Latin American Youth in Phytolith Research: Students Making an Impact

• Post by: Admin
• September 10, 2024
• 2 Comments

This post showcases the contributions of young scientists across Latin America in the field of phytolith research, highlights the ongoing work of undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students of different courses, fostering knowledge exchange and building connections among researchers.

Argentina

Laura Carolina Vega – Universidad Nacional de Tucumán

Research title: “Comparative studies between fractions of micro and macroremains”
Archaeology Student
Supervisor: María Alejandra Korstanje – Laboratorio de Arqueobotánica (ISES-CONICET-UNT)
This study delves into the comparative analysis of macro and micro remains embedded in a sedimentary matrix, looking for understanding their behavior, drawing lines of correspondence, and establishing qualitative and quantitative robustness that provide insights into the taphonomic processes specific to the site to which both fractions are subject.

 

Noelia I. Patterer – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)

Research title: “Phytoliths in Neogene Sediments”
Ph.D. Student in Paleobotanics
Supervisor: Alejandro Zucol
Founding: CONICET-UADER-FONCYT.
This research analyses the phytoliths in Neogene sediments of the province of Entre Ríos, soils and vegetation of the main physiognomic units of the province.

 

Priscila Azzolina – Universidad Nacional de Córdoba

Research title : “Paleoethnobotanical Studies in Sites of the Upper Paraná River Delta and its Adjacent High Hills (Province of Entre Ríos). Patterns Of Plant Use Through Micro-Remains Analysis”
Ph.D. Student in Biological Sciences
Supervisor: María de los Milagros Colobig – Laboratorio de Arqueología – CICYTTP CONICET.
Founding: Universidad Autónoma de Entre Ríos (proyectos PICTO- UADER 2023- 69 y PIDAC 133- 20 UADER).
The objective of this research is to reconstruct, from a paleoethnobotanical perspective, the patterns of exploitation and use of plant resources by human groups associated with archaeological sites in the Upper Delta of the Paraná River and its adjacent high hills, and to address the paleoenvironmental aspects that contextualize these sites. To achieve this, phytoliths present primarily in the sedimentary matrix of the site profiles are analyzed.

Sebastián Ariel Frezzia – Universidad Nacional de Córdoba

Research title: “Analysis of Phytolithic Variability in Plant Communities in the Southern Mesopotamian Region Of Argentina”
Ph.D. Student in Biological Sciences
Supervisor: Noelia Isabel Patterer – Laboratorio de Paleobotánica – CICYTTP CONICET.
Founding: CONICET PIP 11220200100509CO.
This study analyzes the production and incorporation of phytoliths in plant communities of the southern Mesopotamian region of Argentina, considered coenoclines of environmental factors. This will allow for the generation of transfer functions and the inference of the development conditions of silicophytolithic associations in paleocommunities of the region.

Brazil

Carolina Glaeser Benincá – Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Estudos da Dinâmica Ambiental (LEDA).

Research title: “The Impact of Atta Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) on the Composition, Distribution and Preservation of an Oxisol’s Phytolith Assemblage”
Master’s in Geography
Supervisor: Marcia Regina Calegari – LEDA (Universidade Estadual do Oeste do Paraná – Unioeste).
Founding: Fundação Araucária and Fundação Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES).
This study explores the dynamics between bioturbation and the soil’s phytolith assemblage, especially on highly weathered and heavily bioturbated Oxisols, in which leafcutter ant activity is extensive, and can potentially interfere on the phytolith’s assemblage composition, distribution and preservation. For this research, phytoliths, δ13C isotopes, 14C dating and soil micromorphology were essential tools.

