Human Subsistence Strategies Research Articles

Stable Isotopic Detection of Manual Intervention Among the Faunal Assemblage from a Majiayao Site in NW China

AbstractFaunal remains from Shannashuzha in Minxian County, Gansu Province, China were isotopically analyzed to understand animal husbandry, and thus human subsistence strategy, during the Majiayao culture (5200–4800 cal yr BP) period. Stable carbon isotopic results reveal that only two pig samples clearly show a C4-dominated diet with a mean δ13C value of –8.5‰, which possibly indicated controlled feeding practices by human beings. No other significant manual intervention can be observed among the remaining samples, suggesting that both wild and domesticated meat sources were used at Shannashuzha. Statistically, Bos are indistinguishable from Cervidae based solely on isotopic results, suggesting that Bos may have remained in wild form during the Majiayao culture period. The presence of hare/rabbit, bamboo rat, and badger reflects the diversified food exploitation behavior.

Late ninth millennium B.P. use of Zea mays L. at Cubilán area, highland Ecuador, revealed by ancient starches

Today, maize is acknowledged as a plant with a great culinary and industrial versatility. It also has a deep relationship with the native cultures of the Americas and is still a vital food source for hundreds millions of people worldwide. By means of starch grain extraction from ancient lithic artifacts used more than 8000 years ago, here we report what is so far the oldest documented occurrence of maize in highland South America. This study places maize, together with other important economic plants, in the southern Ecuadorian Andes during a period coinciding with the initial stage of maize diversification and long distance expansion after its domestication in southwestern Mexico. These results allow us to unravel an early episode of human innovation previously unknown for South America which is related to the first steps toward the full re-shaping of human subsistence strategies in the continent.

Human maritime subsistence strategies in the Lesser Sunda Islands during the terminal Pleistocene–early Holocene: New evidence from Alor, Indonesia

The islands of Wallacea are remarkable on a world scale as settlement occurred by at least 43,000 cal BP and must have involved the use of watercraft. The majority of the islands are depauperate in terrestrial fauna and human subsistence must have focused on the marine environment. Although few islands have been archaeologically explored, some such as Timor have yielded abundant remains of pelagic and reef fishes, as well as the earliest evidence of fishhook manufacture, demonstrating that modern humans in this region were well equipped to undertake complex exploitation of the marine environment. However, a holistic understanding of human subsistence strategies on these islands from initial colonisation in the late Pleistocene through to the Recent remains elusive. Here, we present survey and excavation data from the site of Tron Bon Lei on the small island of Alor in Nusa Tenggara Timur, Indonesia. This study focuses on the terminal Pleistocene – early Holocene human fishing behaviour in the region, and specifically the zooarchaeological sequence from Tron Bon Lei dated to this period. The Holocene preference for reef fish relative to pelagic fish, observed in mid-to late Holocene occupation levels in East Timor, occurred earlier in Tron Bon Lei, suggesting a shift from the larger abundance of carnivore taxa observed in the late Pleistocene deposits. Comparisons with other archaeological deposits in Wallacea indicates that fishing was an important subsistence activity in Nusa Tenggara Timur, unlike more northern Wallacean islands where shellfish make up almost all zooarchaeological records. Tron Bon Lei confirms that the faunally limited nature of Alor spans the Holocene, and we find no evidence that terrestrial fauna made up a significant component of the subsistence activities undertaken at this site.

Lakeside View: Sociocultural Responses to Changing Water Levels of Lake Turkana, Kenya

Throughout the Holocene, Lake Turkana has been subject to drastic changes in lake levels and the subsistence strategies people employ to survive in this hot and arid region. In this paper, we reconstruct the position of the lake during the Holocene within a paleoclimatic context. Atmospheric forcing mechanisms are discussed in order to contextualize the broader landscape changes occurring in eastern Africa over the last 12,000 years. The Holocene is divided into five primary phases according to changes in the strand-plain evolution, paleoclimate, and human subsistence strategies practiced within the basin. Early Holocene fishing settlements occurred adjacent to high and relatively stable lake levels. A period of high-magnitude oscillations in lake levels ensued after 9,000 years BP and human settlements appear to have been located close to the margins of the lake. Aridification and a final regression in lake levels ensued after 5,000 years BP and human communities were generalized pastoralists-fishers-foragers. During the Late Holocene, lake levels may have dropped below their present position and subsistence strategies appear to have been flexible and occasionally specialized on animal pastoralism. Modern missionary and government outposts have encouraged the construction of permanent settlements in the region, which are heavily dependent on outside resources for their survival. Changes in the physical and cultural environments of the Lake Turkana region have been closely correlated, and understanding the relationship between the two variables remains a vital component of archaeological research.

