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Three satellite rainfall products (3B42V7, IMERGV05/V04/V03, and China hourly Merged Precipitation Analysis product) are evaluated using measurements from a dense rain gauge network as reference in Guangdong Province, China from April 2014 to December 2016. The three products are compared with gauges in annual, monthly, daily and hourly accumulation, and at gridded, sub‐regional and regional scales. An error decomposition approach is employed to separate the total bias into Hit, Miss and False components. Overall, the CMPA estimate is the best in agreement with gauge observations. The improvement of IMERGV05 over 3B42V7 is notable, especially in reducing the hit bias and missed precipitation, resulting in better detection of the light rain and heavy rain. The enhancement of IMERG is more significant at the 3‐hr scale than daily scale. IMERGV05 shows better performance than its previous versions especially for IMERGV03, which had an abnormal blocky pattern mainly from July to September over the Pearl River Delta area. The three products have different error characteristics and show large spatial variations. 3B42V7 and IMERG have large areas of overestimation in the mountainous areas and underestimation in the coastal areas, while CMPA is characterized by an alternate distribution of small positive and negative values. The overestimation of precipitation is partially attributed to the positive hit biases that falsely estimate the precipitation from moderate intensity to heavy rainfall by the three products. The improvement of IMERGV05 over 3B42V7 is notable, especially in reducing the hit bias and missed precipitation. IMERGV05 shows better performance than IMERGV03 over all sub‐regions especially for the Pearl River Delta area, where IMERGV03 had an abnormal blocky pattern mainly from July to September. The CMPA estimate is the best in agreement with gauge observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Coastal regions are frequently subject to higher concentrations of ozone (O 3) than areas farther inland due to thermally-direct recirculation (e.g., sea/bay breezes) of pollutants during summer months. Along with high O 3 concentrations on polluted days, a bay breeze (in this case, the Chesapeake Bay breeze) causes low-level convergence over the land, which can lead to deep convection even on days without any large-scale convective forcing, altering both the local flow pattern and the concentrations and distributions of pollutants. Presented here is a bay breeze and thunderstorm climatology for Edgewood, MD, a coastal site along the Chesapeake Bay, from June, July, and August 2011–2016 between 11 and 19 EST (UTC-5). Using meteorological data from the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), bay breezes are identified by an automated detection algorithm, the Bay-breeze Identification Algorithm (BIA), customized for the complex coastline of river inlets within the Chesapeake Bay area. Additionally, thunderstorm vs. non-thunderstorm days are analyzed using gridded Earth Networks lightning data (ENTLN) within an influential radius of the site. The effects of bay breezes and deep convection on local O 3 is quantified. The highest daily conditional mean O 3 for all years was observed on bay breeze days, and the lowest on days with thunderstorms only (no bay breeze). Additionally, 39% of O 3 exceedance days within the analysis time period were also bay breeze days. However, as ozone precursor emissions have fallen, the relationship between bay breezes and high O 3 has diminished. While days with thunderstorms only (no bay breeze) were associated with the lowest daily mean O 3 , there were O 3 events on some thunderstorm days, especially if there was also a bay breeze. Twenty-four percent of the total ozone exceedance days had a thunderstorm, demonstrating that thunderstorm days should not be assumed to be clean days, as boundary-layer venting and downdraft mixing depends on the thunderstorm duration and type (e.g., non-frontal/pop-up convection allowed slightly higher O 3 concentrations than did frontal convection). These results illustrate the significant role that localized meteorological events that are difficult to predict play in modulating air pollution where many of the world's cities lie – near bodies of water. Highlights • Mean O 3 concentrations are higher on bay breeze days than on non-bay breeze days. • Thunderstorms do not always terminate a pollution episode. • The relationship between bay breezes and O 3 episodes diminishes with cleaner air. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a state of the art of the research developed on the archaeological sites called concheros in America in the recent years in order to discuss its use as information files.For that purpose, the evidence obtained from these deposits was taken to analyze and contribute to the study of four issues: 1) Populations of America, 2) Paleoenvironment, 3) Paleoecology. Resolution of current problems, 4) Rituality and 5) consumption activity. The high resolution of these deposits and their wide distribution at a spatial and temporal level allow us to use them as files to solve certain archaeological questions based on the application of different methodological lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Successful heritage management requires a robust comprehension of the threats facing archaeological sites, at both current and future timescales. Siraf, on the Persian Gulf of Iran, is a site of national and international importance whose history stretches back to the Sassanid period (224–652 AD). In the present context of global change (drought and relative sea-level rise) and anthropogenic impacts (coastal artificialization and reduced sediment supply), the city's waterfront archaeology is undergoing significant erosion. Nonetheless, at present, the processes leading to the loss of Siraf's in situ archaeological remains are still poorly understood, including the