Revealing ancient British agricultural expansion using next-generation methods (4955)

Project Background

Throughout its history, British agriculture has been shaped by a combination of technological advancements, economic pressures, social changes, and government policies. Farming was first introduced onto the British Isles over 6,000-years ago, with early Neolithic communities cultivating crops and domesticating animals around settlements. Precisely where and when agriculture was introduced into Britain and how it expanded is still a highly debated topic.

Lake sediments from Mere Tarn (Cumbria, UK) have revealed a compelling and insightful pollen record, with clear evidence of human activity and land use changes around the site over the past 6,000-years, including strong evidence of Neolithic agriculture indicated by an early Elm decline, and presence of anthropogenic indicator cereal-type (>37um) pollen grains. The advent of DNA sequencing and its application to lake sediments has revolutionised palaeoenvironmental reconstructions and has enabled unique insights into past environmental and anthropogenic change.

By coupling targeted DNA sequencing methods with conventional palaeoenvironmental methodologies in sediments spanning the last 12,000-years, agricultural expansion in Britain can be better characterised and chronologically constrained, enabling the development of a novel framework for tracing the agricultural transitions across the British Isles.

Project Aims and Methods

This PhD will aim to reconstruct the sediment taxonomic record of Mere Tarn using microscopy, flow and imaging cytometry, DNA analysis and radiometric dating. These data will be used to perform a high-resolution multifactorial analysis of how the biodiversity around Mere Tarn has changed over time and how human activity has influenced the local environment.

Refinement of these methods will develop a framework for identifying indicators of agriculture which can be applied to key sites across the British Isles. The project can be further refined to meet the interest of the student. Candidate requirements

This project would suit a candidate with a strong interest in palaeoecology or environmental genomics. Experience of working with environmental samples would be beneficial but not essential. Project partners

This highly collaborative project is partnered with Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, who have specialist knowledge regarding taxonomy, phylogeny and identification of grass and cereal species. Training

All necessary training for DNA analysis, microscopy, cytometry and radiometric dating will be provided. Fieldwork will be conducted to collect sediment cores and there will be an opportunity to spend time at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.