Late Quaternary Sea-Level Changes and the Palaeohistory of Palawan Island, Philippines

ABSTRACTPalaeogeographic reconstructions of Palawan Island using Geographic Information Systems based on present-day bathymetry show extensive changes in land area with respect to sea-level fluctuations during the Late Quaternary. Our analysis shows that a lowering of at least 135 meters from present-day levels is needed in order to expose a narrow land connection between Palawan and Sundaland. This most likely last occurred during OIS 12 (ca. 440 Ka) and probably OIS 16 (ca. 630 Ka), facilitating overland colonization between the two islands. The reconstructions further illustrate the extent of land exposed, which was likely covered by open savannah vegetation during the LGP and inhabited by several large mammal species now extinct on the island. Sea-level rise at the end of the Pleistocene caused the inundation of shallow shelves of Palawan, and this, accompanied by a conversion to closed rainforest environments, was probably responsible for the disappearance of most of the large mammal fauna of Palawan. Coastline reconstructions demonstrate that the appearance of mid-Holocene shell middens in the Philippine archaeological record is due to the formation and proximity of mangrove forests during sea-level high-stand, rather than a consequence of changes in human subsistence strategies.

Palaeodiet reconstruction in a woman with probable celiac disease: A stable isotope analysis of bone remains from the archaeological site of Cosa (Italy)

Stable isotope analysis in the reconstruction of human palaeodiets can yield clues to early human subsistence strategies, origins and history of farming and pastoralist societies, and intra- and intergroup social differentiation. In the last 10 years, the method has been extended to the pathological investigation. Stable isotope analysis to better understand a diet-related disease: celiac disease in ancient human bones was carried out. To do this, we analyzed the nitrogen and carbon isotopic composition of human (n = 37) and faunal (n = 8) bone remains from the archaeological site of Cosa at Ansedonia, on the Tyrrhenian coast near Orbetello (Tuscany), including the skeletal remains of a young woman (late 1st century-early 2nd century Common Era [CE]) with morphological and genetic features suggestive of celiac disease. We compared the young woman's isotopic data with those of other individuals recovered at the same site but from two later time periods (6th century CE; 11-12th century CE) and with literature data from other Italian archaeological sites dating to the same period. Her collagen δ(13) C and δ(15) N values differed from those of the samples at the same site, and from most but not all of the contemporary sites. Although the woman's diet appears distinct, chronic malnutrition resulting from severe malabsorption of essential nutrients due to celiac disease may have affected the isotopic composition of her bone collagen.

The global diversity of eating patterns: Human nutritional health in comparative perspective

This paper draws on comparative data to explore the evolutionary origins of human nutritional needs and the diverse strategies used by human populations to meet those needs. Humans have evolved distinctive nutritional characteristics associated with the high metabolic costs of our large brains. The evolution of larger hominid brain size necessitated the development of foraging strategies that both provided high quality foods, and required larger ranges and higher levels of energy expenditure. Over time, human subsistence strategies have become ever more efficient in obtaining energy with minimal time and effort. Compared to data from traditional, subsistence-level societies, the US diet differs markedly in its fat and carbohydrate composition, but not in its absolute energy content. Energy expenditure levels of subsistence populations are significantly higher than those of the US and other industrialized societies. These data suggest that rising rates of obesity associated with lifestyle ‘modernization’ is not simply the product of greater energy intakes, but rather shifts energy balance and diet composition.

Nutritional values of tortoises relative to ungulates from the Middle Stone Age levels at Blombos Cave, South Africa: Implications for foraging and social behaviour

The site of Blombos Cave (BBC), Western Cape, South Africa has been a strong contributor to establishing the antiquity of important aspects of modern human behaviour, such as early symbolism and technological complexity. However, many linkages between Middle Stone Age (MSA) behaviour and the subsistence record remain to be investigated. Understanding the contribution of small fauna such as tortoises to the human diet is necessary for identifying shifts in overall foraging strategies as well as the collecting and processing behaviour of individuals unable to participate in large-game hunting. This study uses published data to estimate the number of calories present in tortoises as well as ungulates of different body size classes common at South African sites. A single tortoise (Chersina angulata) provides approximately 3332 kJ (796 kcal) of calories in its edible tissues, which is between 20 and 30% of the daily energetic requirements for an active adult (estimated between 9360 kJ [3327 kcal] and 14,580 kJ [3485 kcal] per day). Because they are easy to process, this would have made tortoises a highly-ranked resource, but their slow growth and reproduction makes them susceptible to over-exploitation. Zooarchaeological abundance data show that during the ca. 75 ka (thousands of years) upper Still Bay M1 phase at BBC, tortoises contributed twice as many calories to the diet relative to ungulates than they did during the ca. 100 ka lower M3 phase. However, in spite of the abundance of their fossils, their absolute caloric contribution relative to ungulates remained modest in both phases. At the end of the site's MSA occupation history, human subsistence strategies shifted to emphasise high-return large hunted mammals, which likely precipitated changes in the social roles of hunters and gatherers during the Still Bay.

