Cyclical patterns in the Pleistocene human occupation of Southwest Tasmania

One hundred Pleistocene radiocarbon determinations from southwest Tasmanian archaeological sites are used to construct a moving sum of determinations every 500 years within periods spanning 1000 years. The resulting plot shows a cyclical pattern with an increasing amplitude through time. The cyclical pattern can be correlated with climatic indicators from Pulbeena Swamp (northwest Tasmania) and allows us to suggest that the archaeological sites were subject to relatively low levels of occupation during periods of cold and dry climate.