Anthropogenic Transformation of the Vegetation in the Immediate Vicinity of the Settlement Complex at Poganowo (Mrągowo Lakeland, Ne Poland)

Abstract

Abstract The results of pollen, non-pollen palynomorph and microcharcoal particle analyses of deposits from a small pond in north eastern Poland are presented. The study focused on human-induced vegetation changes that occurred in a close vicinity of the settlement complex at Poganowo during the Middle Ages (ca 10th-16th centuries). We distinguished three phases of human impact. First and third phases correspond to intensified settlement activity. The second phase was a period when human activity decreased and woodland regeneration took place. The high incidence of the parasitic fungus Kretzschmaria deusta in a local forest stand during the third phase was simultaneous with numerous spores of coprophilous fungi (Sordaria-type and Cercophora-type). We consider that Kretzschmaria deusta inhabited the roots and bases of tree trunks damaged by digging and grazing animals.