A Comparative Study of 14C Dating on Charcoal and Charred Seeds from Late Neolithic and Bronze Age Sites in Gansu and Qinghai Provinces, NW China

The chronology of the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures in Gansu and Qinghai provinces, northwest China, is mainly based on conventional radiocarbon dates from unidentified charcoal, which may be inaccurate in view of the possible “old wood” problem of 14C dating. To discuss the reliability of the chronology of those prehistoric cultures, accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dates of short-lived charred seeds were compared to conventional 14C dates of unidentified charcoal from the same flotation samples in 15 Late Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in the area. The results show that 14C dates of unidentified charcoal are obviously older than those of charred seeds in 5 of the 15 flotation samples. This work suggests that the old-wood problem of 14C dating might be related to human subsistence strategies and local vegetation variation during different prehistoric cultural periods in Gansu and Qinghai provinces, which should be discussed before establishing the chronology of Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures in the area.

Exploring Human Subsistence Strategies and Environmental Change through Stable Isotopes in the Dry Puna of Argentina

ABSTRACTThis article explores the feeding and territorial behaviour of the wild camelids – guanacos and vicuñas – consumed by the inhabitants of the Dry Puna during the Early and Mid‐Holocene, as a way to deal with the strategies for resource exploitation employed by these human groups. We present 38 stable isotope values (δ13C and δ15N) generated from bone collagen extracted from the faunal remains obtained from the Hornillos 2 archaeological site (Susques, Jujuy Province, Argentina). These bone assemblages were recovered from nine layers that comprise human occupations corresponding to both periods (from 9710 to 6130 years bp). These data will be discussed considering ecological and ethological information about wild camelids, especially regarding territorial behaviour and dietary selectiveness of vicuñas and guanacos that currently inhabit the Puna. Finally, the trends and patterns identified in these isotopic evidences will be analysed in the light of the environmental and cultural changes that took place during the mentioned chronological span.Our results show no significant differences between camelid species, implying that δ13C and δ15N values of bone collagen constitute a poor taxonomical indicator, dismissing the possibility to identify the early incidence of human intervention in animal diet as an initial step to deal with the problem of domestication. In chronological terms, the δ15N results from Early and Mid‐Holocene show certain differences that can be linked to the preponderance of arid conditions during the latter. This underscores the usefulness of this line of evidence when evaluating environmental changes. On the other hand, the δ13C values show no substantial differences, meaning that carbon isotopic composition of bone collagen in mixed C3–C4 systems is not a reliable paleoenvironmental proxy. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Human subsistence strategy at Liuzhuang site, Henan, China during the proto-Shang culture (∼2000–1600 BC) by stable isotopic analysis

Since the discovery of the proto-Shang culture, created mostly by ancestors of the Shang clan from the late Neolithic Age to the early Shang period (∼2000–1600 BC), the subsistence strategy and lifestyle of humans in China during their movement southwards have been a great focus. Chinese literature and archaeological findings suggest that the proto-Shang societies were composed of different cultural groups and had various subsistence strategies. For example, at the Liuzhuang site, three types of burials, i.e., stone coffin, wooden coffin and earthen shaft-pit, are found. The wooden coffin and earthen shaft-pit burials had been adopted locally in the Central Plains since the Neolithic Age while the stone coffin burials were usually used by people living in Northeast China and had never been found in the Central Plains before. In this study, stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic analyses were performed on human bones from the Liuzhuang site and animal bones from Zhangdeng site in Henan province, China to determine whether different social groups had various accesses to food resources and whether their dietary difference was related to inequality in social status. Humans have mean δ13C and δ15N values of −7.6 ± 0.6‰ and 9.6 ± 1.0‰ (n = 19) respectively, which strongly indicates that humans rely primarily on C4-based food. The main contribution of C4-based food in their diet is from millet agriculture or animals that consume millet by-products. The isotopic spacing of carbon and nitrogen isotopic values between pigs and humans, between dogs and humans, and between cattle and humans, all imply that these animals were the main meat resources for humans. Surprisingly, the δ13C values and δ15N values of humans with different types of burials are quite close, indicating that they had equal access to food resources. This result suggests that the proto-Shang humans had adapted to the local subsistence strategy, and the local cultural factors in the Central Plains were very well integrated into proto-Shang culture.

