Coast-proximal inland archaeology and the Vancouver Island marmot (Marmota vancouverensis)

Abstract

Recent archaeological research in coastal areas of British Columbia has focused on investigations of coastline sites and marine-based subsistence. This study differs in its investigation of the High Burrow Site (DhSh-2), a late Holocene coast-proximal inland camp at which terrestrial taxa comprised the majority of the faunal assemblage and Vancouver Island marmot (Marmota vancouverensis) was the most numerous taxon represented. Analysis of the marmot assemblage indicated that bone density mediated attrition influenced the relative abundance of skeletal elements more so than did the transport of marmot portions away from the site. The distribution of marmot bones at coastline sites supports this conclusion and may link changes in regional settlement patterning across south Vancouver Island with the decline of marmot hunting at High Burrow in the late prehistoric. This study thus draws our focus from coastlines upland to interior landscapes as vital components in the interpretation of prehistoric subsistence and settlement along the coast.