Mutual Climatic Range
Mutual Climatic Range (MCR) is a method of determining the past climate at an archaeological site by examining the tolerances of a range of species found there. One method is to find the average temperatures in January and July by looking at the modern distribution of beetle species found on the site.[1] Another application is to look at the tolerances of plant species to determine 'summer warmth and dryness' and 'wetness and winter warmth'.[2]
The technique was developed in the 1980s, and a newer one first published in 2009 which looks at geographical distribution is also sometimes called "mutual climatic range".[3]
References[edit]
- ^ Ashton, Nick (2017). Early Humans. London: William Collins. p. 316. ISBN 978-0-00-815035-8.
- ^ Sinka, J. J.; Atkinson, T. C. (1 March 1999). "A mutual climatic range method for reconstructing palaeoclimate from plant remains". Journal of the Geological Society. 156 (2): 381. Bibcode:1999JGSoc.156..381S. doi:10.1144/gsjgs.156.2.0381. S2CID 129041578.
- ^ Lyman, R. Lee (15 July 2016). "The mutual climatic range technique is (usually) not the area of sympatry technique when reconstructing paleoenvironments based on faunal remains". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 454. Elsevier: 75–81. Bibcode:2016PPP...454...75L. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.04.035.