In the northern areas at the end of the Pleistocene 10 kya the melting ice initiated two processes that altered the sizes and shapes of the land masses: isostatic rising of the land that had been depressed by the weight of ice; and eustatic rising of the sea level due to the melted water from the glaciers. Isostatic rising created more land to be claimed by spreading vegetation; eustatic rising led to the flooding of coastlines. While these land-sea changes were occurring there was a transition from open tundra type landscapes to landscapes dominated by trees. Britain was cut off from the continent around 8.5 kya.
Several large mammal species such as woolly rhinoceros, mammoth and giant deer became extinct. Reindeer and elk were forced into the northern latitudes. The large migratory herds of reindeer and horse that had inhabited the open tundra landscapes were now replaced by ungulates that lacked migratory behaviour. Marine vertebrates ranged from whales and sharks to porpoises and dolphins. There was a wide range of salt-water fish and many species of shellfish.
As with the earlier prehistoric periods, stone tools dominate the Mesolithic archaeological record. Symbolic of the Mesolithic are the small, sharp flints called microliths. Many microliths were no more than a centimetre long and half a centimetre wide. They were probably used on arrows, spears and other composite tools.
Many Mesolithic sites have post holes indicating past structures ranging from simple windbreaks to substantial huts. At the massive shell midden of Moita do Sebastiao in the Muge Valley of Portugal there are settings of post holes that appear to define a series of semi-circular huts. At Lepenski Vir in the Danube Valley where hunters had settled down to live sedentary lifestyles, the dwellings were trapezoidal in plan and varied in size from five to thirty metres (16-99 ft) square.
Many offshore islands were colonised, such as the Hebrides and those of the Mediterranean. At Tybrind Vig in Denmark the remains of two dugout canoes were found and decorated paddles. One of the canoes is 9.5 metres (31 ft) long and estimated to have been able to carry six to eight people.
Mesolithic cemeteries and the complex societies they represent are mostly found in coastal areas or near to lakes and rivers. Such areas would have been the most productive and therefore able to support the larger populations. One of the largest cemeteries is at Oleneostrovski Mogilnik at Lake Onega in southern Russia. One hundred and seventy burials out of an estimated four hundred have been excavated, yielding more than 7000 artefacts. Variation in grave goods has indicated status.
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