Christianne Farias da Fonseca – Instituto Federal de Ciência e Tecnologia do Sertão Pernambucano (IFSERTÃO-PE)

Research title: “Paleoenvironmental Study in Humid and Sub-Humid Enclaves of Cariri Paraibano”
Ph.D in Geography.
Supervisors: Bartolomeu Israel de Souza (Universidade Federal da Paraíba – UFPB) and; José João Lelis Leal de Souza (Universidade Federal de Viçosa – UFV) e Marcia Regina Calegari (Unioeste).
The Caatinga biome is home to rich biodiversity and diverse landscapes of significant geoenvironmental, ecotourism, economic, and cultural importance. It features crystalline massifs, known as lajedos and mountain ranges, which create humid enclaves within the Caatinga region of Borborema. In this study, phytolith analysis is applied to explore the environmental evolution of the humid and sub-humid enclaves in Cariri Paraibano.

David Oldack Barcelos Ferreira Machado – Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)

Research title: “Landscape Evolution and Paleoenvironmental Reconstitution in Surface Coverings of the Corumbataí River Basin (SP), Through Biomineralizations of Silica and Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL)”
Ph.D. Student in Geography.
Supervisor: Archimedes Perez Filho – Laboratório de Geomorfologia e Análise Ambiental.
Founding: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq).
This investigation aims to understand the dynamics of landscape transformation in the Corumbataí River Basin, São Paulo, by inferring possible variations in vegetation and geomorphological processes associated with episodes of Holocene climatic pulsations. This is achieved through the analysis of Silica Biomineralizations and Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL), focusing on the investigation of various surface covers found within the basin.

Diana Mirela da Silva Toso – Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP)

Research title: “Holocene landscapes and ceramist people in the region of the Aguapeí and Peixe rivers: contributions to the indigenous history of the Alto (Upper) Paraná River”
Ph.D. Student in Geography.
Supervisors: Neide Barrocá Faccio and Jennifer Georgina Watling – Laboratório de Arqueologia Guarani.
Founding: CAPES.
This research examines pre-colonial human occupation in the Aguapeí and Peixe River Basin by investigating phytolith assemblages found in archaeological sites. The study aims to infer scenarios of human settlement, plant use, cultivation, and management practices. Seeking to enhance our understanding of the landscapes inhabited by ceramic peoples and their relationships with plants, plus, opening new research perspectives for archaeological sites in areas of significant environmental degradation.

Eduarda Spohr – Universidade Estadual do Oeste do Paraná (Unioeste)

Research title: “Soil Fauna: A Builder or Modifier Agent of Soil Phytolith Assemblages?”
Agronomy Student
Supervisor: Marcia Regina Calegari – Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Estudos da Dinâmica Ambiental (LEDA).
Founding: Fundação Araucária and CNPq.
This study purpose is to investigate highly weathered and bioturbated tropical soils, where the construction of mounds, channels, and layers by termites and ants play a dominant role in pedogenesis. It focuses on evaluating the effect of bioturbation on the soil’s phytolith assemblage, seeking to understand the influence of termites on the distribution of biogenic silica and on the composition (quantity and diversity) of tropical soils.

João Pedro Coumendouros Scott – Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ)

Research title: “Organic soils and records of paleoenvironmental changes in upper-montane grasslands in Southern Brazil”.
Agronomy Student.
Supervisor: Eduardo Carvalho da Silva Neto.
Founding: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro – FAPERJ and CNPq.
This research takes a multiproxy approach (analysis of δ13C isotopes and phytoliths) to carry out a paleoenvironmental reconstruction of organic soils in the eastern portion of the Serra Geral Formation in southern Brazil, observing the changes recorded in these soils and better understand their influence on pedogenetic processes. This is an area sensitive to environmental changes and a reliable source of paleoenvironmental records due to the influence of different South American climates.

Matheus dos Santos Lisboa – Universidade Federal do Pará

Research title: “Amazon of Plants and People: The Role of Plants in the Construction of Identities in the Northwest Amazon”
Master’s Student in Archaeology
Supervisor: Daiana Travassos Alves – Tapera
This study investigates human-environment relations in the Upper Rio Negro region, using microvestiges (phytoliths) from the region as an object of analysis.

