DOI: 10.24378/exe.2583
title: Non-linear landscape and cultural response to sea-level rise (datasets)

description: Rising sea levels have been associated with human migration and behavioral shifts throughout prehistory, often with an emphasis on landscape submergence and consequent societal collapse. However, the assumption that future sea-level rise will drive similar adaptive responses is overly simplistic. Whilst the change from land to sea represents a dramatic and permanent shift for pre-existing human populations, the process of change is driven by a complex set of physical and cultural processes with long transitional phases of landscape and socio-economic change. Here we use reconstructions of prehistoric sea-level rise, paleogeographies, terrestrial landscape change and human population dynamics to show how the gradual inundation of an island archipelago resulted in decidedly non-linear landscape and cultural responses to rising sea-levels. Interpretation of past and future responses to sea-level change requires a better understanding of local physical and societal contexts to assess plausible human response patterns in the future.
description: Dataset S1 (separate file). Relative sea-level database for Scilly comprising directly dated radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence samples with corresponding metainformation (lithostratigraphy, elevation, depositional environment and indicative meaning interpretations, paleotidal range change and sea-level calculations) following the ‘HOLSEA’ (‘Geographic Variability of Holocene Relative Sea Level’) protocol (Khan et al., 2019*). Dataset S2 (separate file). Table containing pollen results as relative abundance (genus level), modelled ages and age uncertainty for pollen samples, landcover index results (community cluster numbers and nMDS ordination axes 1 and 2), foraminifera results as species counts and transfer function results as paleomarsh elevations with uncertainty (1σ). Foraminifera samples with low test concentrations have indicative ranges (from mean high water neap tides to highest astronomical tides) in place of paleomarsh elevation estimations. Foraminifera abbreviations: H.wil – Haplophragmoides wilbertii ; J.mac – Jadammina macrescens ; M.fus – Miliammina fusca ; P.ipo – Polysaccammina ipohalina ; T.inf – Trochammina infalta ; T.och – Trochammina ochracea ; A.bat - Ammonia batavus ; A.mam – Asterigerinata mamilla ; B.var – Bolivina variablis; E.cri – Elphidium crispum ; E.wil – Elphidium Williamsoni ; F.spp. – Fissurina spp. ; Elphidium spp. ; H.ger – Haynesina germanica ; L.lob – Lobatula lobatula ; O.spp. – Oolha spp. ; Q.sem – Quinqueloculina seminula; R.spp. – Rosalina spp.. Dataset S3 (separate file). Database containing three worksheets for developing archaeological indices for Scilly. ‘SWBritain’ – Radiocarbon dates from Devon and Cornwall used to develop a summed probability distribution curve as an estimate of population demographic variation in Southwest Britain. ‘NWFrance’ - Radiocarbon dates from Brittany and Normandy used to develop a summed probability distribution curve as an estimate of population demography in Northwest France. ‘Scilly’ – Archaeological monuments from Scilly used to develop a probabilistic index of population variability.
description: The article associated with these datasets is located in ORE at: http://hdl.handle.net/10871/123489