Hydrology at Aberdeen – thinking about water locally and globally

ABSTRACT

Although geographical hydrology research at Aberdeen contributed significant insights into the connections between river channel processes and landscape evolution in the early twentieth century it was not until the 1980s that hydrology became a discernible research theme in the Department of Geography. Whilst the research initially focused on understanding the linkages between fluvial geomorphology, hydrology and in-stream hydraulics, since the mid-1990s a burgeoning research community has made significant contributions to advancing physical hydrology, understanding water quality issues and elucidating inter-connections between hydrology and both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. A particular research strength has been the use of isotopic tracers (especially high-resolution, field-based data) to advance hydrological models. Work at Aberdeen has also been internationally leading in terms of understanding the role of hydrology in shaping the life cycle of Scottish Atlantic salmon and other aquatic organisms. Ideas and research approaches developed at local Scottish field sites are being increasingly applied and adapted to advance hydrological understanding in geographical regions as diverse as the rain forests of Costa Rica, the karst of south west China, aquifers in east Africa, the Chilean high Andes, Arctic Canada, peatlands in western Siberia and forests in northern Germany.     

CLASSIFYING PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES: THE CASE OF MANINKA FARMERS IN SOUTHWESTERN MALI

This article argues that understanding how people classify physical geographic features is necessary for identifying fundamental, cross‐cultural geographic concepts that are required for successful communication of geographic knowledge. Academic geographers have not given sufficient attention to systems of local geographic knowledge, even though promising theoretical frameworks exist, particularly in the field of ethnoecology. However, the research approach that has characterized ethnoecology is insufficient to develop ethnogeography as a field of inquiry, because ethnoecologists have overemphasized limited aspects of local knowledge systems, such as soils, which has often led researchers to incompletely sample local knowledge systems. Using ethnographic methods, this article analyses the content and structure of physical geographic knowledge in the Maninka language as spoken in southwestern Mali, and compares Maninka knowledge to that of other cultural groups. The results suggest that broad physical geographic concepts may be shared pan‐environmentally, but that most physical geographic knowledge is contained in culturally specific classifications embedded within a broad cross‐cultural framework. Academic geographers should expect only broad correspondence between their categories of physical geographic variation and those of people who classify biophysical features according to local knowledge systems. Finally, this article also shows that ethnoecological research will be advanced if geographic theories of place are given more prominence in ethnoecological studies.     

Protodammara reimatamoriori,a new species of conifer (Cupressaceae) from the Upper Cretaceous Tupuangi Formation,Chatham Islands,Zealandia

Mays, C. & Cantrill, D.J., January 2018. Protodammara reimatamoriori, a new species of conifer (Cupressaceae) from the Upper Cretaceous Tupuangi Formation, Chatham Islands, Zealandia. Alcheringa XXX, X–X. ISSN 0311-5518.

Isolated conifer female reproductive structures are common fossil elements from Cenomanian (ca 99–94 Ma) charcoal- and resin-rich beds of the Tupuangi Formation, Chatham Islands, southwest Pacific Ocean. Recent findings have proposed that these are the oldest fossil evidence of serotiny, a highly successful fire-adaptive reproductive strategy common among tree species living in fire-prone areas today. Herein, we systematically describe the external morphological and anatomical features of these fossils, by employing a combination of manual extraction and neutron tomography techniques. We propose a new species of conifer, Protodammara reimatamoriori, and a re-examination of fossil material of the Protodammara type species facilitated an emendation of the genus. Protodammara shares numerous features with extant Cunninghamia, Taiwania, Athrotaxis, and several extinct taxa of Cupressaceae, and is interpreted as an extinct lineage of the early-divergent ‘taxodioid Cupressaceae’ stem group.

Chris Mays [chris.mays@nrm.se] Department of Palaeobiology, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Frescativägen 40, Stockholm 114 18, Sweden; School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, 9 Rainforest Walk, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia; David J. Cantrill [david.cantrill@rbg.vic.gov.au] Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, Private Bag 2000, South Yarra, VIC 3141, Australia; School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia.     

A review of lessivage and neolithic cultivation in southern England

A critical re-examination is undertaken of a model for soil development which has been put forward to explain the occurrence of buried sols lessivés (Argillic brown earths) under several neolithic earthworks in southern England. The model attributes the formation of sols lessivés to neolithic agricultural activity, and is based on the assumption that lessivage will not occur under woodland, but will be facilitated by clearance and cultivation. A review of the pedological literature shows both these assumptions to be unsubstantiated, and a survey of the sites used in the development of the model reveals that at only one is there any independent evidence for neolithic agriculture. An alternative hypothesis for sol lessivé development is put forward which associates it with the post-glacial forest. The original model was taken as an environmental cause of the change in the neolithic economic base. In view of the arguments presented here this explanation is no longer tenable.     

SIEVING FOR SOIL MARKS

Summary. Recent work has suggested that greater attention might be paid to the archaeological potential of the modern ploughsoil. In particular, it seems likely that soil marks in chalkland areas can be remarkably resilient. This paper describes an attempt to recover and analyse soil marks on a gravel site through sieving of the modern ploughsoil. Such an approach may shed considerable light on the original form of earthwork monuments otherwise obliterated by modern agriculture, but does not entail any disturbance of stratified deposits.     

Don't be a Drag,Just be a Priest: The Clothing and Identity of the Galli of Cybele in the Roman Republic and Empire

This paper explores the clothing and representation of the galli priests of Cybele in late Republican and early Imperial Rome. The galli were male-bodied, but practiced self-castration and wore traditionally feminine clothing and makeup, which the article argues placed them outside any expected gender binary and allowed them to inhabit a non-binary identity. The article applies contemporary drag theory and the relationship between clothing and identity, particularly in respect of (assumed) incongruity, to explore the ways in which the galli's identity is visible in the Roman world. In the final section, a case study is made of the way the galli are represented in Lucian of Samosata's On the Syrian Goddess.