Natália de Oliveira Tavares – Universidade de São Paulo

Research title: “Plants, landscape and diet: archaeobotany and palaeoecology of earthen Mcetound Builders from Southern Brazil”
Ph.D. Student in Archaeology
Supervisor: Jennifer Watling – Laboratório de Microarqueologia
Founding: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP).
This research purpose is to analyze phytoliths from domesticated and native plants in sediments from four archaeological sites in the Patos/Mirim basin, in Rio Grande do Sul, known as cerritos, to investigate plant management strategies in the construction of domesticated landscapes. Additionally, palynomorphs from nearby lagoons will be analyzed, for identification of traces of economic plants, contributing to understanding the vegetal legacy of the Cerritos Builders in the Pampa biome of south Brazil.

Natálya Cristiana Pereira Pinheiro – Museu de Arqueologia e Etnologia da Universidade de São Paulo (MAE-USP)

Research title: “The House and Its Plants: Archaeobotany of a Dwelling at the Teotônio Site, Upper Madeira River”
Ph.D. Student in Antropology
Supervisor: Jennifer Watling – Laboratório de Microarqueologia
The research delves into a dwelling unit of the Jatuarana ceramic subtradition at the Teotônio archaeological site, located in the southwestern Amazon. By analyzing phytoliths and conducting an ethnohistorical survey, the study goal is to uncover the dynamic relationship between the inhabitants and their environment. This exploration seeks to identify the plants utilized in construction, offering deeper insights into the cultural practices and way of life of the Jatuarana pottery-producing peoples (1,300 and 400 years AP).

Neemias Lopes da Silva – Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)

Research Title: The past of the areais: Paleoenvironmental study with phytoliths in a stable wind reservoir in Pampa – Rio Grande do Sul/Brazil
Master’s Student in Geography
Supervisors: Roberto Verdum e Marcia Regina Calegari – Arenization/Desertification: environmental issues
The areais of Rio Grande do Sul are natural landscapes of the Pampa biome that date back to a recent geological past, and which environmental conservation is essential. The primary aim of this research is to explore the evolution of vegetation related to the landscapes associated with the unique and fragile features of western Rio Grande do Sul – Brazil.

Tayane da Silva Launé – Federal University of Pará (UFPA)

Research title: “Of Eating and Dying in the Marajó of the Forests: study of archaeobotanical microtraces in a funerary context at the IBAMA site”
Master’s Student in Antropology
Supervisor: Daiana Travassos Alves – Denise Pahl Schaan Laboratory
Founding: CAPES
The goal of this study is to investigate plant consumption in the dietary practices of the inhabitants at the PA-GU-06: Ibama site, located in the Marajó Forests region. This includes both domestic and burial contexts, analysing archaeobotanical microremains. Additionally, it aims to identify the plants used in funerary contexts as well as in daily life, to understand the role of plants in both eating and death at the site, and to analyze the archaeological context of the burial locations.

Project “Caminhos da ligação entre Mata Atlântica e Amazônia” or “Pathways Connecting the Atlantic Forest and the Amazon: Understanding Where, How, and When Humid Forests Migrated into the Interior of Bahia”:

Paternship between Universidade Federal do Recôncavo da Bahia (UFRB), Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA), and Universidade Estadual do Oeste do Paraná (Unioeste).
Founding: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado da Bahia (FAPESB) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq).
Supervisors: Grace Bungenstab Alves – Grupo de Estudo de Sociedade e Natureza (COLAPSO) and Gustavo Luis Schacht – Laboratório de Fitólitos da Bahia (LAFIBA) in collaboration with Marcia Regina Calegari – Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Estudos da Dinâmica Ambiental (LEDA).

Alane Pereira Pinheiro – UFRB

Research title: “Using phytoliths for paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Riachão do Jacuípe, Bahia”
Geography Student.
Supervisor: Gustavo Luis Schacht.

