El Chorro Research Articles

Diverse and Dynamic Dietary Patterns in Early Colonial Cuba: New Insights from Multiple Isotope Analyses

The European conquest and colonization of the Caribbean precipitated massive changes in indigenous cultures and societies of the region. One of the earliest changes was the introduction of new plant and animal foods and culinary traditions. This study presents the first archaeological reconstruction of indigenous diets and foodways in the Caribbean spanning the historical divide of 1492. We use multiple isotope datasets to reconstruct these diets and investigate the potential relationships between dietary and mobility patterns at multiple scales. Dietary patterns are assessed by isotope analyses of different skeletal elements from the archaeological skeletal population of El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba. This approach integrates carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses of bone and dentine collagen with carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of bone and enamel apatite. The isotope results document extreme intrapopulation dietary heterogeneity but few systematic differences in diet between demographic/social groups. Comparisons with published isotope data from other precolonial and colonial period populations in the Caribbean indicate distinct dietary and subsistence practices at El Chorro de Maíta. The majority of the local population consumed more animal protein resources than other indigenous populations in the Caribbean, and their overall dietary patterns are more similar to colonial period enslaved populations than to indigenous ones.

Slavery of Indigenous People in the Caribbean: An Archaeological Perspective

European enslavement of Indigenous peoples in the Americas began in the Caribbean, quickly spreading to the rest of the continent and impacting the lives of millions. Despite its centrality to the creation of the colonial Caribbean, is still an understudied subject. This article summarizes the archaeological evidence on the topic and discusses the utility of the archaeological approach based on research conducted at the Cuban site of El Chorro de Maita. The analyses of diet and paleodemography indicate substantial changes when compared to precolonial Indigenous populations. Indicators of ethnic diversity and geographic origin, as well as the mortuary patterns and distribution of material culture help to identify the presence of slaves.

Evaluación del fitoplancton en el embalse Escaba (Tucumán – Argentina) para caracterizar la calidad de sus aguas

El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar las variaciones espacio-temporales del fitoplancton de la zona limnética del embalse Escaba y la desembocadura de sus tributarios: ríos Chavarría, Las Moras, El Chorro y Singuil, respecto a variables fisicoquímicas para caracterizar la calidad del agua durante 2010-2012. Se determinaron 135 taxones: Bacillariophyceae (77), Chlorophyta (40), Cyanophyta (12), Euglenophyta (5) y Dinophyta (1). La densidad algal varió de 84 a 6924 ind/ml y Ceratium hirundinella fue dominante excepto en primavera de 2011. La clorofila a tuvo un rango variable a nivel temporal y espacial fluctuando entre 6 y 2511 ?g/l, encontrándose mayores registros en los5afluentes. Los elevados valores de biomasa y la caracterización polisapróbica de sus aguas determinaron un estado ecológico deficiente o malo. La diversidad específica osciló entre 0-2,76. El modelo lineal generalizado detectó cambios en las abundancias de C. hirundinella entre las dos temporadas, sitios y meses acompañados por diferencias en algunas variables fisicoquímicas (amonio, OD y DBO5) Sólo se observó durante noviembre de 2011 una relación inversa entre la densidad del dinoflagelado con el amonio. Este trabajo aportó al conocimiento de la biodiversidad algal del embalse Escaba y amplió la distribución de C. hirundinella en la provincia de Tucumán.

Archaeology of Early Colonial Interaction at El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba

Archaeology of Early Colonial Interaction at El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba

Evolución estratigráfica de la cuenca Los Barriles, Baja California Sur, México

The Los Barriles basin, located north of the San José del Cabo basin, is part of the Gulf Extensional Province. It is a half graben bounded by the Los Barriles fault system on its western side. Our study confirms that this system is not part of the San José del Cabo fault but an independent structure. The basin fill includes three stratigraphic sequences: SE 1, SE 2, and SE 3. Los Barriles and Trinidad Formations constitute SE 1. The Los Barriles Formation is in contact with the marginal fault and on the eastern margin it rests unconformably upon the plutonic and meta- morphic basement. The unit is composed of conglomerate and sandstone formed in alluvial fans. The marine Trinidad Formation is composed of sandstone and mudstone. Both formations interfinger and constitute fan deltas without foresets, suggesting rapid subsidence along the Los Barriles fault. Calcareous nannofossils in SE 1 point toward an age in the nannofossil zone NN11 (Late Tortonian-Messinian). Thus, faulting and subsidence occurred since the late Miocene, indicating that the Los Barriles fault system is older than the San José del Cabo fault, which had been activated during the Pliocene. The Refugio Formation (SE 2) rests unconformably on the Trinidad Formation; it consists of fossiliferous sandstone and conglomerate originated in a shallow marine coastal set- ting. Laterally, it interfingers with younger portions of the Los Barriles Formation, forming a fan delta setting of probable Pliocene age. The El Chorro Formation unconformably covers all older units and, locally, even Los Barriles fault system. It comprises sandstone and conglomer- ate formed in an alluvial fan depositional environment. These deposits interfinger towards the present coastline with fossiliferous sandstone and conglomerate formed during the last interglacial period, representing SE 3.