rates, timing and drivers of coastal erosion. Here we use Landsat images to monitor shoreline changes along the Siraf coastline between 1973 and 2016. We spatially quantify the causes and impacts of surface changes along 244 transects. The results demonstrate that coastal erosion is responsible for widespread and archaeologically significant damage, with 48% of the studied transects showing erosion during the period 1973–2016. We elucidate significant temporal variations in the data and, most notably, demonstrate that continued drought since the early 2000s has impacted upon sediment supply to coastal areas, severely accentuating erosion. For instance, between 2003 and 2016, 70% of transects recorded shoreline retreat with worrying implications for the waterfront archaeology of Siraf. These quantitative results provide invaluable spatial information regarding the causes and impacts of erosion upon Siraf's waterfront heritage, in addition to furnishing a template for the protection of the city's internationally important cultural heritage. Highlights • Successful heritage management requires understanding of the threats facing archaeological sites. • We spatially quantify shoreline changes along the Siraf coastline between 1973 and 2016. • 48% of the studied transects show erosion during the period 1973–2016, leading to widespread archaeological damage. • We provide a template for the protection of Siraf's internationally important cultural héritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The damage and loss of coastal archaeological sites from shoreline transgression and other near-coastal processes is common around the world. It negatively impacts our ability to address important research questions including those about the colonization of the New World, which likely occurred along the Pacific Coast. Differences in geomorphic context, annual weather patterns, topography, vegetation, bedrock, and land-use history lead to distinct localized patterns of erosion even within small geographic regions. We assessed near-coastal erosion on Santa Rosa Island, California, by monitoring annual change at 16 controlled points on 11 archaeological sites from 2013 to 2017 and by comparing it to the local geomorphic context and annual weather patterns. Overall, erosion through this period was greatest on the northwest coast of the island, which is directly in the path of prevailing winds and most winter storms, and least on the more protected west and south coasts. The 2016–2017 winter was the rainiest and had the most annual erosion in general; however, erosion at sites along gulley walls was lowest that year. By monitoring annual erosion and weather and associating them with variations in erosional processes, we can better understand threats to valuable cultural resources and take appropriate steps for mitigating their losses and the loss of archaeological data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While studies on recovery bias are numerous in the literature, the current research focuses on defining best practices in field collection techniques to provide a more accurate representative of site constituents, particularly fish remains. Methods to determine best practices included use of 1/4-inch, 1/8-inch, and 1/16-inch mesh to process excavated material from 10 × 10 cm and 40 × 40 cm-sized bulk column samples and from a 1 × 1  m test unit. Fish remains were compared to determine density and diversity differences between the samples and how these different data sets may impact cultural interpretations. This research shows that while collection of larger column samples processed using a smaller mesh size provides a more robust data set, the taxonomic richness present in a 1 × 1  m test unit provides complimentary data that are critical to understanding subsistence trends as a whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examines the relationship between nature management and land use planning in order to balance nature protection and tourism development within and outside national park borders. Applying theory about local networks and social learning, we highlight how responsible actors coordinate in order to strike a balance between protection and tourism. Based on this study of a Norwegian coastal national park, we state that competent key individuals are crucial preconditions for fulfilling the management and planning objectives in a wider regional context. In our case study, such personnel within the national park management and municipal land use planning system serve as bridge builders between nature protection and tourism. However, we argue that the existing management system is very vulnerable, and an important implication of our study is that the present local network should be more firmly institutionalized in order to become sufficiently robust and resistant to changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consecutively to the global sea-level rise, coastal landscapes significantly changed during the Early Holocene. We explored how coastal mutations have affected ancient human systems in the western Mediterranean. The Pego-Oliva basin (Spain) provides a thick sediment sequence located in proximity to two well-studied Mesolithic and Neolithic archaeological sites. Based on 16 sediment cores, sedimentological analyses, 14 C dates, and integration of previous works, we reconstructed the architecture of the sedimentary facies and the chronology of deposition for the last 9500 years. From 9500 to 8200 cal. BP, the stepwise inland migration of the coastline is characterised by the deposition of peat layers at distinct depths indicating four phases of barrier-lagoon systems development. The marine transgression caused the disappearance of the lagoon at 8200 cal. BP, and reached a maximum inland position at 7300 cal. BP. Since 5800 cal. BP, sea-level stabilisation induced coastal progradation and barrier-lagoon system construction. Five marine flooding phases dated at 9500, 9100–9000, 8750–8650, 