Biology subjects

Hufthammer, A. K.

Publications and source records attributed to Hufthammer, A. K..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

2000-year fish bone record reveals transition to commercial fisheries during climatic change

Animal bones from archaeological contexts can reveal the interplay between past environments and human societies. Resource acquisition shaped many aspects of past societies and influenced the development of trade networks and migration. Fish have been a cornerstone of human subsistence for millennia, yet the rise of commercial fishing and trade was complex. Here, we synthesised a database of [~]1.9 million zooarchaeological fish records spanning 2000 years across Europe. Using machine-learning of catch compositions alongside fish thermal tolerances, we show that fisheries became less local over time, with homogenisation coinciding with Little Ice Age-associated cooling, a period of documented resource scarcity, concurring with growing trade. Moreover, increased proportions of marine taxa and more specialist marine fisheries were observed in the preceding Medieval Climate Anomaly, to sustain concurrent urban and population growth. Enhanced use of marine protein buffered food insecurity, whilst signalling the transition from localised to trans-regional trade networks.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2024

The Once and Future Fish: 1300 years of Atlantic herring population structure and demography revealed through ancient DNA and mixed-stock analysis

Atlantic herring populations have been the target of highly profitable coastal and pelagic fisheries in northern Europe for well over a thousand years. Their complex and intermingled population dynamics have sparked extensive debate over the impacts of historical overfishing and have complicated their sustainable management today. Recently developed tools - including diagnostic SNP panels for mixed-stock analysis - aim to improve population assignment for fisheries management, however, the biological relevance of such tools over long periods of time remains unknown. Here, we demonstrate the millennium-long applicability of diagnostic SNP panels and identify population perturbations associated with increasing exploitation pressure and climate change by analyzing whole genome data from modern and ancient herring specimens. We find that herring demographic cycles were likely within healthy ecosystem boundaries until the dramatic disruption of these cycles in the 20th century. We find only autumn-spawning herring in our archaeological remains spanning 900 years from 8 sites across Europe, supporting observations that the numerical dominance of specific spawning populations can demographically outcompete other herring types. We also obtain pre-archival aDNA evidence for the famous, cyclical "Bohuslan periods," during which mass quantities of North Sea autumn-spawning herring congregated in the Skagerrak. Finally, the long-term applicability of diagnostic SNP panels underscores their highly cost-effective application for the genetic monitoring of herring stocks. Our results highlight the utility of ancient DNA and genomic analysis to obtain historical and natural insights in herring ecology and population dynamics with relevance for sustainable fisheries management.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2024

Tracing 600 years of long-distance Atlantic cod trade in medieval and post-medieval Oslo using stable isotopes and ancient DNA

Marine resources have been important for the survival and economic development of coastal human communities across northern Europe for centuries. Knowledge of the origin of such historic resources can provide key insights into fishing practices and the spatial extent of trade networks. Here, we combine ancient DNA and stable isotopes ({delta}13C, {delta}15N, non-exchangeable {delta}2H and {delta}34S) to investigate the geographical origin of archaeological cod remains in Oslo from the eleventh to seventeenth centuries CE. Our findings provide genetic evidence that Atlantic cod was obtained from different sources, including a variety of distant-water populations like northern Norway and possibly Iceland. Evidence for such long-distance cod trade is already observed from the eleventh century, contrasting with archaeological and historical evidence from Britain and other areas of Continental Europe around the North and Baltic Seas, where such trade developed in a later period. Diverse biological origins are further supported by significant differences of a range of isotopes, indicating that multiple populations living in different environments were exploited. This research highlights the utility of combining ancient DNA methods and stable isotope analysis to describe the development of marine fisheries during the medieval and post-medieval period.

ecology↗