Birds as a key line of evidence for human vulnerability and resilience to environmental shifts in a pre-agricultural context

Over a long period from approx. 18,000 to 8,500 BCE, people in Southwest Asia went from being hunter-gatherers to being farmers. Climate change and environmental change may have been the determining factor in such significant changes in human life and nutrition strategies. Models that shed light on climatic fluctuations during this period often overlook the importance of shorter climatic shifts, as these fluctuations are extremely difficult to identify in archaeological studies. This project will use new scientific methods to identify migratory birds' migration patterns in the past. As birds are highly affected by environmental fluctuations, the remains of migratory birds found at archeological excavations can be used to study the environment and climate of the past, as well as be used to illuminate how humans' lifestyles changed as a consequence of climate change. The project will not only promote our understanding of, and knowledge of, one of the most important changes in human history, but will also support the development of new scientific techniques.