Artiodactyl Exploitation in Northeastern California during the Terminal Prehistoric/Protohistoric Time Periods: Evidence of Environmental Rebound?

Summary

Artiodactyl representation in the archaeological record can be a particularly sensitive indicator of past human-environmental interactions due to their status as a high-ranking prey item. In this study we explore terminal prehistoric and protohistoric patterning of artiodactyl exploitation in the archaeofaunal record in Northeastern California. Specifically, this study examines previously published zooarchaeological data derived from residential sites situated along the Pit River in conjunction with new data derived from the faunal analysis of the Lorenzen site (CA-MOD-250), a residential village occupation located north of the Pit River drainage in Little Hot Springs Valley, California. The examination and comparison of artiodactyl exploitation during this time period and in these nearby localities provides some evidence for environmental rebound within the region. Additionally, this study explores factors that might influence both temporal and spatial variation in this phenomenon as a whole.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)   •
• Environmental Rebound in the Protohistoric Americas: Untangling Cause and Effect

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 14679