Hunter-gatherer home ranges in arid environments: exploring some of the differences and similarities

Summary

Deserts have traditionally been considered marginal environments, because survival depends on several factors. Some researchers have pointed to the importance of water for hunter-gatherers living in these environments, as well as the increased knowledge of the environment they lived in, and its resources, as well as the awareness and knowledge of neighbors on whom to call in lean times or with whom to interact and exchange partners and the knowledge of resources.

Here we present two cases from two South American cold deserts —Patagonia and Puna, located at distances greater than 150 km from the coast and where evidence analyzed corresponds to the "effective human occupation" of the space, i.e. a moment when all desirable spaces were occupied, with the presence of neighbors. Aside from the difference in latitude, altitude varies between both deserts: Patagonia lies at lower elevations than the Puna. Within an ecological framework, we use raw material and plant provenance to evaluate home ranges, as well as the use of distant resources, including those of marine origin, to discuss interactions with groups located in other ecological regions. Reasons for similarities and differences found are analyzed and discussed.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 15676