Linaria becerrae (Plantaginaceae), a new endemic species from the southern Spain, and remarks on what Linaria salzmannii is and is not

A new species of the genus Linaria is described, illustrated and compared with its morphologically closest relatives from L. sect. Versicolores: L. salzmannii, L. viscosa and L. spartea. Furthermore, the identity of L. salzmannii, with which it has been usually misidentified, is discussed. The new species occurs on molasse substrates, forming part of communities of ephemeral annual herbs, in the province of Málaga (southern Spain), near the locality El Chorro. Synonymy is revised for the concerned names, and an identification key is reported for the Iberian taxa of L. sect. Versicolores.

Pottery Vessel Function and Foodways at El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba

Our approach assumes that pots are tools, containers whose performance characteristics are adjusted to their primary uses. Traditional agricultural peoples generally distinguish among multiple vessel shapes that have distinct intended uses. In this article, we present afunctional analysis of vessel shapes and sizes performed on a sample of 160 rim sherds from the site of El Chorro de Malta, Cuba. These were assigned to 13 defined vessel shapes, most of which displayed more than one size mode based on estimated orifice diameters. The majority of specimens from El Chorro de Malta are low-profile, composite-contour bowls made in medium and large size modes, followed in frequency by simple-contour bowls and plates. Late Ceramic Age peoples in the Greater Antilles are historically documented as participating in the manioc breadcake-cassareep- stewpot foodway common to much of the tropical lowlands of northern South America. Consequently, it should be possible to show how the container assemblage of El Chorro de Malta is adapted to the requirements of that foodway. We note that, ethnographically, the elaborate processing of bitter manioc itself to produce breadcakes as a staple food does not necessarily require pottery vessels at all. Nonetheless, common stewing as a key component of the foodway—including the production of the condiment called cassareep in the Guianas—can require several containers with potentially distinct performance requirements: one to collect the juice below the sleeve press, another to reduce the expressed juice to the thickened sauce over afire, and a third, the stewpot itself, adapted to simmering vegetable and meat stews. We provisionally suggest that some of the most common shape-size classes at El Chorro de Malta are suited to producing and serving stews and cassareep, the traditional complement to eating manioc breadcake.

Assessment of the physicochemical variables of a subtropical reservoir in the northwest of Argentina

AIM: The Escaba dam is located in the south of the Tucumán province, Argentina, at 650 m above sea level. It has an extension of 541 ha. and a depth of 65 m and its tributaries are the Chavarría, Las Moras, El Chorro and Singuil rivers. The climate is mild with dry winters and rainy summers. The objective of this study was to characterize physicochemical parameters in the limnetic zone of the dam and the mouths of the tributaries to determine the water quality. METHODS: Seasonal sampling was carried out between August 2010 and May 2012. Temperature, transparency, pH and electrical conductivity were field measured, whereas dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), major ion constituents and nitrogen and phosphate compounds were analyzed at the laboratory. RESULTS: The water was classified as sodium-calcium-bicarbonate with neutral to alkaline pH, and thermal stratification during spring and summer. The water assayed was well oxygenated except for the bottom of the limnetic zone during the summer months. Lowest transparency was measured in the El Chorro River in November 2011 (0.12 m) and highest degree of transparency in the Singuil River during the winter of 2010 (4.1 m). The waters assayed showed weak mineralization with conductivities between 83 and 218 µS.cm-1. Maximum BOD5 value (183 mg.L-1) was measured in the Singuil River in spring 2010. Highest values for the different nitrogen compounds were as follows: 7 mg NO3-.L-1 at the bottom of the limnetic zone in August 2010, 0.07 mg NO2-.L-1 in the Las Moras River in May 2011 and 1.8 mg NH4+.L-1 in the Chavarría River in March 2011. During the summer of 2012 orthophosphate reached a value of 0.22 mg.L-1 at the bottom of the limnetic zone. The TN/TP ratio revealed that phosphate was generally the limiting factor and rarely nitrogen. CONCLUSIONS: Considering the TN, TP and transparency parameters the ecosystem was classified as hypertrophic. PCA allowed a seasonal differentiation of the sites, and components 1 and 2 classified the samples according to nutrient gradient, dissolved oxygen, BOD5 and temperature.

