The Sclerochronology of Hard Clams,Mercenariaspp., from the South-Eastern U.S.A.: A Method of Elucidating the Zooarchaeological Records of Seasonal Resource Procurement and Seasonality in Prehistoric Shell Middens

Abstract

One of the most fundamental and complex issues facing coastal archaeologists is determining whether people were seasonal or year-round residents of the coastal realm. This question can be addressed through sclerochronological analysis of the skeletons of aquatic organisms. A method of characterizing the temporal pattern of annual growth increment formation in hard clam (Mercenariaspp.) shells is presented in this paper. Year-long collections of four hard clam populations at monthly intervals from Kings Bay, GA (N=451), Indian River, FL (N=1100), Cedar Key (Suwannee Reef), FL (N=259), and Charlotte Harbor, FL (N=399) were used to characterize seasonal patterns of shell growth, which in turn were used to assess the season of procurement in 52 zooarchaeological samples (N=4591) from the south-eastern Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. The zooarchaeological analysis shows that year-round occupation of the coast was a traditional way of life for at least 4000 years.