Fossil or Non-Fossil: A Case Study in the Archaeological Wheat Triticum parvicoccum (Poaceae: Triticeae).

Abstract

Background/objectives: The archaeobotanical taxon "Triticum parvicoccum" was first described in 1980 as a small-grained, naked, free-threshing, and dense ear tetraploid wheat species (2n = 4x = 28) identified from archaeological remains. This primitive tetraploid, cultivated in the Levant approximately 9000 years ago and subsequently dispersed throughout the Fertile Crescent, represents a potential contributor of the BBAA genomes to T. aestivum. This study aims to resolve the complex nomenclatural status of this taxon, which has remained ambiguous due to competing interpretations under fossil and non-fossil taxonomic regulations.

Methods: We conducted a comprehensive nomenclatural review to evaluate the taxonomic validity of T. parvicoccum, analyzing previous research on the classification of archaeobotanical materials in relation to fossil status.

Results: Our analysis demonstrated that archaeobotanical materials do not qualify as fossils and led to the validation of the taxon at a subspecific rank as a non-fossil entity: T. turgidum subsp. parvicoccum Kislev. subsp. nov. The holotype was established using a charred rachis fragment from Timnah (Tel Batash), an archaeological site on the inner Coastal Plain (Shfela) adjacent to the western piedmont of the Judean Mountains, Israel.

Conclusions: This study resolves the longstanding nomenclatural uncertainty surrounding this archaeologically significant wheat taxon, providing a valid taxonomic designation that reflects its biological and historical importance while adhering to current botanical nomenclature standards.