Reconstructing Human Subsistence Strategies During the Korean Neolithic: Contributions from Zooarchaeology, Geosciences, and Radiocarbon Dating

The Neolithic in Korea began around 10,000 BP and is the period when many substantial changes appear in the archaeological record. In particular, one of the important changes is from a subsistence strategy that relied primarily on hunted, fished, and collected food packages to a diet that by the beginning of the Bronze Age (∼3500 BP) saw intensive agriculture as the primary form of sustenance. This paper discusses current research on this topic, in addition to presenting a comprehensive list of raw accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) data from Korean Neolithic sites, particularly data that only became available over the past several years.

Small and large game: Human use of diverse faunal resources at Level IV of Bolomor Cave (Valencia, Spain)

Within the framework of nutritional ecology, subsistence diversification is achieved by adding different species to a diet, but explanations for this diversification vary. In the Broad Spectrum Revolution approach, explanations include demographic, ecological, nutritional and technological factors, as well as the mobility of hunter-gatherer groups. The origin of small animal assemblages is a key issue underlying this debate, as these were an important food resource for several non-human predators (diurnal and nocturnal birds of prey and terrestrial carnivores). To establish the genesis of these accumulations, it is important to analyse the anatomical and age profiles of the animals, the bone breakage patterns and the bone surface modifications. With this aim, we present data from the Level IV faunal assemblage of Bolomor Cave (Valencia, Spain). Level IV, corresponding to MIS 5e, shows human use not only of small animals but also of large- and small-sized carnivores in addition to ungulates. Anthropogenic evidence includes cut-marks, intentional bone breakage, burning patterns and human tooth-marks. The utilisation of other less frequent animals could be related to a generalist human behaviour based on the exploitation of a broad range of prey, and could also be associated with an early diversification of the human diet in this locality. This study aims to provide data concerning human consumption of small prey, to establish the processing sequence both of large/medium and small animals and to contribute to the knowledge of human subsistence strategies in the European Middle Palaeolithic.

Tracking changes in bone fracture morphology over time: environment, taphonomy, and the archaeological record

Zooarchaeologists have often employed studies of bone fracture morphology as a means of understanding past human cultural activity, and various methodological approaches have been developed for analyzing archaeological broken bone assemblages. It is widely understood that bones degrade over time, however, few studies have attempted to define and quantify the rate at which bones degrade and fracture morphologies change. This study examines degradation in frozen bones (−20 °C) and bones exposed to hot (40 °C) dry conditions. These two simulated environmental conditions represent extreme real-world climates, and allow for an actualistic understanding of the rates of degradation that bones experience in nature. When frozen, bones degrade slowly but significantly, and demonstrate measurable differences in samples frozen for 1, 10, 20, 40, and 60 weeks. In hot, dry conditions, bones degrade very quickly, and demonstrate measurable differences after 1, 3, 7, 14, and 21 days. These data allow for a more detailed understanding of the relationship between the cultural and natural processes that result in bone fracture, and the time period during which bones can be expected to maintain fresh fracture characteristics. This research also has implications for understanding human subsistence and survival strategies and for interpreting the archaeological record.

Size Counts: Evolutionary Perspectives on Physical Activity and Body Size From Early Hominids to Modern Humans

This paper examines the evolutionary origins of human dietary and activity patterns, and their implications for understanding modern health problems. Humans have evolved distinctive nutritional characteristics associated the high metabolic costs of our large brains. The evolution of larger hominid brain size necessitated the adoption of foraging strategies that both provided high quality foods, and required larger ranges and activity budgets. Over time, human subsistence strategies have become ever more efficient in obtaining energy with minimal time and effort. Today, populations of the industrialized world live in environments characterized by low levels of energy expenditure and abundant food supplies contributing to growing rates of obesity. Analyses of trends in dietary intake and body weight in the US over the last 50 years indicate that the dramatic rise in obesity cannot be explained solely by increased energy consumption. Rather, declines in activity are also important. Further, we find that recent recommendations on physical activity have the potential to bring daily energy expenditure levels of industrialized societies surprisingly close to those observed among subsistence-level populations. These findings highlight the importance of physical activity in promoting nutritional health and show the utility of evolutionary approaches for developing public health recommendations.