8450–8200, and 8100–7300 cal. BP match Atlantic meltwater pulses. Comparison to archaeology shows that the long-lasting Mesolithic occupation corresponds to the presence of coastal offering easily exploitable local intertidal resources. In contrast, during the Late Mesolithic, we observe a lagoon contraction and the reduction of lagoon bivalves size arguing for a decrease in resource productivity. This changes in the lagoon ecosystems negatively impacted to Late Mesolithic populations leading to a less intense occupation of this area. Therefore, the 700 years' temporal hiatus between the last hunter-gatherers and the first farmers occupying this area is explained by the disappearance of the formerly exploited biotopes because of sea-level rise, a situation that may have been aggravated by coincidence of the 8200 cal. BP climate event. The maximal sea transgression corresponded to a shift from intertidal to infralittoral species between the Impressa/Precardial and the Postcardial Neolithic, indicating a good adaptation to changing environments at that time. However, comparison between Late Mesolithic to Early Neolithic suggests that communities with different cultural baggage have had a different perception of the same environment. By the past perspective, it emphasises that perception of the ecosystem value as a benefit or constraint, and of the risks associated with sea-level rise, relies first on the local and regional scales adaptive capacity of society to global changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT: In this paper, we present a terminal Pleistocene/early Holocene archaeological record from John Wayne Country Rockshelter (JWCR), located on Barrow Island in north‐western Australia. The rock shelter was used between 15000 and 7000 calBP, and provides insights into how Aboriginal people interacted with a changing coastal landscape throughout postglacial sea‐level rise. The faunal record reflects this fluctuating local landscape. The late Pleistocene faunal assemblage largely consists of arid plains terrestrial fauna, and then transitions to a diverse marine invertebrate taxa midden. This record demonstrates coastal resource use throughout the terminal Pleistocene, before the expansion of mangrove forests across northern Australia. The stone artefact assemblages indicate varied expedient reduction patterns. The assemblages include artefacts manufactured from local limestone and non‐local sources. Our analyses indicate that occupation durations at JWCR were longer during the late Pleistocene compared to the early Holocene, when productive mangrove environments became proximal. The implications of these results are twofold. First, effective use of coastal plain environments was probably just as important for coastal occupation as marine resource procurement. Second, the presence of relatively dense marine faunal assemblages is not necessarily a reliable proxy for individual coastal‐site occupational intensity under conditions of local resource productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Underwater excavations at the Classic period (A.D. 300-900) ancient Maya salt works of Chan b’i and Atz’aam Na in Paynes Creek National Park, Belize, reveal activity areas associated with a substantial salt industry for distribution to nearby southern Maya inland sites where this biological requirement was scarce. Wooden architecture and salt making artifacts are abundantly preserved in a peat bog composed of red mangrove. Excavations, screening, and analysis of recovered material at the submerged underwater sites reveal that the artifacts are overwhelmingly briquetage: pottery vessels used to evaporate salty water by heating over fires to make salt. The spatial distribution of briquetage in relation to the interior and exterior of buildings reveals that salt production was occurring indoors. The plethora of briquetage and the scarcity of domestic artifacts indicate that the sites were specialized salt works and not physically attached to households. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal shell middens represent a well-known element of the archaeological record of island and coastal regions across the world and shellfish have been an important resource for subsistence since the mid Holocene. However, the factors that influence shellfishing remain poorly understood and in many regions investigations into the role of shellfish gathering often have remained focused on prehistoric examples to the detriment of shell middens of later dates. This article reports on the emerging evidence for large-scale exploitation of shellfish during a hitherto understudied period for shell midden archaeology in northwest Europe: the first millennium AD. The article includes a review of a series of previously unknown large mussel-dominated middens in eastern Scotland, an outline of their chronology and character, including Bayesian modeling of dates, and a synthesis of the emerging evidence for shellfish gathering in northwest Europe during the first millennium AD. The research represents the first investigation of large-scale early Medieval middens in Britain and the first review of their international parallels and the important new information they can provide for the early Medieval economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimation of external exposure due to atmospheric releases of photon emitting radionuclides from nuclear facilities is important during normal and emergency conditions since their contribution to the total public dose is relatively significant. Gaussian plume model coupled with either semi-infinite cloud model or finite plume integration method is normally used to estimate this dose component for inland sites. However, for coastal sites, shoreline dispersion model that handles local sea-land breeze circulation should be coupled with the external plume dose-computing module. In the present study, plume external photon dose is calculated for coastal sites considering appropriate combination of