Indo-Hispanic Dynamics: From Contact to Colonial Interaction in the Greater Antilles

Indo-Hispanic interaction is an essential issue in the colonial period in the Caribbean, but its study is currently marginalized as an offshoot of pre-Columbian archaeology. This state of affairs denies the indigenous contribution to the past and present ethnocultural composition of the region and privileges a colonial approach in scholarship. This paper reviews important aspects of the history of archaeological research on contact and colonial interaction in the Greater Antilles and its theoretical underpinnings. It also presents two recent archaeological case studies that show different facets of the interaction processes using new methodological approaches: El Cabo, Dominican Republic, with evidence of early contact, and El Chorro de Maita, Cuba, a context of interethnic interaction under colonial conditions.

OXYGEN AND CARBON ISOTOPE ANALYSIS OF HUMAN DENTAL ENAMEL FROM THE CARIBBEAN: IMPLICATIONS FOR INVESTIGATING INDIVIDUAL ORIGINS

This study explores the potential of carbon and oxygen isotope data from human enamel carbonate (n = 50) to contribute to mobility studies in the Caribbean. Most oxygen and carbon isotope results display limited variation, with substantial overlap between islands. However, a few individuals from El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba possess relatively low δ18O and high δ13C. Two of these individuals were previously identified as possible non-Antillean immigrants on the basis of strontium isotopes, and bioarchaeological and mortuary evidence. The carbon and oxygen isotope results provide additional evidence supporting the proposed non-local origins of these individuals and contribute to explorations of their potential natal origins.

Ichnological data as a useful tool for deep-sea environmental characterization: a brief overview and an application to recognition of small-scale oxygenation changes during the Cenomanian–Turonian anoxic event

The oceanic anoxic event at the Cenomanian–Turonian transition (OAE-2) is a worldwide phenomenon related with variations in atmosphere–ocean dynamics. This event coincides with significant changes in the palaeoenvironment determining marine mass extinction affecting numerous groups of organisms. Ichnological analysis of the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary interval has been conducted in three selected sections from different ecological and depositional settings in the western Tethys. Indeed, a brief overview of existing knowledge in this domain highlights increasing recognition of the usefulness of trace fossils in the characterization of even minor-scale deep-sea environmental changes linked to sea-level dynamics. At the study sites, variations in ichnological features, including trace fossil composition, tiering patterns and ichnofabrics, can be related to fluctuations in bottom- and pore-water oxygenation during the Cenomanian–Turonian interval. In the Barnasiowka section (Polish Outer Carpathians), changes between oxic/dysoxic—characterized by Chondrites, Planolites and even Thalassinoides—and euxinic conditions, without trace fossils or only with Chondrites, can be explained by variations in gravity flows influencing the benthic habitat. In the El Chorro and Hedionda sections (Betic Cordillera), longer anoxic intervals during the OAE-2, characterized by the absence of trace fossils, are interrupted by shorter dysaerobic and aerobic sub-events associated with Chondrites, Palaeophycus, Planolites, Thalassinoides, Trichichnus and Zoophycos, but showing significant differences between these two sections related to the palaeogeographically differentiated influence of upwelling conditions.

Nutrient spatial variation during intrabasinal upwelling at the Cenomanian–Turonian oceanic anoxic event in the westernmost Tethys: An ichnological and facies approach

Facies and ichnofabrics of two sections of the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary interval are correlated and compared to evaluate changes in palaeoceanographic conditions controlled by palaeogeography in the distal zone of the westernmost Tethys (southern Iberian continental palaeomargin). The oceanic anoxic event (OAE-2) was interrupted by short aerobic or dysaerobic sub-events with slight differences in facies and ichnofabrics. These sub-events display a tendency to expansion from the more distal section (Hedionda) towards the proximal one (El Chorro). The anoxia spread out from the open sea, probably from slope upwellings. Higher diversity and abundance of trace fossils in comparatively distal position during the pre- and post-event intervals can be caused by a higher abundance of food available for tracemakers. Shape of the correlation bands of the OAE-2 event suggests that the event started earlier by about a few tens of thousands years in the most distal areas than in proximal, slightly higher bottom settings.