Distinguishing species of geoemydid and trionychid turtles from shell fragments: evidence from the Pleistocene at Niah Caves, Sarawak

AbstractFragments of chelonian carapace and plastral dermal plates are well‐represented from archaeological sites in the world's dry and wet tropics. However, although these bones are easily identified at an element level, few archaeological reports have explored the potential of using features of form and surface sculpturing as a way to refine that identification to genus or species. The ability to achieve such a refinement would benefit environmental and human subsistence strategy models alike. The objective of the current paper was to isolate recurrent and readily visible surface characteristics on the dermal plates from a selection of commonly occurring Southeast Asian hard‐ and soft‐shelled turtles. Using these criteria, analysis is made of the chelonian assemblage from pre‐ and post‐Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) cultural deposits in the West Mouth of Niah Cave. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

YANKOVSKY ECONOMICS: ANIMAL BONES FROM 1ST MILLENNIUM BC SETTLEMENTS IN PRIMORYE, RUSSIAN FAR EAST

New findings bearing on hunting and animal breeding practiced by the Iron Age people of the Yankovsky culture (Primorye, 8th–3rd centuries BC) are analyzed. The mammalian faunas from two sites, Peschany-1 and Zaisanovka-2, are compared. These two sites are contemporaneous but in different environments. The analysis of the unusual stratigraphy of these sites allowed the separation of annual deposits reflecting human subsistence strategies. Seasonality and settlement are reconstructed, and the role of hunting and animal husbandry is evaluated.

A brackish water aquatic foodweb: trophic levels and salinity gradients in the Schlei fjord, Northern Germany, in Viking and medieval times

This study serves for the definition of baseline isotopic signatures of vertebrates living in the Schlei fjord, a brackish water inlet in the north German plain, where the salinity decreases from its mouth at the Baltic Sea towards the inland locations. The Viking trade centre Haithabu and its immediate successor, the town of Schleswig, are located at opposite banks of the Schlei and constitute a settlement continuum from the 9th until the 13th century. This development not only includes a relocation of the settlement site, but also a change in economy and social structure, and witnesses the metamorphosis from an international trading locality to the rise and decline of a prototypical medieval town with town charter. In this paper, stable isotope ratios of bone collagen and bone structural carbonate of 141 vertebrate bone finds mainly of fish, birds, and sea mammals from both sites are reported to provide the baseline food web in this brackish water environment, which is the prerequisite for our ongoing studies aiming at the reconstruction of human subsistence strategies as well as the geographic origin of humans, animals, food stuffs, and raw materials in order to complete the historical picture of emerging medieval towns in a complex palaeoecosystem. In particular, we are able to show how a combination of stable isotopes from bone collagen and carbonate is capable of defining the salinity gradients in the aquatic environment.

Mid- to late-Holocene vegetation dynamics on the Laikipia Plateau, Kenya

Interactions between Holocene environmental changes and human subsistence strategies in semiarid parts of eastern Africa are relatively poorly understood because of a paucity of sites where contemporaneous archaeological and palaeoenvironmental records are preserved. This paper presents new AMS 14C-dated palaeoenvironmental evidence of midto late-Holocene vegetation changes, in the form of pollen, charcoal, mineralogical and δ13Cbulk data, from a floodplain location on the Laikipia Plateau, Kenya, and in the context of information on modern plant-environment relationships, existing and new archaeological and historical data, and published palaeoclimatic records. Although relatively poorly resolved, the evidence indicates more wooded and relatively humid conditions compared with the present from before c. 6600 BP to c. 1900 BP. Evidence for vegetation changes over the last two millennia is more finely resolved and indicates increased burning and the expansion of fire-modified Acacia bushland c. 1900 BP and grassland c. 1700 BP. Burning to improve and extend pasture, and possibly to eradicate diseaseprone habitats, may have been facilitated by prolonged periods of moisture deficits that might also have facilitated the spread of food production technologies. Vegetation changes c. 700 BP are associated with evidence for the occurrence of fires locally and could represent the activities of people and their animals close to the study site.

Identification of Mule Deer (Odocoileus Hemionus) and White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) Postcranial Remains as a Means of Determining Human Subsistence Strategies

Mule deer (O. hemionus) and white-tailed deer (O. virginianus) were widely utilized resources in the Plains during prehistoric times. The two species overlap in geographic space over a large portion of west central North America yet utilize different habitat within that region. Unfortunately, in the past there have been no reliable methods to differentiate between the species through use of postcranial skeletal material. In this paper a wide variety of mule deer and white-tailed deer limb bones are examined. Distinguishingmorphological and metrical characteristics useful for the identification of archaeological material are presented.