Professor Ralph Fyfe

My role at the University of Plymouth is to provide a broad-based education to undergraduate and postgraduate students, to undertake world-class research and provide strategic leadership of research within the Faculty of Science and Engineering (FoSE). My teaching is designed to promote geographical thinking and spatial literacy, particularly through leadership of programmes of learning in GIS (Geographical Information Systems) and long-term environmental change. Graduates from our GIS modules enjoy considerable success, obtaining jobs across a variety of sectors applying geospatial knowledge and practical experiences learnt at Plymouth. The teaching is informed by my research expertise and interests, and delivered through formal lecture classes, practical workshops, tutorial sessions and field-based teaching ranging from one-day local excursions to overseas residential field classes (including leading groups in Iceland and Western Ireland). I am Associate Dean for FoSE with responsibility for research, was the UoA14 (Geography and Environmental Sciences) coordinator for REF2021, and am a member of the Centre for Research in Environment and Society at the University of Plymouth.

My research broadly lies in reconstructing past environmental change. In particular I study how past societies influenced and shaped their surroundings, and apply this information to conservation and management of current and future environmental change. Understanding the past offers exciting insights into possible futures for people/environment relationships, and contributes to improved understanding of interactions in the whole earth system, including human disturbance of natural systems. As such much of my work is interdisciplinary, with strong links to archaeology, ecology and conservation management, and climate science. I have authored more than 100 academic papers and book chapters.

I have received more than £1.3M of funding to support my research since my appointment at the University of Plymouth (2006). Recent major programmes of research have focussed on transformation of the European landscape over the past 10,000 years through successive Leverhulme Trust-funded projects on: Deforesting Europe (2011-2014), Transforming the Face of the Mediterranean (2015-2018), Biodiversity and human land use (2019-2022) and Reclaiming Exmoor (2020-22) with key publications in Global Change Biology, Scientific Reports and a thematic special issue of The Holocene.I am currently involved with major international research programmes, including the Past Global Changes Landcover6K working group, the H2020 TERRANOVA International Training Network, and the ERC-funded COREX project.

Qualifications

I graduated in 1996 with a BSc (Hons) Degree in Geography from Durham University, and spent the subsequent year working on a variety of projects in the broad Quaternary Environmental Change area. This included excavation of interglacial sediments along the line of the A13 extension near Purfleet, opening sections of till on the Northumberland coast and coring peat sequence on the North York Moors. I subsequently completed an interdisciplinary PhD at Exeter University, drawing on both archaeological and geographical techniques to assess the value and importance of fluvial sediments for archaeological and environmental reconstruction. This work was undertaken in partnership with the Environment Agency and Exmoor National Park Authority.

I have served as an External Examiner for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at Birmingham University and Royal Holloway University of London, demonstrating my standing in the wider UK Higher Education sector.

Professional membership

I am a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS), a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA).

I have served as Membership Secretary of the Association for Environmental Archaeology and convened the AEA annual conference at Plymouth in 2014. I hold membership of a range of other professional associations, including the Quaternary Research Association, co-convening the QRA Annual Discussion Meeting at Plymouth in 2017.

Teaching interests

My teaching supports three key areas of the student learning experience at Plymouth:

(i) development of GIS skills and spatial literacy;
(ii) palaeoecology, environmental change and archaeology; and
(iii) development of wider employability skills. 

My teaching is divided between formal taught classes, practical skills development in the physical geography and IT labs, and fieldwork. Problem-based learning and research-led teaching develops the independent learning and creates ownership of the learning experience for my students. I have coordinated local field teaching (for example collecting air temperature data around Plymouth city centre for use within GIS labs, excursions to Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor to explore upland environmental change) and international residential field trips to Iceland and western Ireland.

Graduates from the GIS module are well equipped for employment, and enjoy success within a variety of industries including global management, engineering and development consultancy, and forensic sciences.

Research interests

My current research falls into three main areas:

(1) Development of pollen-landscape calibration datasets for the quantification of past land cover, and application to archaeology, nature conservation and climate change research. This includes coordination of research on European land cover change over the past 10,000 years within the PAGES LANDCOVER6K working group, and contributing to the open-access European Pollen Database.

(2) Human-environment relationships in past societies, with a particular focus on prehistoric landscapes, including the completed Deforesting Europe (2011-2014) and Transforming the Face of the Mediterranean projects (2015-2018), and the ongoing Biodiversity and human land use project (2019-2022), all funded by the Leverhulme Trust. The ERC Synergy COREX (From Correlation to Explanation) project (2021-2027) aims to re-write the prehistory of Europe through a major interdisciplinary, big-data driven approach.

(3) Sustainable conservation and management of the archaeological and palaeoecological resource. I co-wrote key technical review documents for the IUCN peatlands programme, and work alongside Exmoor and Dartmoor National Park Authorities providing commissioned research and technical advice within major programmes of upland peatland restoration. The interdisciplinary Leverhulme Trust-funded Reclaiming Exmoor project (2020-22) that I lead speaks to the ecological consequences of historical processes of moorland improvement schemes, the results of which are being shared within the peatland restoration community to help understand ecological processes around disturbance.

Research groups

• Centre for Research in Environment and Society (CeRES)

Grants & contracts

I have received >£1.3M funding for my research since my appointment at Plymouth in 2006, from a variety of sources, including UK research councils (e.g. NERC/AHRC), the EU, prestigious national funding agencies (Leverhulme Trust/British Academy/English Heritage) and 'third stream' funders. My research income has helped support and develop the careers of various undergraduate Research Assistants, PhD students and Post-doctoral fellows, as well as allowed me to explore and develop my personal and collaborative research agendas.