these two dispersion models and finite plume integration model. Based on this methodology, a simple and fast calculation tool is developed to estimate external plume doses under normal operating (sector average plume) and accidental conditions (single plume). This numerical program can also be used for source term estimation from field measurements, thereby assisting decision support system during emergency situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Tundra soils serve as major sources of mercury (Hg) input to the Arctic Ocean via river runoff and coastal erosion; yet little information is available on tundra soil Hg concentrations, pool sizes, origins, and dynamics. We present a detailed investigation of Hg in the active layer (upper ~100 cm subject to seasonal thaw) of tundra soils across 11 sites in Alaska. Soil Hg concentrations in organic horizons (151 ± 7 μg/kg) were in the upper range of temperate soil organic horizons, and concentrations in mineral horizons (98 ± 6 μg/kg) were much higher than in temperate soils. Soil Hg concentrations declined from inland to coastal sites, in contrast to a hypothesized northward increase expected because of proximity to coastal atmospheric mercury depletion events. Principle component analyses and elemental ratios results show that exogenic sources dominated over geogenic sources—in A‐horizons (66 ± 4%) and mineral B‐horizons (51 ± 1%). 14C age‐dating suggested recent origins of Hg in surface soils but showed that mineral soils (more than 7,300 years old) must have accumulated atmospheric inputs across millennia leading to high soil concentrations and pools. We estimated a total Northern Hemisphere active‐layer tundra soil Hg pool of 184 Gg (range of 136 to 274 Gg), suggesting a globally important Hg storage pool. Tundra soils are subject to seasonal thaw and freeze dynamics, thereby providing large inputs to rivers, lakes, and the Arctic Ocean. Understanding processes that mobilize Hg from tundra soils will be critical to understanding future Arctic wildlife and human Hg exposures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The archaeological remains of ships in the beach zone are part of a complex and dynamic system. Being periodically exposed and reburied, they vary between being both visible and frequently forgotten features of the physical and cultural coastal landscape. These limited and non-renewable resources are highly susceptible to instability within the landscape. Challenges to stability result in these resources being damaged, ignored, or forgotten, leading to a potential loss of pertinent social, economic, and physical information. Although little can be done to prevent certain physical actions, a better understanding of physical and cultural processes allows for their mitigation and better management practices for the beached shipwreck resource. This paper looks at how stability is defined in relation to beached shipwreck sites and how these definitions impact the management of the resource of two case study sites in Maine and North Carolina. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zooplankton seasonality and its environmental drivers were studied at four coastal sites within the Northeast Atlantic Shelves Province (Bilbao35 (B35) and Urdaibai35 (U35) in the Bay of Biscay, Plymouth L4 (L4) in the English Channel and Stonehaven (SH) in the North Sea) using time series spanning 1999–2013. Seasonal community patterns were extracted at the level of broad zooplankton groups and copepod and cladoceran genera using redundancy analysis. Temperature was generally the environmental factor that explained most of the taxa seasonal variations at the four sites. However, between-site differences related to latitude and trophic status (i.e. from oligotrophic to mesotrophic) were observed in the seasonality of zooplankton community, mainly in the pattern of taxa that peaked in spring-summer as opposed to late autumn-winter zooplankton, which were linked primarily to differences in the seasonal pattern of phytoplankton. The percentage of taxa variations explained by environmental factors increased with latitude and trophic status likely related to the increase in the co-variation of temperature and chlorophyll a , as well as in the increase in regularity of the seasonal patterns of both temperature and chlorophyll a from south to north, and of chlorophyll a with trophic status. Cladocerans and cirripede larvae at B35 and U35, echinoderm larvae at L4 and decapod larvae at SH made the highest contribution to shape the main mode of seasonal pattern of zooplankton community, which showed a seasonal delay with latitude, as well as with the increase in trophic status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Plutarch's book On the Apparent Face in the Orb of the Moon, the interlocutors develop a dialogue about a trip to the "great continent" beyond the North Atlantic Ocean. By applying modern scientific data, the present reappraisal of the astronomical and geographical elements within this dialogue has produced a novel interpretation of the date and place of the meeting and a journey to the northern Atlantic Ocean. A described solar eclipse is dated to AD 75, making use of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)/Espenak/Meeus list, as well as historical information. The described peculiar, recurrent trips take place every 30 years (when the planet Saturn reaches the Taurus constellation) from the Mediterranean Sea to the Cronian Open Sea, which is identified with northern Atlantic Ocean coasts. It has been suggested that the last mission had returned homeland in April AD 56. The information provided concerns, distances between coastal sites and islands, duration of sea paths in days, and the reported setting and size between the destination place and its gulf with regards to Azov (in Crimea) and the Caspian Sea. Implications of sea currents and the coastal geomorphology of those lands are given. Following strictly the Gulf Stream current, as