Human behavioural adaptations to interglacial lakeshore environments. An introduction

Abstract

During the course of human evolution, we have suc- cessfully adapted to various environments. Chang- ing climates and landscapes often required new behavioural strategies for survival; human societies indeed came into being against the background of this challenge. Although the connection between human behavioural adaptation and environmen- tal change is well acknowledged, the processes involved are not fully understood. To what extent, how rapidly and at what scale climate and environ- mental change led to modifications and adaptations in human behaviour are issues that are only just be- ginning to be intensively addressed. A fundamental problem is the complexity and interdependence of human behaviour and environmental conditions, necessitating the identification of relevant levels of comparability in order to provide a solid foundation on which to base the archaeological record as a product of behavioural adaptation