Descrizione del progetto
Un progetto paleontologico su larga scala in Sudan
La ricerca paleontologica in Africa ha riportato alla luce numerosi reperti fossili del Pleistocene, ma molti siti fossili sono ubicati nella Valle del Rift dell’Africa orientale, dando così luogo a una distorsione geografica. Pertanto, le nostre conoscenze circa le faune regionali, nonché la dispersione e la variazione geografica nell’insorgere dei moderni ecosistemi (tra cui gli esseri umani) sono limitate. Inoltre, il ruolo del fiume Nilo nella dispersione faunistica e culturale non è studiato a sufficienza. Il progetto PALEONILE, finanziato dall’UE, combinerà approcci paleontologici, geologici, geocronologici e archeologici per svelare un nuovo reperto fossile proveniente dal bacino del fiume Nilo nel Sudan. In aggiunta, verificherà le ipotesi sulla regionalizzazione zoogeografica del Pleistocene nel bacino del Nilo in relazione alla valle del Rift dell’Africa orientale e alle zone circostanti.
Obiettivo
Over a century of paleontological investigation in Africa has revealed a rich Pleistocene fossil record that includes the evolution of hominins and their material cultures. However, the vast majority of fossil sites are located in the East African Rift Valley (EARV), and our knowledge is heavily skewed by this geographic bias. Poor continental geographic sampling means we lack an understanding of faunal regional variations, and the role of dispersal and geographic variation in the emergence of modern ecosystems. Furthermore, many have questioned the role of the Nile, the longest river in the world, in promoting faunal and cultural dispersal between Subsaharan and North Africa, and beyond to Eurasia. For decades such questions have been answered speculatively, with little data to stand on. PALEONILE is an ambitious project that will address these major gaps in our knowledge through large-scale surveys to reveal a new fossil record from the Middle Nile River Basin in Sudan. This project will test an overarching hypothesis of Pleistocene zoogeographic regionalization in the Nile Basin with respect to the EARV and surrounding areas, and will use an interdisciplinary array of paleontological, geological, geochronological, and archaeological approaches to reach its objectives. The geographic scale of the project is large and the techniques are cutting edge, including high-risk experimental methodologies such as paleobiomolecular recovery and new developments in sedimentary dating. PALEONILE forms the first ever large-scale systematic paleontological project to be conducted in Sudan, where the Cenozoic fossil record remains largely undiscovered, and its potential overlooked. PALEONILE will generate a new paradigm of zoogeographic dynamics and evolution in the African Pleistocene that represents a new synthesis of hydrographic, phylogenomic, archaeological, and paleontological evidence.
Campo scientifico
Programma(i)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Argomento(i)
Meccanismo di finanziamento
HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-BasedIstituzione ospitante
10115 Berlin
Germania