5:15 PM - 6:30 PM
[HTT14-P02] Analysis of Human-Environment Interactions in the Last Glacial Period Using the Ecological Niche Model and the Agent-Based Model
Keywords:human-environment interactions, hunter-gatherer, ecological niche model, agent-based model
During the last glacial period, the Japanese Archipelago had a cold and dry climate. Accordingly, flora and fauna were different from those at present: the cool-temperate coniferous forest and large mammals were widely distributed over Japan. Empirical archaeological records have demonstrated that the early humans at that time lived based on hunting-gathering and adapted to environmental changes. However, there are only a few quantitative studies about human ecological adaptation to environmental changes in Japan in this period. This study aims to quantitatively analyze the human-environment interactions in the last glacial period using the ecological niche model (ENM) and the agent-based model (ABM), along with Geographical Information Systems (GIS).
The ENM is a computer-based method to simulate species’ ecological niche based on environmental conditions and known location of species’ occurrence. It is possible to quantitatively evaluate the influence of environmental factors that constrain human activities on the basis of percentage of environmental factors used in model calculations. The ABM is a computational model for simulating the actions and interactions of autonomous agents in order to assess their effects on the overall system. The ENM is suitable for static analysis, while the ABM is suitable for dynamic analysis; therefore, a deeper discussion becomes possible by combining the outcomes of the two models. This study applied both ENM and ABM to hunter-gatherers in the Kyushu region of western Japan during the last glacial period.
The results of ENM analysis suggest that topographical conditions were highly influential in human niche constructions during the last glacial period. In addition, climate change in this period is considered to have been the driving force of environmental changes which also influenced human behavior. We assumed that differences in topographical conditions had provoked different human ecological behaviors in response to the climatic cooling and warming during the last glacial period. The outcomes of the ABM analysis indicate many types of human dynamics interacting with the environment, and that elevation had a large influence on behavioral strategies of early humans as also shown by the ENM analysis. It is also suggested that hunting behavior was more sensitive to environmental conditions than gathering.
The ENM is a computer-based method to simulate species’ ecological niche based on environmental conditions and known location of species’ occurrence. It is possible to quantitatively evaluate the influence of environmental factors that constrain human activities on the basis of percentage of environmental factors used in model calculations. The ABM is a computational model for simulating the actions and interactions of autonomous agents in order to assess their effects on the overall system. The ENM is suitable for static analysis, while the ABM is suitable for dynamic analysis; therefore, a deeper discussion becomes possible by combining the outcomes of the two models. This study applied both ENM and ABM to hunter-gatherers in the Kyushu region of western Japan during the last glacial period.
The results of ENM analysis suggest that topographical conditions were highly influential in human niche constructions during the last glacial period. In addition, climate change in this period is considered to have been the driving force of environmental changes which also influenced human behavior. We assumed that differences in topographical conditions had provoked different human ecological behaviors in response to the climatic cooling and warming during the last glacial period. The outcomes of the ABM analysis indicate many types of human dynamics interacting with the environment, and that elevation had a large influence on behavioral strategies of early humans as also shown by the ENM analysis. It is also suggested that hunting behavior was more sensitive to environmental conditions than gathering.