Before Farming: the archaeology and anthropology of hunter-gatherers

ref: Before Farming 2006/1 article 1

Modern human origins - Australian perspectives: an introduction

Darren Curnoe
Department of Anatomy, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine
University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
d.curnoe@unsw.edu.au

ref: Before Farming 2006/1 article 2

Environmental change and the arrival of people in the Australian region

Peter Kershaw
Centre for Palynology and Palaeoecology, School of Geography and Environmental Science
Monash University, Melbourne, Vic 3800, Australia
Peter.Kershaw@arts.monash.edu.au

Sander van der Kaars
Centre for Palynology and Palaeoecology Monash University
Sander.vanderKaars@arts.monash.edu.au

Patrick Moss
School of Geography, Planning and Architecture, The University of Queensland
Brisbane QLD 4072 Australia
patrick.moss@uq.edu.au

Bradley Opdyke
Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University
Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
bno@geology.anu.edu.au

François Guichard
Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et L’Environnement, Unité Mixte CNRS–CEA
91198 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France
francois.guichard@lsce.cnrs-gif.fr

Sue Rule
Centre for Palynology and Palaeoecology, Monash University
Susan.Rule@arts.monash.edu.au

Chris Turney
GeoQuEST Research Centre, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences
University of Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
turney@uow.edu.au

Keywords: Late Quaternary, Australian tropics, pollen analysis, charcoal analysis, climate change, human impact

Abstract

Continuous pollen and charcoal records, predominantly from well dated marine sediments, provide a good spatial coverage of patterns of change in vegetation, climate and biomass burning within the northern Australian – southern Indonesian region through the late Quaternary period. Northern hemisphere ice volume and monsoon forcing is conspicuous on orbital timescales with general expansion of wetter communities under higher precipitation during interglacials and their contraction under drier glacials. However, this picture is regionally complicated by both southern hemisphere monsoon and long term El Niño – Southern Oscillation influences. The charcoal records suggest a complex pattern of burning with generally more frequent or intense fires during climate transitions and also during drier periods except when and where fuel availability became a limitation. Superimposed on this largely cyclical pattern is a trend, within the last 300,000 to 200,000 years, towards more open canopied vegetation and increased burning. It is considered that regional reorganisation of oceanic and atmospheric circulation were the major causes of the early part of this trend although a human contribution cannot be totally discounted. Marked and sustained changes in vegetation and burning patterns within isotope stage 3 (IS3), corresponding with dated archaeological evidence for the presence of people and for megafaunal extinction, suggest that this was the time of the major, if not the first, invasion of Australasia by people within the Pleistocene period.

ref: Before Farming 2006/1 article 3

Excavating the mitochondrial genome identifies major haplogroups in Aboriginal Australians

Sheila van Holst Pellekaan
School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales
Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
s.vanholst@unsw.edu.au

Rosalind Harding
Department of Statistics, (OCGF), 1 South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3TG, UK
rosalind.harding@zoology.oxford.ac.uk

Keywords: Mitochondrial, DNA, Aboriginal Australian, haplogroup, coalescent

Abstract

Mitochondrial genome sequence analysis of living Aboriginal Australians from the Darling River region of New South Wales and Yuendumu reveals five major maternal haplogroups reflecting deeper ancestral connections than identity with known language or culturally derived borders. Eight complete mitochondrial genome sequences and 41 that include hypervariable segments 1 & 2 and two coding regions, reveal several distinguishing variants which suggest common ancestry with global macrohaplogroups, all falling into a non-African clade in sequence trees. Haplogroup AuB belongs to global lineage ‘M’, and the others to ‘N’. Within N, AuA can be allocated to sub-division NS, AuD to NO, while AuC and AuE fall into haplogroup N(R)P. Wide geographical distribution of distinctive HVS1 types suggests a long presence in Australia, in agreement with archaeological evidence. Characteristics of haplogroup MAuB support a proposed migration route into Australia through southern India and southeast Asia. However, Australian MAuB is distinguished from other ‘M’ lineages in neighbours to the near north and does not include any of the M sub-group ‘Q’ that is suggested to have expanded in Papua New Guinea (Friedlaender et al 2005). Within the large class of N, N(S)AuA is deep and widespread, and is likely to represent a founding lineage. N(R)P sequences group closely to some coastal and highland Papua New Guinea (PNG) sequences indicating ancient connections. PAuC includes several haplotypes likely to have expanded in the Darling River region since arrival and apparently separately from PAuE, which with N(O)AuD, is currently identified only in the north of the continent. Using coalescence analysis for the coding regions of the eight genomic sequences, we make estimates of time depth that support a continuity of presence for the descendants of a founding population already established by 40,000 years ago. Questions of migratory history and timing of possible founding events are raised although the possibility of founding groups that included diverse lineages cannot be ruled out.

ref: Before Farming 2006/1 article 4

Becoming Australian: evolutionary processes that structure biological variation from origin to modern times

Colin Pardoe
Bio-Anthropology & archaeology, 16 Hackett Gardens, Turner ACT 2612, Australia
colin.pardoe@ozemail.com.au

Keywords: origin of Australians, human evolution, skeletal analysis, gene flow, natural selection, genetic drift, migration models, modern humans

Abstract

A model of human colonisation of Australia is presented which describes morphological variation within the continent in terms of evolutionary processes that have created diversification. This model differs from models [di-hybrid, trihybrid] that explain observed variation as a result of colonisation and subsequent inter-marriage of multiple migratory

groups. Instead, a unitary origin model explains variation as a consequence of gene flow, natural selection and genetic drift. Three separate case studies are presented. Gene flow along the Murray River is shown to be a structuring agent of morphological variation that contributes to differentiation, of which a significant factor is population size.

Selection accounts for, in part, regional differences in body proportions and size. Genetic Drift has probably been relatively more important among populations of the arid zone, which are characterised by small numbers and sparse distribution, compared to densely populated regions such as the Murray River and the Top End.

ref: Before Farming 2006/1 article 5

Human origins in Australia: the skeletal evidence

Darren Curnoe
Department of Anatomy, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine
University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
d.curnoe@unsw.edu.au

Alan Thorne
Department of Archaeology and Natural History
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University
Canberra ACT 0200, Australia
thorne@coombs.anu.edu.au

Keywords: Australia, Pleistocene, modern human origins

Abstract

This paper commences with a review of the anatomical and genetic evidence for the origins of Aboriginal Australians. Recent controversies surrounding the developmental age and sex of some Pleistocene individuals are reviewed. An updated description and new analyses of the morphological evidence for gracile and robust Pleistocene populations is provided utilising descriptive anatomy, metrics and multivariate analysis. Thirty-four cranial and dental features are outlined that differentiate gracile and robust Australians. Most metrical differences between them are moderate to large on a global scale. We also describe features in robust and gracile Australians that are unusual or apparently unique by contemporary human standards. At least four of them appear not to have been documented in modern humans until now.