well as other known sea currents in the northern Atlantic Ocean, and introducing estimated speed for the ship, the geographical location of destination of the Greek settlers is proposedly identified with St. Lawrence Gulf and Newfoundland island. Other unnamed islands mentioned in this dialogue are identified with Norway's islands, Azores, Iceland, Greenland, and Baffin islands. It has been shown that the journey is made with good knowledge of sea currents but by using bright stars and stellar configurations as astronomical nightscape markers that determine the exact orientation of the sailing toward the Iberian Peninsula and back to the eastern Mediterranean, making the current working hypothesis a plausible event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present and test a predictive archaeological survey model that targets early Holocene paleoshorelines in the Prince Rupert Harbour area using LiDAR bare earth digital terrain models and a 15,000-year reconstructed history of relative sea level change. Despite a century of archaeological research in the study area, no sites dating earlier than 6000 cal b.p. had been identified prior to our research. Our field survey identified three early Holocene sites associated with paleoshorelines 7-10 m above current sea level (masl). These locations demonstrate repeated use through the Holocene even as shoreline position changes. We discuss these new data in relation to the early Holocene archaeological record from the rest of the northern Northwest Coast and suggest that the region was ubiquitously occupied by this time and that the lack of recorded early Holocene sites in some areas is likely a result of survey and preservation bias, rather than historical reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molluscan remains from archaeological contexts have the potential to provide information related to a range of issues, including but not limited to settlement and economic structures, and local environmental conditions. Shell deposits are ubiquitous along the eastern African coast and offshore islands, with previous archaeological research highlighting the prevalence of these deposits in conjunction with providing some discussion on the variable contribution or role of molluscs within the economy. In general, marine molluscs have been viewed as a secondary or fall-back resource with largely opportunistic harvesting in the intertidal zone. In addition, there is a general expectation that there would be significant variability in exploitation depending on settlement structure, the availability of domesticates, and with status differences. With few exceptions, however, the scale and resolution of archaeomalacological analyses across the broader region have tended to be relatively coarse, making it difficult to adequately assess these interpretations. Here we consider these issues based on detailed analyses of the sites of Unguja Ukuu and Fukuchani situated on the island of Unguja (Zanzibar), providing an assessment of the relative importance of the exploited taxa and ecological niches, in combination with species richness and diversity. These analyses provide a comparative framework for other sites in the region, and a baseline understanding of human interactions with coastal environments through molluscan exploitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze trends in temperature from 18 temperature stations and one upper air sounding site at 30°–35° S in central Chile between 1979–2015, to explore geographical and season temperature trends and their controls, using regional ocean-atmosphere indices. Significant warming trends are widespread at inland stations, while trends are non-significant or negative at coastal sites, as found in previous studies. However, ubiquitous warming across the region in the past 8 years, suggests the recent period of coastal cooling has ended. Significant warming trends are largely restricted to austral spring, summer and autumn seasons, with very few significant positive or negative trends in winter identified. Autumn warming is notably strong in the Andes, which, together with significant warming in spring, could help to explain the negative mass balance of snow and glaciers in the region. A strong Pacific maritime influence on regional temperature trends is inferred through correlation with the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) index and coastal sea surface temperature, but the strength of this influence rapidly diminishes inland, and the majority of valley, and all Andes, sites are independent of the IPO index. Instead, valley and Andes sites, and mid-troposphere temperature in the coastal radiosonde profile, show correlation with the autumn Antarctic Oscillation which, in its current positive phase, promotes subsidence and warming at the latitude of central Chile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multicomponent middle-to-late Holocene coastal site of Iyatayet, at Cape Denbigh, Alaska, originally excavated by J. L. Giddings in the early 1950s, was key to developing a culture-historical sequence for northwest Alaska. We revisited the site in 2012 and 2013 to collect data to refine the occupation chronology and to test models of maritime-resource intensification. Our results show the Denbigh Flint complex occupations at Iyatayet are younger and briefer than previously believed. Gaps of 1,000 years separate the Denbigh, Norton, and Thule occupations, suggesting reduced use of eastern Norton Sound during these periods. Artifacts and faunal remains from each component indicate reduced mobility and increased focus on marine resources following the Denbigh period, but Norton occupants hunted the same suite of marine prey as the later Thule, demonstrating they were was equally proficient at foraging from the sea. [End Page 1] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subduction, isostatic rebound, and changes in global sea levels, combined with the last glaciation, have shaped the geography of