2018
36. Leverhulme Trust (£263,127): "Long-term biodiversity and human land use change". PI, with Pelling (Historic England) and Smith (Birmingham); 35. Dartmoor National Park (£16,983): “Long-term ecology and human impact at Amicombe Hill, Dartmoor”

2017
34. Exmoor National Park (£4,187): “Prehistoric and historic land use on Codsend Moors, Exmoor”; 33. Dartmoor National Park (£10,449): “Environmental context and dating of the Sittaford stone circle”

2015
31. Leverhulme Trust (£294,146): "Changing the face of the Mediterranean: land cover and population since the advent of farming". CoI, with Roberts, Shennan (UCL) and Bevan (UCL); 30. Scottish Natural Heritage: PhD scholarship for research into river ecosystem services

2014
29. English Heritage (£1,283): "The environment of the Glastonbury Lake Village"; 28. PU ISSR Small Collaborative Award (£4,028): "Automated mapping of river networks for ecosystem services assessment" CoI with Gilvear, Fletcher and Bolton; 27. English Heritage (£12,561): "White Horse Hill project" additional funding Cornwall County Council (£3,201): "Palaeoecological analysis at Porthloo Beach, Scilly"; 26. Mires on the Moors project (£17,720): "The context of prehistoric landscapes (phase 2)" PI, with MacLeod (RHUL)

2013
25. Mires on the Moors project (£10,700): "The context of prehistoric landscapes: preliminary analysis of sites on Exmoor". PI with Daley; 24. NERC (£20,084): "Quantifying the biodiversity threshold for peatland carbon service delivery". CoI, with Daley (PI), Street-Perrott and Loader (Swansea); 23. Mires on the Moors project (£25,266): "The Exmoor millennium project (phase 2)". PI with Daley, Macleod (RHUL) and Smith (Birmingham)

2012
22. Mires on the Moors project (£18,018): "The Exmoor millennium project (phase 1). PI with Daley; 21. English Heritage (£9,473): "Whitehorse Hill cist project" PI with Macleod (RHUL); 20. ENPA (£4,500): "Exmoor woodland project"

2011
19. NERC RCL (£6,380): "A palaeoecological approach to understanding the impact of coastal change on past societies" [11 AMS radiocarbon dates]. PI with Perez, Gehrels, Charman (Exeter) and Roberts (Aberystwyth); 18. British Academy (£7,100): "Neolithic monumentality on Dartmoor"

2010
17. Leverhulme Trust (£146,741): "Deforesting Europe: a pollen-based reconstruction of Holocene land cover change". Co-PI, with Roberts (Plymouth); 16. Trustees, FD ESA (£62,794): "Dartmoor Blanket Bog Restoration Project: Palaeoecological Analysis, 2010-12"; 15. NERC RCL (£1,560): "Constraints of late glacial sealevel change in western Ireland" [3 AMS radiocarbon dates]. CoI, with Gehrels and Edwards (TCD); 14. University of Plymouth PUP fund (£6,370): "High Upland Landscapes Project"; 13. DNPA (£910): Trial excavation, Tottiford Reservoir, Dartmoor; 12. DNPA (£1,000): Post-excavation analysis, Bellever Bronze Age round house project

2009
11. University of Plymouth PUP fund (£5,200): "The pollen-based record of landuse change in the British Isles" Co-I, with Roberts; 10. Trustees, FD ESA (£60,340): "Dartmoor Blanket Bog Restoration Project: Palaeoecological Analysis"

2008
9. ENPA (£9,700): "Assessment of Exmoor’s Areas of Outstanding Archaeological and Historical Importance"; 8. NERC RCL (£4,680): "Testing a preliminary event stratigraphy (30-8ka) from the southern Hemisphere" [9 AMS radiocarbon dates]. CoI, with Newnham, Callard (Plymouth) and Vandergoes (NZ); 7. English Heritage (£95,000): "Lyonesse project". CoI, with Mulville (Cardiff), Johns (Cornwall CC), Charman, Gehrels, Head (all Plymouth)

2007
6. British Academy (£7,405 ): "Geochemical identification of prehistoric metallurgy in southwest Britain"; 5. DNPA (£6,803): "Cut Hill Project" phase 3; 4. English Heritage (£2,441): "Roman Lode iron working site: palaeoecology"

2006
3. DNPA (£2,500): "Shovel Down Project" environmental post-excavation analysis; 2. DNPA (£4,993): "Cut Hill Project" phase 2; 1. GWR/ENPA (£55,200): PhD Scholarship for "Sustainable management of upland peat" (Dr Heather Davies)

Key publications

Key publications are highlighted

Journals

Articles

Baker L, Rowney F, French H & Fyfe R (2023) 'Revolution and Continuity? Reassessing Nineteenth-Century Moorland Reclamation Through Palaeoecological and Archival Research' Landscape Research

de Vareilles A, Woodbridge J, Pelling R, Fyfe R, Smith D, Campbell G, Smith W, Carruthers W, Adams S & le Hegarat K (2023) 'The development of arable cultivation in the south-east of England and its relationship with vegetation cover: A honeymoon period for biodiversity?' Holocene , DOI

Strandberg G, Chen J, Fyfe R, Kjellström E, Lindström J, Poska A, Zhang Q & Gaillard M-J (2023) 'Did the Bronze Age deforestation of Europe affect its climate? A regional climate model study using pollen-based land cover reconstructions' Climate of the Past 19, (7) 1507-1530 , DOI

Clason CC, Baccolo G, Lokas E, Owens PN, Wachniew P, Millward GE, Taylor A, Blake WH, Beard DB & Poniecka E (2023) 'Global variability and controls on the accumulation of fallout radionuclides in cryoconite' Science of The Total Environment , DOI

Serge MA, Mazier F, Fyfe R, Gaillard M-J, Klein T, Lagnoux A, Galop D, Githumbi E, Mindrescu M & Nielsen AB (2023) 'Testing the Effect of Relative Pollen Productivity on the REVEALS Model: A Validated Reconstruction of Europe-Wide Holocene Vegetation' Land 12, (5) , DOI