El fisioterapeuta y la mano del escalador

Different kinds of grip used in sports climb are able to favour the appearance of different minor pathologies such as: soft tissue injuries, tendon injuries(at flexor muscles level overall), tenosynovitis, contracture, carpal tunnel syndrome. Other issues, as for example, rupture of pullies, ligament injuries, articular luxation or tendons rupture are generally caused by orthopaedics reasons. We have carried out a routine survey to a group of 97 climbers from different ages, and sports experience in order to establish what kind of pathologies are most frequent and set out in this way the possibility of establishing a protocol of proceedings. This form has been carried out by Climbers Association from Málaga and in El Torcal (Antequera), El Chorro and La Cala del Moral. We have taken into account the time (based on weekly hours) they dedicate to climb and the experience of sportsmen/women (number of years that climbers have been practising). Referred pathologies have been divided into six groups: soft tissue injuries, flexor tendon injuries, rupture of A2 pully, joints and ligaments injuries and nervous compression syndrome. Those cases in which we could detect after-effect (57 % presented deformity at some of the proximal interfalangeal joints level), they were explored individually to determine the typology, and to value the current conditions. In this study are relevant the great percentage of injuries by overload which climbers suffer, permanent after-effect and the non-existence of a detection and an early treatment of such injuries.

Metals, microanalysis and meaning: a study of metal objects excavated from the indigenous cemetery of El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba

This is the first publication reporting systematic analytical research conducted on archaeological metals from Cuba. The main focus of the study consists of beads and small metal objects excavated at the cemetery of El Chorro de Maíta, which comprises some of the richest funerary deposits so far recovered on the island. Some comparative samples from the nearby site of Alcalá were also investigated, with an emphasis made on the manufacture, composition and origins of the different alloys. The resulting picture is that members of the social elite of the indigenous Taíno peoples were buried with beads made of placer gold exploited locally, gold–copper–silver pendants brought from continental South America and, above all, brass lacetags from European clothing that were perceived as sacred metals. The archaeometallurgical approach offers fresh insight into the relationships between Europeans and Taínos, and the impact of colonization on the indigenous customs, values and social structures.

Toxicity of pyrethroids and repellency of diethyltoluamide in two deltamethrin-resistant colonies of Triatoma infestans Klug, 1834 (Hemiptera: Reduviidae)

The aim of the currrent investigation was to evaluate (a) the toxicity of three pyrethroids (deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, and tetramethrin); (b) the effect of these insecticides on the locomotor activity; and (c) the repellent effect of N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide (DEET) on two deltamethrin-resistant strains of Triatoma infestans from Argentina (El Chorro and La Toma), and one susceptible strain. The resistance ratios (RRs) obtained for the La Toma strain were: > 10,769, 50.7, and > 5.2 for deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, and tetramethrin respectively. The RRs for the El Chorro strain were: > 10,769, 85.8, and > 5.2 for deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, and tetramethrin respectively. The hyperactivity usually caused by the three pyrethroids was in both the deltamethrin-resistant strains compared to the susceptible reference strain. No differences were observed in the repellent effect of DEET between the three groups. These results indicate that the deltamethrin-resistant insects have a cross resistance to lambda-cyhalothrin and tetramethrin, and are also resistant to the first symptom of pyrethroid poisoning (hyperactivity). However, the sensorial process related to DEET repellency does not appear to be altered.

High Resistance to Pyrethroid Insecticides Associated with Ineffective Field Treatments inTriatoma infestans(Hemiptera: Reduviidae) from Northern Argentina

Field populations of Triatoma infestans Klug were collected during 2002 from four villages in northern Argentina (El Chorro, La Toma, El Sauzal, and Salvador Mazza), after application of deltamethrin and other pyrethroids was ineffective. High levels of resistance to the pyrethroid insecticides deltamethrin, beta-cypermethrin, beta-cyfluthrin, and lambda-cyhalothrin were detected in all of the evaluated populations. The resistance ratio to pyrethroids determined by topical application ranged from 50.5 (deltamethrin, El Sauzal) to 667.6 (beta-cyfluthrin, Salvador Mazza). None of the pyrethroid-resistant insects was resistant to the organophosphorus insecticide fenitrothion. Topical application of piperonyl butoxide to the most deltamethrin-resistant population (Salvador Mazza) led to slight reduction in levels of resistance. Activity of P450 monooxygenase, measured in individual insects through ethoxycoumarine-O-deethylase, showed a slight but noticeable difference in the distribution of activities between susceptible and resistant populations. The total percentage of insects below 0.48 pmol of 7-OH coumarine/min/ insect was 36.4 for Salvador Mazza population and 64.3 pmol of 7-OH coumarine/min/insect for CIPEIN strain. Whereas a low level of resistance to deltamethrin was previously related to monooxygenase activity in T. infestans, the high levels of resistance shown by these populations seem to involve monooxygenase in combination with other resistance mechanisms, for example, insensitivity of nervous membrane. Research on T. infestans resistance is in progress to improve Chagas vector control programs in Latin America and to implement resistance management strategies.

