Investigating Plant Management in the Monte Castelo (Rondônia- Brazil) and Tucumã (Pará-Brazil) Shell Mound Using Phytoliths Analysis

Shell mound or sambaqui, as commonly named in Brazil, are anthropic intentional mound constructions made by complex hunter-gatherer fishing communities. Typically distributed along shorelines and inland regions of Brazil, these sites are arguably one of the earliest evidence of human presence in South America, with dates ranging from 910-660 to 10,179-9,708 cal. yr. B.P. As archaeobotanical investigations reported the presence of various plant resources in these sites, a debate that has received much attention in recent years is regarding the scale of which the shell mound builders managed these resources. The Monte Castelo (9,495-9,137 cal. yr. B.P - state of Rondônia) and the Tucumã shell mound (4,425-4245 cal. yr. B.P. - state of Pará) will be the case studies of this research. The aim of this thesis is to use phytolith data from archaeological contexts in order to evaluate and discern the extent to which these mound builders managed plant resources. The outcome of this study provides novel evidence revealing the management and consumption of wild and domesticated plants through the mid-Holocene. The data calls for an evaluation on the potential scale of horticulture practices by Amazonian shell mound builders as well as the relative contribution of each domesticated resources to the indigenous diet

Evidence for mid-Holocene rice domestication in the Americas

The development of agriculture is one of humankind’s most pivotal achievements. Questions about plant domestication and the origins of agriculture have engaged scholars for well over a century, with implications for understanding its legacy on global subsistence strategies, plant distribution, population health and the global methane budget. Rice is one of the most important crops to be domesticated globally, with both Asia (Oryza sativa L.) and Africa (Oryza glaberrima Steud.) discussed as primary centres of domestication. However, until now the pre-Columbian domestication of rice in the Americas has not been documented. Here we document the domestication of Oryza sp. wild rice by the mid-Holocene residents of the Monte Castelo shell mound starting at approximately 4,000 cal. yr BP, evidenced by increasingly larger rice husk phytoliths. Our data provide evidence for the domestication of wild rice in a region of the Amazon that was also probably the cradle of domestication of other major crops such as cassava (Manihot esculenta), peanut (Arachis hypogaea) and chilli pepper (Capsicum sp.). These results underline the role of wetlands as prime habitats for plant domestication worldwide

Legacies of Indigenous land use and cultural burning in the Bolivian Amazon rainforest ecotone

The southwestern Amazon Rainforest Ecotone (ARE) is the transitional landscape between the tropical forest and seasonally flooded savannahs of the Bolivian Llanos de Moxos. These heterogeneous landscapes harbour high levels of biodiversity and some of the earliest records of human occupation and plant domestication in Amazonia. While persistent Indigenous legacies have been demonstrated elsewhere in the Amazon, it is unclear how past human–environment interactions may have shaped vegetation composition and structure in the ARE. Here, we examine 6000 years of archaeological and palaeoecological data from Laguna Versalles (LV), Bolivia. LV was dominated by stable rainforest vegetation throughout the Holocene. Maize cultivation and cultural burning are present after ca 5700 cal yr BP. Polyculture cultivation of maize, manioc and leren after ca 3400 cal yr BP predates the formation of Amazonian Dark/Brown Earth (ADE/ABE) soils (approx. 2400 cal yr BP). ADE/ABE formation is associated with agroforestry indicated by increased edible palms, including Mauritia flexuosa and Attalea sp., and record levels of burning, suggesting that fire played an important role in agroforestry practices. The frequent use of fire altered ADE/ABD forest composition and structure by controlling ignitions, decreasing fuel loads and increasing the abundance of plants preferred by humans. Cultural burning and polyculture agroforestry provided a stable subsistence strategy that persisted despite pronounced climate change and cultural transformations and has an enduring legacy in ADE/ABE forests in the ARE

An?lise ictioarqueol?gica dos s?tios : sambaqui do recreio, itapeva e dorva, munic?pios de torres e tr?s cachoeiras, rio grande do sul, brasil

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-14T13:09:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 430797.pdf: 7365858 bytes, checksum: 89195617ec4e5ea289f4cd5b6af19abd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-02-04O presente trabalho pretende analisar os vest?gios ?sseos de peixes encontrados em escava??es nos s?tios arqueol?gicos: Sambaqui do Recreio (LII-18), Sambaqui de Itapeva (RS-LN-201) e Sambaqui da Dorva (LII-43). Os dois primeiros est?o situados no munic?pio de Torres e o ?ltimo no munic?pio de Tr?s Cachoeiras, litoral Norte do Rio Grande do Sul. O Sambaqui do Recreio possui data??o radiocarb?nica aproximada de 3.350 ? 50 A.P.* e 3.540 ?50 A.P., o Sambaqui de Itapeva foi datado em 3.130 ? 40 A.P., e o s?tio arqueol?gico da Dorva t?m a data de 1.110 ? 40 A.P. As esp?cies foram identificadas tendo como base a bibliografia especializada na tem?tica e a utiliza??o de uma cole??o ?ssea de refer?ncia. A abordagem interdisciplinar realizada aqui se faz necess?ria devido ? complexidade de m?ltiplos fatores, tanto culturais quanto naturais, que contribu?ram para a forma??o dos sambaquis. O encontro entre as Ci?ncias Biol?gicas, Hist?ria e Geografia possibilitar? entender, atrav?s dos restos de peixes escavados nestes sambaquis, os modos culturais, sociais e os ambientais que garantiram a forma??o-cria??o desta categoria de s?tio arqueol?gico. Atrav?s da identifica??o dos habitats de cada esp?cie, ser? poss?vel relacionar estes aos diferentes artefatos de pesca, possibilitando tamb?m a compreens?o das t?cnicas empregadas pelos antigos ocupantes dos sambaquis. Por fim, iremos comparar os resultados de cada s?tio entre si, para que, desta maneira, possamos alcan?ar uma compreens?o maior da cultura sambaquiana em suas atividades pesqueira