Rowney F, Fyfe R, Baker L, French H, Koot M, Ombashi H & Timms R (2023) 'Historical anthropogenic disturbances explain long-term moorland vegetation dynamics' Ecology and Evolution

Woodbridge J & Fyfe R (2023) 'Agricultural systems regulate plant and insect (beetle) diversity and induce ecosystem novelty' Anthropocene , DOI Open access

Sykut M, Pawelczyk S, Piotrowska N, Stefaniak K, Ridush B, Makowiecki D, Kosintsev P, Wilkens B, Borowik T & Fyfe R (2023) 'Variability in feeding habitats of red deer sensu lato in Eurasia in the Late Pleistocene and Holocene' Journal of Archaeological Science 150, , DOI Open access

Arthur F, Roche DM, Fyfe R, Quiquet A & Renssen H (2023) 'Simulations of the Holocene climate in Europe using an interactive downscaling within the iLOVECLIM model (version 1.1)' Climate of the Past 19, (1) 87-106 , DOI Open access

Rowney F, Fyfe R, Anderson P, Barnett R, Blake W, Daley T, Head K, MacLeod A, Matthews I & Smith D (2022) 'Ecological consequences of historic moorland ‘improvement’' Biodiversity and Conservation , DOI Open access

Githumbi E, Fyfe R, Gaillard M-J, Trondman A-K, Mazier F, Nielsen A-B, Poska A, Sugita S, Woodbridge J & Azuara J (2022) 'European pollen-based REVEALS land-cover reconstructions for the Holocene: methodology, mapping and potentials' Earth System Science Data 14, (4) 1581-1619 , DOI Open access

Githumbi E, Pirzamanbein B, Lindström J, Poska A, Fyfe R, Mazier F, Nielsen AB, Sugita S, Trondman A-K & Woodbridge J (2022) 'Pollen-based maps of past regional vegetation cover in Europe over twelve millennia - evaluation and potential' Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution , DOI Open access

Strandberg G, Lindstrom J, Poska A, Zhang Q, Fyfe R, Githumbi E, Kjellstrom E, Mazier F, Nielsen A-B & Sugita S (2022) 'Mid-Holocene European climate revisited: new high-resolution regional climate model simulations using pollen-based land-cover' Quaternary Science Reviews: the international multidisciplinary research and review journal 281, , DOI Open access

Izdebski A, Guzowski P, Poniat R, Masci L, Palli J, Vignola C, Bauch M, Cocozza C, Fernandes R & Ljungqvist FC (2022) 'Palaeoecological data indicates land-use changes across Europe linked to spatial heterogeneity in mortality during the Black Death pandemic' Nature Ecology and Evolution , DOI Open access

Nikulina A, MacDonald K, Scherjon F, Pearce E, Davoli M, Svenning J-C, Vella E, Gaillard M-J, Zapolska A & Arthur F (2022) 'Tracking hunter-gatherer impact on vegetation in Last Interglacial and Holocene Europe: proxies and challenges' Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory , DOI Open access

de Vareilles A, Pelling R, Woodbridge J & Fyfe R (2021) 'Archaeology and agriculture: plants, people and past land-use' Trends in Ecology and Evolution , DOI Open access

Woodbridge J, Fyfe R, Smith D, Pelling R, de Vareilles A, Batchelor R, Bevan A & Davies A (2020) 'What drives biodiversity patterns? Using long-term multi-disciplinary data to discern centennial-scale change' Journal of Ecology 109, (3) 1396-1410 , DOI Open access

Barnett RL, Charman DJ, Johns C, Ward SL, Bevan A, Bradley SL, Camidge K, Fyfe RM, Gehrels WR & Gehrels MJ (2020) 'Nonlinear landscape and cultural response to sea-level rise' Science Advances 6, (45) eabb6376-eabb6376 , DOI Open access

Niedzialkowska M, Doan K, Górny M, Sykut M, Stefaniak K, Piotrowska N, Jedrzejewska B, Ridush B, Pawelczyk S & Mackiewicz P (2020) 'Winter temperature and forest cover have shaped red deer distribution in Europe and the Ural Mountains since the Late Pleistocene' Journal of Biogeography , DOI Open access

Newton TL, Gehrels WR, Fyfe RM & Daley TJ (2020) 'Reconstructing Sea-level change in the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) using salt-marsh foraminifera, diatoms and testate amoebae' Marine Micropaleontology 101923-101923 , DOI Open access

Racimo F, Woodbridge J, Fyfe R, Sikora M, Sjögren K-G, Kristiansen K & Vander Linden M (2020) 'The spatiotemporal spread of human migrations during the European Holocene' Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of USA , DOI Open access

Stephens L, Fuller D, Boivin N, Rick T, Gauthier N, Kay A, Marwick B, Armstrong CG, Barton CM & Denham T (2019) 'Archaeological assessment reveals Earth’s early transformation through land use' Science 365, (6456) 897-902 , DOI Open access

Hofman-Kaminska E, Bocherens H, Drucker DG, Fyfe RM, Guminski W, Makowiecki D, Pacher M, Piliciauskiene G, Samojlik T & Woodbridge J (2019) 'Adapt or die—Response of large herbivores to environmental changes in Europe during the Holocene' Global Change Biology , DOI Open access

Schauer P, Shennan S, Bevan A, Cook G, Edinborough K, Fyfe R, Kerig T & Parker Pearson M (2019) 'Supply and demand in prehistory? Economics of Neolithic mining in northwest Europe' Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 54, 149-160 , DOI Open access

Roberts CN, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Palmisano A, Bevan A, Fyfe RM & Shennan S (2019) 'Mediterranean landscape change during the Holocene: synthesis, comparison and regional trends in population, land cover and climate' Holocene , DOI Open access

Lunt PH, Fyfe RM & Tappin AD (2019) 'Role of recent climate change on carbon sequestration in peatland systems' Science of the Total Environment 667, 348-358 Author Site , DOI Open access

