Despotism and Territorial Behavior: Low Population Density Foragers and Territorial Maintenance

Summary

Habitat distribution theory has been applied to a variety of archaeological research programs. The success of the framework has been largely demonstrated through the use of the ideal free distribution (IFD) model to elucidate the nature of colonization and settlement of insular environments. However, territorial maintenance, especially in the face of resource competition, may require the occupation of less suitable habitats as a means of controlling access to resources and land. This paper focuses on the less utilized ideal despotic distribution (IDD) model and the role of territorial maintenance among low population density groups. I present a model of territorial establishment and maintenance for the Tubatulabal of the far southern Sierra Nevada that posits an IDD strategy is best suited for territorial maintenance among low population density foragers. Recent archaeological investigations aimed at testing the model suggest that a shift from an IFD to an IDD strategy in the region began when the Tubatulabal were circumscribed by larger population density groups ca. 1500 BP.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Territorial Behavior and Ecology   •
• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16436