## 5 Results
### Cova del Sardo and Forcall de Sant Esperit (AS 2)
Despite the extraordinary preservation of organic material at the site, only a single USO remain has been found at La Draga, in Square JJ78, excavated during the 2010 field season. It was studied in 2012 in the BIAX Consult laboratory (Zaamdam, The Netherlands) in collaboration with [PERSON]. It seems to be a fragment of a dicot, probably from the _Cuperus_ genus. Pollen analysis (Figure 7) has provided information on the plant landscape and its evolution, as well as on plant availability in the surroundings of the settlement [22,23]. Pollen was sampled at the archaeological site and in the lake sediments. SB2 core was obtained on the western lake shore [23]. Additionally, the strat  
Figure 6: Images of seed and fruit remains of La Draga: (**a**) _Crataegus monogyna_, (**b**) _Coryhus avellana_, (**c**) _Physalis alkekergi_, (**d**) _Cornus sanguinea_, (**e**) _Taxus baccata_, (**f**) _Silybum marinaum_, (**g**) _Carthamus_ cf. _Iantus_, (**h**) _Fragaria vesca_, (**i**) _Vola cf. alba_, (**j**) _Pyrus malus subsp. sylvestris_, (**k**) _Najas intermedia_/ _marina_, (**l**) _Carex cf. hirta_, (**m**) _Linum ct. catharticum_, (**n**) _Campanula cf. rotunda_, (**o**) _Phragmites_ sp. Photographs by [PERSON]. sampled in Sector B [64] and systematic sampling of the surface was performed in Sectors B and A [76]. The first farming societies settled in a humid and dense forested area, with the predominance of broadleaf deciduous forests (deciduous _Quercus_ and _Corylus_) and conifers (_Pinus_ and _Abies_) in the surrounding mountains. The low values of evergreen sclerophyllous taxa (_Quercus_ _lixc-cocifera_, _Olea_ and _Phillyrea_) suggest their existence regionally despite being scarce at the local scale. In the settlement surroundings, riparian forests (_Ullnus_, _Fraxinus_ and _Salix_) developed along the lakeshore, where hygrophyte (Cyperaceae, _Typha_ _latformia_, _Typha-Sparanium_, _Juncus articulatus_ type, _Juncus effusus_ type, _Cladium mariscus_ and _Mentha_ cf. _aquatica_) and aquatic plants (_Potamogeton coloratus_) were also present [23; 64]. Once Neolithic communities had settled at La Draga in ca. 7270 cal. BP, a fall in deciduous _Quercus_ pollen values is recorded at the site [64; 77; 78] and in lakeshore peat deposits [22; 23; 78]. The space left by oak forests was colonized by herbs (Poaceae, Asteraceae  
Figure 7: Results of pollen and charcoal analyses of La Draga. Percentage diagram for selected pollen taxa and categories from core SB2 (silhouettes) and pollen (color bars) and charcoal taxa (black bars) from La Draga. Pollen samples from La Draga consist of lake marl previous to Neolithic occupation, sediments from (1) Phase I Sector B, (2) Phase II Sector B, (3) Structures Sector A, (4) Layer 2002 (covering structures Sector A); and finally, samples from post-abandonment peaty layers. Pollen categories: sclerophyllous (_Quercus_ _lixc-cocifera_, _Olea_, _Phillyrea_), Riparian trees (_Alnus_, _Fraxinus_, _Salix_, _Ullnus_), Riparian herbs (Cyperaceae, _Typha_, _Typha-Sparanium_), Mediterranean shrubland, (_Erica_, Cistaceae, _Rhamnus_), grassland and ruderals (Poaceae, _Plantago_, _Plantago major-media_, _Artemisia_, Amaranthaceae-Chenopodiodeaeae, Apiaceae, _Galium-t_, _Rumex_, Brassicaceae, _Filipendula_). Anthracological samples consist of (1) Phase I Sector B, (2) Phase II Sector B, (3) Structures Sector A. Charcoal categories: Other riparian trees (_Fraxinus_ sp., _Ullnus_ sp., Salicaceae). and _Plantago_), shrubs (_Buxus_ cf. _sempervirens_, as shown by its expansion in the anthracological record from the second occupation phase at La Draga; [35; 79] and secondary trees (_Pinus_, _Tilia_ and _Corylus_). Part of the clearances would have been used for cultivation and grazing, but a large part of them remained unused and were colonized by secondary trees, leading to a limited decline in AP. The low values of sedimentary charcoal recorded in the SB2 sequence [23] suggest that burning was not involved in the deforestation process.