Berger J-F, Shennan S, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Palmisano A, Mazier F, Nuninger L, Guillon S, Doyen E, Begeot C & Andrieu-Ponel V (2019) 'Holocene land cover and population dynamics in southern France' Holocene , DOI Open access

Mercuri AM, Florenzano A, Burjachs F, Giardini M, Kouli K, Masi A, Picornell-Gelabert L, Revelles J, Servera-Vives G & Torri P (2019) 'From influence to impact: the multifunctional land-use in Mediterranean prehistory emerging from palynology of archaeological sites (8.0-2.8 ka BP)' The Holocene , DOI Open access

Woodbridge-Fisher J, Roberts CN & Fyfe R (2019) 'Pollen-inferred regional vegetation patterns and demographic change in Southern Anatolia through the Holocene' The Holocene Open access

Stoddart S, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Palmisano A, Mercuri AM, Mensing S, Colombaroli D, Sadori L, Magri L, di Rita F & Giardini M (2019) 'Tyrrhenian central Italy: Holocene population and landscape ecology' Holocene , DOI Open access

Bevan A, Palmisano A, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Fyfe RM, Roberts CN & Shennan S (2019) 'The changing face of the Mediterranean: land cover, demography, and environmental change' Holocene , DOI Open access

Palmisano A, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Roberts CN, Bevan A, Fyfe RM, Shennan S, Cheddadi R, Greenberg R, Kaniewski D & Langgut D (2019) 'Holocene Landscape Dynamics and Long-term Population Trends in the Levant' The Holocene , DOI Open access

Fyfe RM, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Palmisano A, Bevan A, Shennan S, Burjachs F, Leggaro Herrero B, Garcia Puchol O, Carrion JS & Revelles J (2019) 'Prehistoric palaeodemographics and regional land cover change in eastern Iberia' The Holocene , DOI Open access

Hill TCB, Hill GE, Brunning R, Banerjea RY, Fyfe RM, Hogg AG, Jones J, Perez M & Smith DN (2019) 'Glastonbury Lake Village revisited: a multi-proxy palaeoenvironmental investigation of an Iron Age wetland settlement' Journal of Wetland Archaeology , DOI Open access

Weiberg E, Bevan A, Kouli K, Katsianis M, Woodbridge-Fisher J, Bonnier A, Engel M, Finne M, Fyfe RM & Maniatis Y (2019) 'Long-term trends of land use and demography in Greece: a comparative study' Holocene , DOI Open access

Mather AE, Fyfe R, Clason C, Stokes M, Mills S & Barrows TT (2018) 'Automated mapping of relict patterned ground: An approach to evaluate morphologically subdued landforms using unmanned-aerialvehicle and structure-from-motion technologies' Progress in Physical Geography , DOI Open access

Gatis N, Luscombe D, Carless D, Parry L, Fyfe RM, Harrod T, Brazier RE & Anderson K (2018) 'Mapping upland peat depth using airborne radiometric and lidar survey data' Geoderma 335, 78-87 , DOI Open access

Woodbridge-Fisher J, Roberts CN & Fyfe RM (2018) 'Pan-Mediterranean Holocene vegetation and land-cover dynamics from synthesised pollen data' Journal of Biogeography 45, (9) , DOI Open access

Fearnley F & Fyfe RM (2018) 'Twitter: an emerging source for geographical study' Geography 103, (2) 97-101 Publisher Site Open access

Roberts N, Fyfe RM, Woodbridge J, Gaillard M-J, Davis BAS, Kaplan JO, Marquer L, Mazier F, Nielsen AB & Sugita S (2018) 'Europe's lost forests: a pollen-based synthesis for the last 11,000 years' SCIENTIFIC REPORTS 8, Author Site , DOI Open access

Kaplan JO, Krumhardt KM, Gaillard M-J, Sugita S, Trondman A-K, Fyfe RM, Marquer L, Mazier F & Nielsen AB (2017) 'Constraining the Deforestation History of Europe: Evaluation of Historical Land Use Scenarios with Pollen-Based Land Cover Reconstructions' LAND , DOI Open access

Fyfe RM, Woodbridge J & Roberts CN (2017) 'Trajectories of change in Mediterranean Holocene vegetation through classification of pollen data' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 27, 351-364 , DOI Open access

Fyfe RM, Ombashi H, Davies HJ & Head K (2017) 'Quantified moorland vegetation and assessment of the role of burning over the past five millennia' Journal of Vegetation Science 29, 393-403 , DOI Open access

Bevan A, Colledge S, Fuller D, Fyfe R, Shennan S & Stevens C (2017) 'Holocene fluctuations in human population demonstrate repeated links to food production and climate' PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 114, (49) E10524-E10531 Author Site , DOI Open access

Edwards R, Gehrels WR, Brooks A, Fyfe R, Pullen K, Kuchar J & Craven K (2017) 'Resolving discrepancies between field and modelled relative sea-level data: lessons from western Ireland' Journal of Quaternary Science , DOI Open access

Marquer L, Gaillard M-J, Sugita S, Poska A, Trondman A-K, Mazier F, Nielsen AB, Fyfe RM, Jönsson AM & Smith B (2017) 'Quantifying the effects of land use and climate on Holocene vegetation in Europe' Quaternary Science Reviews 171, 20-37 , DOI Open access

Edwards KJ, Fyfe RM & Jackson ST (2017) 'The first 100 years of pollen analysis' Nature Plants 3, (2) , DOI

Brewer S, Giesecke T, Davis BAS, Finsinger W, Wolters S, Binney H, de Beaulieu J-L, Fyfe R, Gil-Romera G & Kühl N (2016) 'Late-glacial and Holocene European pollen data' Journal of Maps 1-8 , DOI Open access