the channels of Western Patagonia. Current archaeological research in this area includes some ten sites that allow us to characterize the occupation of this territory by marine hunter-gatherers. The studied archaeological sites also inform about the various geomorphological changes that the coastline has undergone. Archives dating back six thousand years ago and archaeological contexts yield new insights about the location, distribution, and position of the shoreline and its changes over time. We present a set of data, including new sites and AMS radiocarbon determinations, which supports the hypothesis that landforms have risen or subsided, and provide the bases for a working model in which archaeological ages can inform the chronology of changes in the region's coastal morphology. This paper suggest that human occupations between 6200 and 4400 cal BP recorded on high terraces of the Guiatecas Archipelago indicate higher local sea-levels, while the sites immediately on the waterfront are 2000 years younger. On the other hand, sites younger than 3300 cal BP on the modern coastline of the Chonos archipelago undergo permanent shaping, mainly due to local tectonics affecting vertical movement. Considering previously published and new data provided in this paper, we suggest preliminary uplift rates between 0.57 and 5.42 m/ka for the Guaitecas Archipelago, 0.31–1.48 m/ka for the northern sector of the Chonos Archipelago, and 0.85 m/ka in the central sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supported by the U.S. National Park Service's Historic Preservation Fund program, the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission administered surveys of coastal archaeological sites damaged by 2012's Hurricane Sandy in Rhode Island, USA. This project documented the transformative effects of Hurricane Sandy on coastal archaeological sites, evaluated the eligibility of many of those sites for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, and provided new insights into ancient Native American coastal occupation. Notable project limitations include incomplete property access, bureaucratic delays, and a Tribal collaboration that fell short. Because preserving most of these erosion-prone sites through shoreline stabilization is unlikely, management efforts will consider preemptive archaeological salvage excavations. This case study may prove useful to archaeologists worldwide who are managing coastal sites threatened by rising sea levels and storms of increasing intensity and frequency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shifts over time in faunal representation in Northwest Coast archaeological sites have been viewed as reflecting changes in economic organization and social complexity. We use fish faunal data from the Parry Lagoon Midden (site DgRv-006) in the Salish Sea region of coastal southwestern British Columbia, Canada, to evaluate the relationship between change in subsistence strategies and community organization. We describe and compare fish assemblages recovered from a shell midden generated by habitation at two sequentially occupied village sites. The lower midden layers include faunal remains derived from the Marpole Period plankhouse village occupation at site DgRv-003 (1500 to 1300 cal BP), while the upper layers were generated during the occupation of a Late Period plankhouse within site DgRv-006 (1000 to 600 cal BP). We compare the two faunal records to ascertain if subsistence re-organization accompanied the social change associated with abandonment and later re-establishment of a village in the Dionisio Point Locality. Results indicate continuity of a diverse fishing economy for the two occupations, and therefore across the Marpole to Late Period transition. This study adds to the recent trend in Northwest Coast archaeology to reconsider the long-standing view that social and subsistence change necessarily occurred in tandem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sites which have been occupied semi-continuously in the past present some inherent difficulties for archaeology. Here we present new research from a coastal site on the North Island of New Zealand at Cooks Beach where anthropogenic vegetation changes are seen using microfossil analysis of obsidian tools, sediments and pit fill. The results indicate the initial presence of people in AD 1300-1400 followed by subsequent periods of disuse or abandonment and sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) cultivation. Around the time of initial settlement, obsidian from this location is found at sites across the country. After AD 1400 the area appears to be deserted for a century or more, after which we see evidence for the cultivation of sweet potato in AD 1500 as evidenced by extensive soil modification and numerous storage pits. There is no evidence of a permanent settlement at the site. The geographic distribution of Cooks Beach obsidian was constricted while the site was used for sweet potato cultivation, a pattern often attributed to increased warfare. It appears cultivation was abandoned after AD 1650 marking a second secession of use, a fact confirmed in AD 1769 when Captain Cook visited the area. We consider the possible drivers for the late abandonment of cultivation at Cooks Beach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chesapeake Bay has an archaeological record that dates from the Paleoindian period to the early 20th century. In this paper, the research and analysis of artifact technologies recovered from six radiocarbon (14C) dated shell middens located at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Maryland is provided. This paper demonstrates the ways in which the use of artifact analysis and 14C dating can provide information on human use of coastal resources, settlement-subsistence patterns, and serve as a tool to document sites threatened by coastal processes. Furthermore, this work demonstrates the ways in which the analysis of technologies from shell midden sites can be used