to the Ecology of Site Selection in Wild Chimpanzee Nut-CrackingPublication . Almeida-Warren, Katarina; Matsuzawa, Tetsuro; Carvalho, Susana