Ruddiman WF, Fuller DQ, Kutzbach JE, Tzedakis PC, Kaplan JO, Ellis EC, Vavrus SJ, Roberts CN, Fyfe R & He F (2016) 'Late Holocene climate: Natural or anthropogenic?' Reviews of Geophysics 54, (1) 93-118 , DOI Open access

Telfer MW, Fyfe RM & Lewin S (2015) 'Automated mapping of linear dunefield morphometric parameters from remotely-sensed data' Aeolian Research 19, 215-224 , DOI

Mather AE, Mills S, Stokes M & Fyfe R (2015) 'Ten years on: what can Google Earth offer the Geoscience community?' Geology Today 31, (6) 216-221

Perez M, Fyfe RM, Charman DJ & Gehrels WR (2015) 'Later Holocene vegetation history of the Isles of Scilly, UK: coastal influence and human land use in a small island context' Journal of Quaternary Science 30, (8) 764-778 , DOI

Rippon S & Fyfe RM (2015) 'Regional variation in the continuity of land-use patterns through the first millennium A.D. in lowland Britain' Late Antique Archaeology 11, (1) , DOI Open access

Davies H, Fyfe R & Charman D (2015) 'Does peatland drainage damage the palaeoecological record?' Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 221, 92-105 , DOI

Edwards KJ, Fyfe RM, Hunt CO & Schofield JE (2015) 'Moving forwards? Palynology and the human dimension' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 56, 117-132 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe RM, Woodbridge J & Roberts N (2015) 'From forest to farmland: pollen-inferred land cover change across Europe using the pseudobiomization approach' Glob Chang Biol 21, (3) 1197-1212 Author Site , DOI

Trondman A-K, Gaillard M-J, Mazier F, Sugita S, Fyfe R, Nielsen AB, Twiddle C, Barratt P, Birks HJB & Bjune AE (2015) 'Pollen-based quantitative reconstructions of Holocene regional vegetation cover (plant-functional types and land-cover types) in Europe suitable for climate modelling' GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 21, (2) 676-697 Author Site , DOI

Pirzamanbein B, Lindstrom J, Poska A, Sugita S, Trondman A-K, Fyfe R, Mazier F, Nielsen AB, Kaplan JO & Bjune AE (2014) 'Creating spatially continuous maps of past land cover from point estimates: A new statistical approach applied to pollen data' ECOLOGICAL COMPLEXITY 20, 127-141 Author Site , DOI

Woodbridge J, Fyfe RM & Roberts N (2014) 'A comparison of remotely sensed and pollen-based approaches to mapping Europe's land cover' JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY 41, (11) 2080-2092 Author Site , DOI

Woodbridge J, Fyfe RM, Roberts N, Downey S, Edinborough K & Shennan S (2014) 'The impact of the Neolithic agricultural transition in Britain: a comparison of pollen-based land-cover and archaeological C-14 date-inferred population change' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 51, 216-224 Author Site , DOI

Lechterbeck J, Edinborough K, Kerig T, Fyfe R, Roberts N & Shennan S (2014) 'Is Neolithic land use correlated with demography? An evaluation of pollen-derived land cover and radiocarbon-inferred demographic change from Central Europe' HOLOCENE 24, (10) 1297-1307 Author Site , DOI Open access

Woodbridge J, Davies HJ, Blake WH & Fyfe RM (2014) 'Recent environmental change in an upland reservoir catchment: a palaeoecological perspective' JOURNAL OF PALEOLIMNOLOGY 52, (3) 229-244 Author Site , DOI

Gearey BR, Fletcher W & Fyfe R (2014) 'Managing, Valuing, and Protecting Heritage Resources in the Twenty-First Century: Peatland Archaeology, the Ecosystem Services Framework, and the Kyoto Protocol' Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites 16, (3) 236-244 , DOI

Geach MR, Stokes M, Telfer MW, Mather AE, Fyfe RM, Lewin & S (2014) 'The application of geospatial interpolation methods in the reconstruction of Quaternary landform records' Geomorphology 216, 234-246 , DOI

Marquer L, Gaillard M-J, Sugita S, Trondman A-K, Mazier F, Nielsen AB, Fyfe RM, Odgaard BV, Alenius T & Birks HJB (2014) 'Holocene changes in vegetation composition in northern Europe: why quantitative pollen-based vegetation reconstructions matter' QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS 90, 199-216 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe RM, Coombe R, Davies H & Parry L (2014) 'The importance of sub-peat carbon storage as shown by data from Dartmoor, UK' SOIL USE AND MANAGEMENT 30, (1) 23-31 Author Site , DOI Open access

Strandberg G, Kjellstrom E, Poska A, Wagner S, Gaillard M-J, Trondman A-K, Mauri A, Davis BAS, Kaplan JO & Birks HJB (2014) 'Regional climate model simulations for Europe at 6 and 0.2 k BP: sensitivity to changes in anthropogenic deforestation' CLIMATE OF THE PAST 10, (2) 661-680 Author Site , DOI

Giesecke T, Davis B, Brewer S, Finsinger W, Wolters S, Blaauw M, de Beaulieu JL, Fyfe RM, Gaillard MJ & Gil-Romera G (2014) 'Towards mapping the late Quaternary vegetation change of Europe' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 23, 75-85

Fyfe RM, Twiddle C, Sugita S, Gaillard MJ, Barratt P, Caseldine CJ, Dodson J, Edwards KJ, Farrell M & Froyd C (2013) 'The Holocene vegetation cover of Britain and Ireland: overcoming problems of scale and discerning patterns of openness' Quaternary Science Reviews 73, 132-148 , DOI

Davis BAS, Zanon M, Collins P, Mauri A, Bakker J, Barboni D, Barthelmes A, Beaudouin C, Birks HJB & Bjune AE (2013) 'Erratum to: The European Modern Pollen Database (EMPD) project' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 22, (6) 531-531 , DOI