High Resistance to Pyrethroid Insecticides Associated with Ineffective Field Treatments in <I>Triatoma infestans</I> (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) from Northern Argentina

Field populations of Triatoma infestans Klug were collected during 2002 from four villages in northern Argentina (El Chorro, La Toma, El Sauzal, and Salvador Mazza), after application of deltamethrin and other pyrethroids was ineffective. High levels of resistance to the pyrethroid insecticides deltamethrin, beta-cypermethrin, beta-cyfluthrin, and lambda-cyhalothrin were detected in all of the evaluated populations. The resistance ratio to pyrethroids determined by topical application ranged from 50.5 (deltamethrin, El Sauzal) to 667.6 (beta-cyfluthrin, Salvador Mazza). None of the pyrethroid-resistant insects was resistant to the organophosphorus insecticide fenitrothion. Topical application of piperonyl butoxide to the most deltamethrin-resistant population (Salvador Mazza) led to slight reduction in levels of resistance. Activity of P450 monooxygenase, measured in individual insects through ethoxycoumarine-O-deethylase, showed a slight but noticeable difference in the distribution of activities between susceptible and resistant populations. The total percentage of insects below 0.48 pmol of 7-OH coumarine/min/ insect was 36.4 for Salvador Mazza population and 64.3 pmol of 7-OH coumarine/min/insect for CIPEIN strain. Whereas a low level of resistance to deltamethrin was previously related to monooxygenase activity in T. infestans, the high levels of resistance shown by these populations seem to involve monooxygenase in combination with other resistance mechanisms, for example, insensitivity of nervous membrane. Research on T. infestans resistance is in progress to improve Chagas vector control programs in Latin America and to implement resistance management strategies.

Tafoni in the El Chorro area, Andalucia, southern Spain

Tafoni in the El Chorro area, Andalucia, southern Spain

Tafoni in the El Chorro area, Andalucia, southern Spain

Using a combination of field, laboratory and micromorphological evidence, this study examines tafoni (singular, tafone) in the El Chorro area of Andalucia, southern Spain, and makes inferences concerning the processes responsible for their formation. Twenty-five tafoni were randomly selected for field examination. The morphology of these cavernous rock domes is characterized by a helmet-shaped outer roof and an arched-shaped cavern, often with a partially overhanging visor; measurements of height, width and depth of the caverns revealed marked variations in size. The presence or absence of lichen cover, surface varnish, overhanging visor, cavern backwall stripes, rock flaking, weathering pits and cavern floor sediments was also noted. Surface hardness values, obtained using a Schmidt hammer, are relatively low but significantly higher on the outer roof of the tafoni than on the inner cavern walls. Analysis of sediment samples collected from the cavern backwalls and floors indicates predominantly sandy textures, alkaline pH values and some base cation enrichment. Micromorphological analysis of thin sections, prepared from undisturbed blocks, reveals large quantities of pore-filling cement, consisting mainly of calcite, mineral grains affected by weathering and pseudomorphic replacement, and dark, rounded nodules with a metallic appearance. In terms of their formation, different processes appear to act on different parts of the landform. On the outer roof surfaces, case hardening, resulting from near-surface cementation and surface varnish development, is dominant. On the inner cavern surfaces, however, core softening, resulting from granular disintegration and flaking, dominates. Exfoliation weathering, running water and wind deflation also appear to play an important role in tafone formation. A phased model of tafone evolution is proposed whereby the features pass through four phases of development–initiation, enlargement, amalgamation and degradation; in the study area there are examples of tafoni in each of these phases. Much of the evidence suggests that the tafoni are actively developing under current environmental conditions. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Fundacion John Boulton

The Fundación John Boulton was established in 1950 as a privately funded institution sponsored by the Casas Boulton of Caracas, Valencia, and Maracaibo. For many years, the Fundación functioned in the Villa Espalmador in El Paraíso, but it has recently moved to new quarters in Torre El Chorro, Avenida Universidad, in the center of Caracas. Founded to facilitate research on the history and culture of Venezuela, the Fundación has assembled a strong collection covering the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Moreover, the collection is constantly being augmented by purchases, exchanges, and donations of additional material. The material available in the Fundación is found in the library, in the various archives, and in two museums.