PALEOENVIRONMENTAL AND SUBSISTENCE RECONSTRUCTIONS FOR CURECANTI NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, COLORADO

Summary

Curecanti National Recreation Area is located west of Gunnison in

central Colorado, along the Gunnison River. Archaeological investigations

within the Curecanti National Recreation Area have produced both pollen and

macrofloral samples for analysis from several sites over a period of years.

These studies have addressed both questions of subsistence and paleoenvironment,

based on interpretation of these data. This study concerns itself

with the interpretation of data from pollen and macrofloral samples collected

at sites SGN41 and SGN42, and the synthesis of previous data reported

from pollen and macrofloral samples associated with Curecanti. In addition,

paleoenvironmental data were collected via pollen analysis of soil cores

from two springs outside the Curecanti National Recreation Area. Spring

deposits were expected to yield better conditions for preservation of the

pollen and a more consistent, gradual deposition history than the soils

either on-site or immediately off-site. Reconstruction of the paleoenvironment

for the Curecanti area utilizes pollen data obtained from the springs,

as well as on-site stratigraphic pollen records.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• PaleoResearch Institute

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