Davis BAS, Zanon M, Collins P, Mauri A, Bakker J, Barboni D, Barthelmes A, Beaudouin C, Bjune AE & Bozilova E (2013) 'The European Modern Pollen Database (EMPD) project' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 22, (6) 521-530 , DOI

Seremet M, Chalkley B & Fyfe R (2013) 'The development of GIS education in the UK and Turkey: a comparative review' Planet 27, (1) 14-20 , DOI

Fyfe R (2012) 'How ‘close’ can we push data? The challenges and potential of fossil pollen data for local-scale reconstruction of vegetation change' Quaternary International 279-280, 156-156 , DOI

Fyfe RM (2012) 'Bronze Age landscape dynamics: spatially detailed pollen analysis from a ceremonial complex' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 39, (8) 2764-2773 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe RM, Roberts N, Woodbridge J, Downey S, Edinborough K & Shennan S (2012) '138 A pseudo-biomisation approach to anthropogenic land cover change' 日本花粉学会会誌 58, (Special) , DOI

Fyfe R, Twiddle C, Sugita S, Gaillard M-J & Contributors D (2012) '139 Quantification of past regional vegetation of Britain : a first attempt' 日本花粉学会会誌 58, (Special) , DOI

Marquer L, Gaillard M-J, Trondman A-K, Nielsen AB, Mazier F, Fyfe R, Odgaard B, Alenius T, Birks J & Bjune AE (2012) '312 REVEALS-based reconstruction of regional vegetation and land cover along climatically-sensitive transects in NW Europe : new insights into Holocene dynamics of plant-climate-human interactions' 日本花粉学会会誌 58, (Special) 141-142 , DOI

Trondman A-K, Gaillard M-J, Sugita S, Fyfe R, Kaplan J, Nielsen AB, Marquer L, Mazier F, Poska A & Strandberg G (2012) '530 Land cover-climate interactions in NW Europe, 6000 BP and 200 BP : first results of the Swedish LANDCLIM project' 日本花粉学会会誌 58, (Special) , DOI

Fyfe RM & Woodbridge J (2012) 'Differences in time and space in vegetation patterning: analysis of pollen data from Dartmoor, UK' LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY 27, (5) 745-760 Author Site , DOI

Woodbridge J, Fyfe RM, Law B & Haworth Johns A (2012) 'A spatial approach to upland vegetation change and human impact: the Aber Valley, Snowdonia' Environmental Archaeology: the journal of human palaeoecology 17, 80-94 , DOI

Eastwood WJ, Fyfe R, Senkul Ç & McMillan A (2011) 'Quantitative vegetation modelling in southwest Turkey' Heritage Turkey 1, , DOI

Fyfe RM & Davies H (2011) 'The pattern of vegetation development on Exmoor' Proceedings of the Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Society 154, 11-22

Fyfe R, Roberts N & Woodbridge J (2010) 'A pollen-based pseudobiomisation approach to anthropogenic land-cover change' HOLOCENE 20, (7) 1165-1171 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe RM, Roberts CN & Woodbridge J (2010) 'A pollen-based pseudobiomisation approach to anthropogenic land-cover change' The Holocene 20, (7) 1165-1171 , DOI

Gaillard M-J, Sugita S, Mazier F, Trondman A-K, Brostrom A, Hickler T, Kaplan JO, Kjellstrom E, Kunes P & Lemmen C (2010) 'Holocene land-cover reconstructions for studies on land cover-climate feedbacks' Climate of the Past 6, 307-499 , DOI

Fyfe R (2010) 'The British Museum' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 37, (3) 665-665 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe RM & Greeves T (2010) 'The date and context of a stone row: Cut Hill, Dartmoor, south-west England' ANTIQUITY 84, (323) 55-70 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe RM, Caseldine CJ & Gillings M (2010) 'Pushing the boundaries of data? Issues in the construction of rich visual past landscapes' Quaternary International 220, 153-159

Adams H & Fyfe RM (2010) 'Sustainable conservation and management of the historic environment record in upland peat: a view from Exmoor' Transactions of the Devonshire Association 141, 39-60

Fyfe RM, de Beaulieu J-L, Binney H, Bradshaw RHW, Brewer S, Le Flao A, Finsinger W, Gaillard M-J, Giesecke T & Gil-Romera G (2009) 'The European Pollen Database: past efforts and current activities' VEGETATION HISTORY AND ARCHAEOBOTANY 18, (5) 417-424 Author Site , DOI

von Stedingk H & Fyfe RM (2009) 'The use of pollen analysis to reveal Holocene treeline dynamics: a modelling approach' HOLOCENE 19, (2) 273-283 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe R (2009) 'Finding Time for the Old Stone Age: A History of Palaeolithic Archaeology and Quaternary Geology in Britain, 1860-1960' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 36, (2) 564-564 Author Site , DOI

Brostrom A, Nielsen AB, Gaillard M-J, Hjelle K, Mazier F, Binney H, Bunting M-J, Fyfe RM, Meltsov V & Poska A (2008) 'Pollen productivity estimates – the key to landscape reconstructions' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 17, (5) 461-478 , DOI

Fyfe RM, Brueck J, Johnston R, Lewis H, Roland TP & Wickstead H (2008) 'Historical context and chronology of Bronze Age land enclosure on Dartmoor, UK' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 35, (8) 2250-2261 Author Site , DOI

Fyfe R (2008) 'Inventing the indigenous: Local knowledge and natural history in early modern Europe' JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 35, (8) 2423-2423 Author Site , DOI

Gaillard M-J, Sugita S, Bunting MJ, Middleton R, Broström A, Caseldine C, Giesecke T, Hellman SEV, Hicks S & Hjelle K (2008) 'The use of modelling and simulation approach in reconstructing past landscapes from fossil pollen data: a review and results from the POLLANDCAL network' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 17, (5) 419-443 , DOI

von Stedingk H, Fyfe RM & Allard A (2008) 'Pollen productivity estimates from the forest-tundra ecotone in west-central Sweden: implications for vegetation reconstruction at the limits of the boreal forest' HOLOCENE 18, (2) 323-332 Author Site , DOI

