Publications by authors named "C Cakırlar"
The origins and prehistory of domestic sheep () are incompletely understood; to address this, we generated data from 118 ancient genomes spanning 12,000 years sampled from across Eurasia. Genomes from Central Türkiye ~8000 BCE are genetically proximal to the domestic origins of sheep but do not fully explain the ancestry of later populations, suggesting a mosaic of wild ancestries. Genomic signatures indicate selection by ancient herders for pigmentation patterns, hornedness, and growth rate.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHistorians and archaeologists have been debating the scale of animal husbandry in ancient Greece for decades. This study contributes to the debate by examining Classical and Hellenistic faunal assemblages from Magoula Plataniotki, New Halos, and Pherae through non-destructive zooarchaeological methods and a multi-isotopic (87Sr/86Sr, δ13C, and δ18O) approach. Zooarchaeological data suggest that small-scale sedentary animal husbandry focused on caprine production in Magoula Plataniotiki and New Halos, and small-scale and semi-specialised animal husbandry was practised in Pherae.
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- The Pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Aşıklı Höyük, occupied roughly 10,300 to 9,300 years ago in Central Anatolia, is associated with the early domestication of sheep, transitioning from residential stabling to open pasturing over time.
- Genetic analysis of 629 mitochondrial genomes revealed unexpected high genetic diversity during occupation, contradicting the earlier assumption of a domestication bottleneck.
- A significant demographic bottleneck was instead identified later in the Neolithic, leading to the dominance of a specific mitochondrial haplogroup in southwestern Anatolia that influenced sheep populations in Europe and today’s global sheep diversity.
Article Synopsis
- Anthropogenic activities have significantly affected the diversity and evolution of species, with European fallow deer (Dama dama) as a prime example of this impact.
- Using time-calibrated mitochondrial DNA data, researchers analyzed the historical distribution changes and lineage structure of fallow deer across Europe, highlighting founder effects in northern regions compared to consistent populations in the south.
- The study suggests that human intervention has played a key role in deer recolonization and indicates that the lineage found in modern Italy is closely related to fallow deer from the Eemian interglacial period, providing insights into how anthropogenic and natural factors intertwine in species evolution.
The 10,000-year biocultural history of fallow deer and its implications for conservation policy.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
February 2024
Article Synopsis
- - Over the past 10,000 years, humans have actively influenced fallow deer populations, leading to various outcomes, including the endangered Persian fallow deer and the widespread European fallow deer, which holds unique statuses in different regions.
- - Genetic and archaeological studies reveal that European fallow deer have two main genetic groups in Anatolia and the Balkans, which served as their primary glacial refuges, and demonstrate how humans translocated these deer across regions, often sourcing them from distant populations.
- - The historical movement of fallow deer, influenced by myths and cultural practices, highlights the complexity between wild and domestic species, providing insights that could inform modern wildlife management strategies.