Beatriz Santana Sampaio – UFRB

Research title: “Using Phytoliths for Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction of Ruy Barbosa, Bahia”.
Interdisciplinary in Environmental Sciences Student.
Supervisor: Gustavo Luis Schacht.

Danielma Ferreira da Rocha – UFBA

Research title: “Pedogeomorphological and Paleoenvironmental Evolution in the Paraguaçu River Hydrographic Basin, Bahia”
Ph.D. Student in Geography.
Supervisor: Grace Bungenstab Alves.
The remnants of humid forests that exist in the Brazilian semi-arid region are an anomalous landscape in the midst of the Caatinga biome. Understanding the presence of these landscapes and how they have responded to past changes is an important challenge for thinking about the consequences of current changes in climatic conditions and their impacts on the environment. Our aim is to understand Quaternary paleoenvironmental dynamics and how this might have influenced the pedogeomorphological evolution of the Paraguaçu Basin.

Débora Evangelista da Silva Grizotes – UFRB

Research title: “Using phytoliths for paleoenvironmental reconstitution of Marcionilio Souza, Bahia, Brasil”
Biology Student.
Supervisor: Gustavo Luis Schacht.
The study focusses on reconstructing the paleovegetation of the municipality of Marcionilio Souza, Bahia, Brazil.

Larissa Gomes dos Santos Oliveira – UFBA

Research title: “Forest Refuges: Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction of the Connections between the Atlantic Forest and the Amazon in the Interior of Bahia”.
Master’s Student in Geography.
Supervisor: Grace Bungenstab Alves.
Founding: FABESP and CNPq.
The purpose of this research is to understand when and under what conditions the wet forest refuge in the Chapada Diamantina region (PNCD), interior of Bahia, were established and its dynamics throughout the Last Glacial Maximum and Holocene.

Lucian Farias Palma – UFRB

Research title: “Organization of a Modern Reference Collection of Phytoliths for the Caatinga and Woodlands in Bahia”
Biology Student
Supervisor: Gustavo Luis Schacht.
The purpose of this investigation is to observe some patterns of phytolith production in plants from the Caatinga and Humid Vegetation enclaves, understanding where, how, and when the humid forests migrated into the interior of Bahia.

Ronimar dos Santos – UFRB

Research title: “Using phytoliths for paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Tapiramutá, Bahia”
Geography Student.
Supervisor: Gustavo Luis Schacht.
The research is dedicated to the reconstruction of the paleovegetation of the Tapiramutá municipality, in Bahia State.

Colombia

Juan Miguel Kosztura Núñez – Universidad de Antioquia

Research title: “Anthropic Management of Ecosystems in Colombia in High and Mid-Elevation Forests between the Late Pleistocene and Middle Holocene in the Bogotá Savannah and Middle Cauca valey”.
Ph.D. Student in Social Sciences.
Supervisors: Javier Aceitutno and José Iriarte – Laboratorio de Arqueología (Univerisidad de Antioquia) and Laboratorio de Arqueología (Universidad Nacional de Colombia).
Last Journey Project.
This study examines the behaviors of hunter-gatherer groups in Sabana de Bogotá and Middle Cauca Valley during the late Pleistocene and middle Holocene. It uses phytolith analyses to reconstruct environments impacted by humans at El Abra, Tequendama, El Jazmín, and La Pochola. The research integrates phytoliths with other archaeological evidence to assess human-environment interactions and explores subsistence strategies, ways of life and environmental management across various temporal and spatial scales.

Mexico

Azul Estrella González Mariano – Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Research title: “Climate change in the Sonoran Desert: an analysis of cultural processes and paleoenvironment in the Pleistocene, Holocene and Anthropocene”
Archaeology Student.
Supervisor: César Villalobos Acosta.
Founding: PAPIIT, UNAM.
This study aims to reconstruct the paleoenvironment and identify the environmental, climatic, and cultural variables that interacted and influenced each other over time through the analysis of phytoliths. The goal is to develop a climatic model for various regions of the Sonoran Desert during the Quaternary, allowing for comparisons of the climatic conditions in which inhabitants lived across different periods and large geographic scales.

