Pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs from the Early Neolithic settlement of La Draga (Girona, Spain)

The first farming societies settled at La Draga in a humid and densely forested area, with the predominance of deciduous trees (deciduous Quercus and Corylus) and Pinus and Abies in the surrounding mountains. Following their establishment at the site, abrupt changes in vegetation are recorded, in terms of deforestation of oak and riparian forests. Sedimentation dynamics involved in the formation of the archaeological site influenced the composition of the NPP spectra, reflected in the contraposition between waterlogged and subaerial layers, but especially, between organic peaty layers formed at local level and sediments transported by erosive processes in the layers belonging to the second phase of occupation.