to help guide contemporary oyster and other fisheries and natural resources management, restoration, conservation, and sustainability issues in the Chesapeake and other coastal areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to clarify the production process for the particulate WSON in the maritime atmosphere, measurements of the WSON and the associated species in the aerosols were conducted at the coastal site on Rishiri Island near the northern tip of Japan. The mean concentration of the WSON in the aerosols was 0.077 μg m −3 , which was within the previous measurements from the remote or rural clean sites. The WSON accounted for about 13% of the WSTN in the aerosols, and about 90% of the WSON was detected in the fine-mode range (d < 2 μm). The WSON in both mode ranges was not associated with the air mass origin. The fine-mode WSON was correlated with nss-SO 4 2- whether nss-SO 4 2- was derived from anthropogenic or marine biogenic sources, suggesting that the WSON in the fine-mode range would be produced by the secondary processes in the acid particulate phase. EC and nss-K + , on the other hand, were not associated with the WSON in the fine-mode range, suggesting that the primary emissions from fossil fuel and/or biomass combustion are not important sources for the WSON. The coarse-mode WSON was not associated with any species. Negligible influence of dust particles and plant debris on coarse particle would cause very low concentrations of the WSON in the coarse-mode range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two years-data (May 2011–February 2013) obtained from a monthly sampling carried out at the coastal long term Ecological Research station C1-LTER in the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea) were analysed to describe the seasonal dynamics and diversity of coccolithophore assemblages and to assess their relationship with environmental forcing. Coccolithophores represented 10.7% of the total Utermöhl phytoplankton that were mainly dominated by small (<10 μm) flagellates and diatoms (62.2% and 24.8% of total abundances, respectively). Coccolithophore abundances obtained by polarized light microscopy analysis ranged from 0.2 to 35.3 · 10 4 coccospheres L −1 with a mean value of 5.2 · 10 4 coccospheres L −1 . A marked seasonal pattern was observed with a main peak in December–February (2.5–31.5 · 10 4 coccospheres L −1 ), in correspondence of the winter mixing, mainly due to Emiliania huxleyi , and a secondary peak in May–June (0.7–15.0 · 10 4 coccospheres L −1 ), coinciding with the increase of the light intensity and the beginning of the seasonal stratification, dominated by holococcolithophores and small Syracosphaera species. The most abundant taxa were E. huxleyi and holococcolithophores, followed by Acanthoica quattrospina , Syracosphaera species and other minor species. Statistical analyses recognized four distinct groups, corresponding to seasonal variations of environmental conditions. Considering the two years, some species displayed a recurrent seasonal pattern highlighting possible species-specific ecological requirements, while others showed an interannual variability probably due to local factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The geomorphological analysis of historically urbanized areas is the best scientific way to understand how the extant geomorphological factors conditioned urbanization. It also provides a baseline to enable comparisons to be made with the modern environment. This paper considers four urbanized historical sites on the Adriatic coast (Italy) that owe their urban development to particular geomorphological and environmental conditions that were modified over the centuries from the Roman age to the present day. The focus here is on the evolution of the shoreline and associated geomorphic variables (streambeds and river mouths migration). These factors are fundamental for determining the development of a city, both as basic boundary elements – therefore including defence and protection – and also for the development of harbours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peterson, C.D.; Erlandson, J.M.; Stock, E.; Hostetler, S.W., and Price, D.M., 2017. Coastal eolian sand-ramp development related to paleo-sea-level changes during the latest Pleistocene and Holocene (21-0 ka) in San Miguel Island, California, U.S.A. Coastal eolian sand ramps (5-130 m elevation) on the northern slope (windward) side of the small San Miguel Island (13 km in W-E length) range in age from late Pleistocene to modern time, though a major hiatus in sand-ramp growth occurred during the early Holocene marine transgression (16-9 ka). The Holocene sand ramps (1-5 m measured thicknesses) currently lack large dune forms, thereby representing deflated erosional remnants, locally covering thicker late Pleistocene sand-ramp deposits. The ramp sand was initially supplied from the adjacent island-shelf platform, extending about 20 km north of the present coastline. The sand-ramp deposits and interbedded loess soils were 14C dated using 112 samples from 32 archaeological sites and other geologic sections. Latest Pleistocene sand ramps (66-18 ka) were derived from across-shelf eolian sand transport during marine low stands. Shoreward wave transport supplied remobilized late Pleistocene sand from the inner shelf to Holocene beaches, where dominant NW winds supplied sand to the sand ramps. The onset dates of the sand-ramp deposition in San Miguel are 7.2 ± 1.5 ka (sample n = 14). The internal strata dates in the vertically accreting sand ramps are 3.4 ± 1.7 ka ( n = 34). The sand ramps in San Miguel show wide-scale termination of sand supply in the latest Holocene time. The sand-ramp top dates or burial dates are 1.7 ± 0.9 ka ( n = 28). The latest Holocene sand ramps are truncated along most of the island's northern coastline, indicating recent losses of nearshore sand reserves to onshore, alongshore, and, possibly, offshore sand sinks. The truncated sand ramps in San Miguel Island and in other sand-depleted marine coastlines provide warnings about future beach erosion and/or shoreline retreat from accelerated sea-level rise accompanying predicted global warming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Las exploraciones arqueológicas costeras en el Golfo de México se han caracterizado por algunos hallazgos fortuitos. Aun así, se h an desarrollado investigaciones que h an revelado la complejidad cultural de algunos sitios estratégicos en que se explotaban recursos ambientales, así com o puertos y enclaves de intercambio de bienes y productos comerciales o desde etapas muy antiguas, que van desde la época olmeca hasta la del contacto español. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hasta el momento, gracias a las investigaciones arqueológicas en la Bocana del Río Copalita, Huatulco, Oaxaca, ha sido posible determinar una ocupación que va del Preclásico Medio al Posclásico. Es evidente que el auge de Copalita, en ambas márgenes del río, ocurrió en el Clásico Temprano-Tardío y que hubo un descenso en su desarrollo en el Posclásico Temprano. Para el Posclásico Tardío hubo una reocupación en la zona de montaña baja y algunas partes de la zona de aluvión, que se mantuvo hasta el contacto con los españoles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Las primeras aldeas agrícolas de Oaxaca se asentaron en el valle del bajo río Verde desde 1900 a.C. El ambiente costero contribuyó al surgimiento de una cultura regional bien definida con poderosas ciudades tales como Río Viejo y Tututepec, donde reinó el famoso señor mixteco 8 Venado, Garra de Jaguar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Las Labradas es un sitio de grabados rupestres localizado en una playa del sur del estado de Sinaloa, con más de 700 figuras grabadas en rocas basálticas en donde convergen el mar, un entorno singular y una antigua cósmovisión prehispánica. Las Labradas fue un sitio consagrado al solsticio de verano posiblemente desde la época arcaica hasta los periodos prehispánicos, y de ser así, es el santuario rupestre más antiguo del continente americano. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Esta región fue y es un territorio agreste y ambientalmente extremoso. En contraste, la riqueza biótica de su mar, aunada al agua dulce que escurre desde sus sierras, permitieron la vida humana prehistórica así como diversas adaptaciones y manifestaciones culturales únicas en México y el continente. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

La península de Baja California es particularmente rica en vestigios arqueológicos de cazadores, recolectores, pescadores. Durante los últimos 25 años en la costa noroeste del océano Pacífico se han puesto en marcha varios proyectos de investigación que han revelado la compleja y larga secuencia cultural de una zona que permanecía inexplorada y desconocida a los ojos de la arqueología mexicana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infragravity waves is a term used to collectively describe surface gravity waves with periods arbitrarily between 30 and 300 s. In situ observations of infragravity waves at nearshore sites are scarce, and the directionality of the wave field has not received much attention in the past. This paper details a systematic directional analysis of experimental infragravity wave data. Through applying conventional and new directional analysis methods, qualitative and some quantitative characteristics of infragravity wave directions have been resolved. The analysis has found that infragravity waves have a bimodal directional structure with the dominant energy distributed in the propagation sector incident to the coast. It has also been demonstrated that mean infragravity wave directions can be derived, and there is evidence that the directional spreading of infragravity waves is correlated to their wind-generated wave counterparts. Using a numerical model, the qualitative findings were verified; however, contrary to the observations, the dominant direction of the modelled infragravity waves are in the propagation sector outward from the coast. The results provide improved insights into the directionality of infragravity waves, but the disparity between the dominant directions in the model and observations remains to be resolved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As long-lived marine mammals found throughout the temperate coastal waters of the North Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, harbour seals ( Phoca vitulina) have become an invaluable sentinel of food-web contamination. Their relatively high trophic position predisposes harbour seals to the accumulation of harmful levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs). We obtained skin/blubber biopsy samples from live-captured young harbour seals from various sites in the northeastern Pacific (British Columbia, Canada, and Washington State, USA) as well as the northwestern Atlantic (Newfoundland and Quebec, Canada). We developed harbour seal-specific primers to investigate the potential impact of POP exposure on the expression of eight important genes. We found correlations between the blubber mRNA levels of three of our eight target genes and the dominant persistent organic pollutant in seals [polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)] including estrogen receptor alpha ( Esr1: r = 0.12, p = 0.038), thyroid hormone receptor alpha ( Thra: r = 0.16; p = 0.028), and glucocorticoid receptor ( Nr3c1: r = 0.12; p = 0.049). Age, sex, weight, and length were not confounding factors on the expression of genes. Although the population-level consequences are unclear, our results suggest that PCBs are associated with alterations of the expression of genes responsible for aspects of metabolism, growth and development, and immune function. Collectively, these results provide additional support for the use of harbour seals as indicators of coastal food-web contamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]