Clara Arranz Jiménez – Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Research title: “Life and Death in Group IV: Dental Inferences to Approach an Intermediate Elite of Lakamha’ in the Classic Period (450-830 AD)”.
Master’s Student in Mesoamerican Studies.
Supervisor: Judith Zurita – Laboratorio de fitólitos.
Founding: CONACHYT.
This investigation seeks characterizing, from a bioarchaeological approach, individuals buried in a residential group in Palenque, a Maya site from the Late Classic period. For this purpose, the dental remains will be analyzed, providing data on paleodiet, dental modification, paleopathology, among others. These data are complemented by previous morphoscopic and funerary analyses. The aim is to reconstruct two complete osteobiographies and provide insights from up to thirty-seven individuals analyzed to understand the lifestyle of members of the warrior elite of the time.

María J. Novelo Pérez – Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán

Research title: “Food in the construction of the identity of households in Oxkintok and Sihó in western Yucatan”
Ph.D. Student in Anthropological Sciences.
Supervisor: Lilia Fernández Souza – Laboratorio de análisis Químicos y Microscópicos-FANT-UADY
Founding: UADY-CONAHCYT.
This investigation focuses on aspects of identity at two sites in Western Yucatán through a multivariable approach (chemical and paleobotanical analyses in ceramics) of culinary practices, which could reveal patterns in material culture as a reflection of one or several identities. The comparison and complementation of botanical evidence (phytoliths and starch granules) and chemical evidence (spot tests and chromatography) in ceramic vessels will allow the identification of differences in resource use among domestic groups at each site.

Paulina Ivette Poot Franco – University of Bonn

Research title: “Prehispanic Cuisine. Dietary patterns at three Mayan sites in the central Petén: Oxpemul, Calakmul and Uxul, Campeche”
Ph.D. Student in Altamerikanistik and Ethnologie.
Supervisor: Nikolai Grube and Judith Zurita Noguera (UNAM).
This study aims to identify dietary patterns from organic residues—spot tests, starches, and phytoliths—recovered from grinding tools to make a comparison in the Petén region of Campeche. The research takes a multivariable approach to understand preferences in food preparation.

Xiadani Donaji Mendez Ortiz – Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Research title: “Reconstruction of the plant diet through the analysis of starches and phytoliths in dental calculus of individuals from Group I Palenque, Chiapas Mexico”
Physical/Biological Antropology Student.
Supervisors: Judith Zurita Noguera and Luis Fernando Núñez Enríquez – Laboratorio de Fitolitos del Instituto de Investigaciones Antropológicas (UNAM).
Focus on identifying plant diets through the analysis of starches and phytoliths in dental tartar samples of individuals from Palenque Group I in Chiapas.

Uruguay

Alfonso Raúl Machado Arnaud – Universidad de la República

Research title: “Paleoclimes, Paleoenvironments, Human Occupations and Recent Impact in the Laguna Negra Basin, Southeastern Uruguay. Middle and Upper Holocene and the Great Acceleration”
Master’s Student in Geosciences.
Supervisor: Laura del Puerto – Laboratorio de Arqueología y Geociencias CURE – Rocha.
Founding: CSIC UdelaR.
This research focuses on the paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the last 6,000 years in the Laguna Negra basin, located in the eastern Atlantic region of Uruguay, and examines its interrelation with human occupations in the area. The study analyzes climate-environmental indicators in sedimentary sequences from cores collected at the Las Maravillas wetland through micropaleobotanical analyses, geochemical analyses, as well as granulometric and mineralogical analyses of clastic sediments.

 

Download in PDF