Votier SC, Bearhop S, Fyfe RM & Furness RW (2008) 'Linking temporal and spatial variation in the diet of a marine top predator with commercial fisheries' Marine Ecology Progress Series 367, 223-232

Caseldine CJ, Fyfe RM & Hjelle K (2008) 'Pollen modelling, palaeoecology and archaeology – virtualisation and/or visualisation of the past?' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 17, 543-549

Votier SC, Bearhop S, Fyfe R & Furness RW (2008) 'Temporal and spatial variation in the diet of a marine top predator-links with commercial fisheries' MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES 367, 223-232 Author Site , DOI

Amesbury MJ, Charman DJ, Fyfe RM, Langdon PG & West S (2008) 'Bronze Age upland settlement decline in southwest England: testing the climate change hypothesis' Journal of Archaeological Science 35, (1) 87-98 , DOI

Caseldine C, Fyfe R, Langdon C & Thompson G (2007) 'Simulating the nature of vegetation communities at the opening of the Neolithic on Achill Island, Co. Mayo, Ireland - the potential role of models of pollen dispersal and deposition' Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 144, (3-4) 135-144

Fyfe R (2007) 'The importance of local-scale openness within regions dominated by closed woodland' Journal of Quaternary Science 22, (6) 571-578

Caseldine C & Fyfe R (2006) 'A modelling approach to locating and characterising elm decline/landnam landscapes' Quaternary Science Reviews 25 (5-6), 632-644 , DOI

Rippon SJ, Fyfe R & Brown AG (2006) 'Beyond villages and open fields: the origins and development of a historic landscape characterised by dispersed settlement in South West England' Medieval Archaeology 50, 31-70

Fyfe R (2006) 'GIS and the application of a model of pollen deposition and dispersal: a new approach to testing, landscape hypotheses using the POLLANDCAL models' Journal of Archaeological Science 33, (4) 483-493

Darvill T, Morgan Evans D, Wainwright G & Fyfe R (2006) 'Strumble-Preseli Ancient Communities and Environment Study (SPACES): fourth report 2005' Archaeology in Wales 45, 17-23

Fyfe R (2006) 'Sustainable conservation and management of the historic environment record in upland peat: a view from Exmoor' International Journal of Biodiversity Science and Management 2, 146-149

Fyfe RM, Brown AG & Rippon SJ (2004) 'Characterising the late prehistoric, 'Romano-British' and medieval landscape, and dating the emergence of a regionally distinct agricultural system in South West Britain' Journal of Archaeological Science 31 (12), 1699-1714 , DOI

Fyfe R, Brown AG & Coles B (2003) 'Mesolithic to Bronze Age vegetation change and human activity in the Exe Valley, Devon, UK' Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 69, 161-181

Fyfe RM, Brown AG & Rippon SJ (2003) 'Mid- to late-Holocene vegetation history of Greater Exmoor, UK: estimating the spatial extent of human-induced vegetation change' Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 12, (4) 215-232

Zapolska A, Serge MA, Mazier F, Quiquet A, Renssen H, Vrac M, Fyfe R & Roche D 'More than agriculture: analysing time-cumulative human impact on European land-cover of second half of the Holocene' Quaternary Science Reviews

Pearce EA, Mazier F, Normand S, Fyfe R, Andrieu V, Bakels C, Balwierz Z, Binka K, Boreham S & Borisova OK 'Substantial light woodland and open vegetation characterised the temperate forest biome before Homo sapiens' Science Advances

Chapters

Fyfe R (2023) 'Human Impact on Vegetation' Wiley 715-729 , DOI

Rippon S & Fyfe R (2019) 'Variation in the Continuity of Land-Use Patterns through the First Millennium AD in Lowland Britain' Environment and Society in the Long Late Antiquity BRILL 135-154 , DOI

Woodbridge J, Roberts N & Fyfe R (2019) 'Vegetation and Land-Use Change in Northern Europe during Late Antiquity: A Regional-Scale Pollen-Based Reconstruction' Environment and Society in the Long Late Antiquity BRILL 105-118 , DOI

Woodbridge-Fisher J, Fyfe R & Roberts CN (2018) 'VEGETATION AND LAND-USE CHANGE IN NORTHERN EUROPE DURING LATE ANTIQUITY: A REGIONAL-SCALE POLLEN-BASED RECONSTRUCTION' in Mulryan M Late Antique Archaeology Open access

Charman DJ, Dudley P, Fyfe RM, Gehrels M, Gehrels W, Hatton J, Perez M, Shepherd F & Tapper B (2016) 'Palaeoenvironmental analysis' in Charman DJ; Johns C; Camidge K; Marshall P; Mills S; Mulville J; Roberts HM; Stevens T The Lyonesse Project: a study of the historic coastal and marine environment of the Isles of Scilly 151-184

Charman DJ, Dudley P, Fyfe RM, Gehrels M, Gehrels W, Hatton J, Perez M, Shepherd F & Tapper B (2016) 'Sea-level change on the Isles of Scilly' in Charman DJ; Johns C; Camidge K; Marshall P; Mills S; Mulville J; Roberts HM; Stevens T The Lyonesse Project: a study of the historic coastal and marine environment of the Isles of Scilly Truro 185-194

Gearey B & Fyfe RM (2016) 'Peatlands as knowledge archives' in Bonn A; Allott T; Evans M; Joosten H; Stoneman R Peatland Restoration and Ecosystem Services Science, Policy and Practice Cambridge University Press 95-113

Fyfe RM, Blackford JJ, Hardimann M, Hazell Z, MacLeod A, Perez M & Littlewood S (2016) 'The environment of the Whitehorse Hill cist' in Jones AM Preserved in the Peat An Extraordinary Bronze Age Burial on Whitehorse Hill, Dartmoor, and Its Wider Context Oxford Oxbow Books 158-181

Fyfe RM & Perez M (2016) 'The pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs from the cist samples' in Jones AM Preserved in the Peat An Extraordinary Bronze Age Burial on Whitehorse Hill, Dartmoor, and Its Wider Context Oxford Oxbow Books 60-62

Fyfe RM, Bray L, Juleff G, Woodbridge J & Marshall P (2013) 'The environmental impact of Romano-British iron working on Exmoor' in Humpries J; Rehren T World of Iron London Archetype Publications 462-472

Fyfe R (2006) 'Palaeoenvironmental perspectives on medieval landscape development' Medieval Devon and Cornwall: shaping an ancient countryside Windgather Press, Macclesfield 10-23

Rippon SJ & Fyfe R (2004) 'A landscape in transition? Palaeoenvironmental evidence for the end of ‘Romano-British’ period in southwest England' in Collins R; Gerrard J Debating Late Antiquity in Britain, AD 300-700 British Archaeological Reports British Series 365, Oxford 33-42

Conference Papers

Fyfe RM, Roberts CN, Woodbridge J, Downey S, Edinborough K & Shennan S (2012) 'A pseudo-biomisation approach to anthropogenic land cover change' 13th International Palynological Congress Tokyo, Japan 8-/-0/20128-/-0/201264-64

Trondman AK, Gaillard MJ, Sugita S, Fyfe RM, Kaplan J, Marquer L, Mazier F, Poska A & Strandberg G (2012) 'Land cover-climate interactions in NW Europe, 6000 BP and 200 BP – first results of the Swedish LANDCLIM project' 13th International Palynological Congress Tokyo 8-/-0/20128-/-0/2012240-240

Fyfe RM, Twiddle C, Sugita S, Gaillard MJ & Data Contributors (2012) 'Quantification of past regional vegetation of Britain: a first attempt' 13th International Palynological Congress Tokyo 8-/-0/20128-/-0/201264-64

Marquer L, Gaillard MJ, Trondman AK, Nielsen AB, Mazier F, Fyfe RM, Odgaard B, Alenius T, Birks J & Bjune A (2012) 'REVEALS-based reconstruction of regional vegetation and land cover along climatically-sensitive transects in NW Europe: new insights into Holocene dynamics of plant-climate-human interactions' 13th International Palynological Congress Tokyo 8-/-0/20128-/-0/2012141-142

Lunt P, Blake W, Fyfe RM, Tappin A, Williams A, Bull J, Runnacles-Goodridge H, Hughes P, Caine S & Waldron F (2012) 'Assessment of rates of peat growth on Dartmoor, southwest England' British Ecological Society/International Union Nature Conservation UK Peatland Programme: Investing in peatlands – demonstrating success Bangor (UK) 6-/-0/20126-/-0/2012

Gearey B, Fyfe RM & van der Noort R (2012) 'Peatland restoration for safe-guarding knowledge archives' British Ecological Society/International Union Nature Conservation UK Peatland Programme: Investing in peatlands – demonstrating success Bangor (UK) 6-/-0/20126-/-0/2012

Perez M, Fyfe RM, Gehrels R & Charman D (2011) 'A paleoecological approach to understand the impact of coastal changes on past societies. Using the Isles of Scilly as a case study' All At Sea conference York (UK)

Gehrels R, Edwards R, Fyfe RM & Stokes K (2011) 'Constraints on late glacial relative sea level in western Ireland' All At Sea conference York (UK)

Perez M, Fyfe RM, Gehrels R & Charman D (2011) 'D'une approche paléoécologique à la compréhension de l'impact des changements côtiers sur les sociétés du passé. Utilisation des îles Scilly (Angleterre) comme étude de cas' HOMER 2011 Vannes (France)

Fyfe RM (2011) 'LiDAR and archaeological mapping in uplands' Society of Cartographers annual conference Plymouth (UK)

Mulville J, Charman D, Fyfe RM, Johns C, Roberts H & Mills S (2011) 'Recherches sur les variations de niveau marin dans les îles Scilly, Royame Uni' HOMER 2011 Vannes (France)

Other Publications

Fyfe R (2018) Britain: The pollen-eye view.

Rowney F, Fyfe R, Anderson P, Barnett R, Blake W, Daley T, Head K, MacLeod A, Matthews I & Smith D Data associated with 'Rowney et al. (2022). Ecological consequences of historic moorland ‘improvement’. Biodiversity and Conservation'. Open access

Woodbridge J & Fyfe R Research data supporting "What drives biodiversity patterns? Using long-term multi-disciplinary data to discern centennial-scale change" [dataset]. Open access

Rowney F, Fyfe R, Baker L, French H, Hall M, Ombashi H & Timms R Data associated with 'Rowney et al. (2023). Historical anthropogenic disturbances explain long-term moorland vegetation dynamics. Ecology and Evolution'. Open access

Conferences organised

Co-Chair (with Dr Caroline Clason) of Quaternary Research Association Annual Discussion Meeting on Data-model inter-comparison in Quaternary Science at Plymouth, 2018
Chair of Association for Environmental Archaeology Annual Conference on The Big Picture: Archaeology, Society and Environment at Plymouth, 2014
Convenor of Quantitative pollen-based reconstructions of plant cover for environmental and archaeological research session at the European Palaeobotany and Palynology Conference, Dublin, 2018
Convenor of Pollen-based Holocene land-cover reconstructions for climate modelling session at the XIV International Palynology Congress, Salvador (Brazil) 2016
Convenor of Land use and Land cover change over Holocene timescales session at the European Geosciences Union conference, Vienna (Austria) 2016
Convenor of Environmental consequences of the onset and development of agricultural societies session at the International Quaternary Union (INQUA) congress, Nagoya (Japan) 2015