Early Holocene crop cultivation and landscape modification in Amazonia

The onset of plant cultivation is one of the most important cultural transitions in human history1–4. Southwestern Amazonia has previously been proposed as an early centre of plant domestication, on the basis of molecular markers that show genetic similarities between domesticated plants and wild relatives4–6. However, the nature of the early human occupation of southwestern Amazonia, and the history of plant cultivation in this region, are poorly understood. Here we document the cultivation of squash (Cucurbita sp.) at about 10,250 calibrated years before present (cal. yr bp), manioc (Manihot sp.) at about 10,350 cal. yr bp and maize (Zea mays) at about 6,850 cal. yr bp, in the Llanos de Moxos (Bolivia). We show that, starting at around 10,850 cal. yr bp, inhabitants of this region began to create a landscape that ultimately comprised approximately 4,700 artificial forest islands within a treeless, seasonally flooded savannah. Our results confirm that the Llanos de Moxos is a hotspot for early plant cultivation and demonstrate that—ever since their arrival in Amazonia—humans have markedly altered the landscape, with lasting repercussions for habitat heterogeneity and species conservation

O Sambaqui do Recreio : Geoarqueologia, ictioarqueologia e etnoarqueologia

O presente artigo apresenta o processo de ocupação sambaquieiro na barreira da Itapeva, contextualizando os sítios e os seus construtores na cronologia, bem como as escolhas para inserção em uma paisagem marcada pela dinâmica das transformações paleoambientais. A implantação do Sambaqui do Recreio sobre uma planície costeira em formação demonstra uma escolha cultural calcada em um modo de vida milenar que já se desenvolvia na costa sul/sudeste brasileira há quase dois mil anos. Se, por um lado, as escavações permitiram a identificação dos peixes e instrumentos de pesca na pré-história, por outro, caracterizaram a necessidade da compreensão das estratégias e dos conhecimentos tradicionais associados, alcançados apenas através de abordagem etnográfica. Os dados ictioarqueológicos sugerem uma etapa inicial de ocupação focada em espécies cuja disponibilidade possui maior previsibilidade, como tainhas (Mugil sp.) e papa-terras (Menticirrhus sp.). A partir da instalação definitiva dos sítios, as estratégias de pesca passam a um padrão mais generalista. O aproveitamento das lagoas e dos banhados fica evidente pela presença de espécies como tainhas (Mugil sp.), jundiás (Rhamdia sp.), bagres (Genidens sp.), carás (Cichlidae), corvinas (Micropogonias furnieri) e pescadas (Cynoscion sp.). Em linhas gerais, cada espécie parece indicar estratégias de pesca diferentes.This article addresses the shellmound occupation process on the Itapeva barrier, identifying the sites and their builders within the chronology, along with their choices for implementation in a landscape affected by the dynamics of paleoenvironmental transformations. The Recreio shellmound's position on a shallow coastal plain demonstrates a cultural choice based on an ancient way of life that was already developing on the southern and southeastern coast of Brazil almost two thousand years ago. While the excavations identified fish and fishing implements that were present during prehistorical times, they also indicated the need for associated traditional strategies and knowledge which can only be obtained through ethnography. The ichthyoarcheological data suggest an initial stage of occupation focused on species with more predictable availability such as mullet (Mugil sp.) and kingcroakers (Menticirrhus sp.). After the sites were definitively established, fishing strategies became more generalist; use of lakes and flooded areas is seen in the presence of species such as mullet (Mugil sp.), freshwater catfish (Rhamdia sp.), sea catfish (Genidens sp.), cichlids (Cichlidae), whitemouth croaker (Micropogonias furnieri), and hake (Cynoscion sp.). In general, each species seems to indicate different fishing strategies

Facing change through diversity : Resilience and diversification of plant management strategies during the mid to late holocene transition at the monte castelo shellmound, sw amazonia

Recent advances in the archaeology of lowland South America are furthering our understanding of the Holocene development of plant cultivation and domestication, cultural niche construction, and relationships between environmental changes and cultural strategies of food production. This article offers new data on plant and landscape management and mobility in Southwestern Amazonia during a period of environmental change at the Middle to Late Holocene transition, based on archaeobotanical analysis of the Monte Castelo shellmound, occupied between 6000 and 650 yr BP and located in a modern, seasonally flooded savanna-forest mosaic. Through diachronic comparisons of carbonized plant remains, phytoliths, and starch grains, we construct an ecology of resource use and explore its implications for the long-term history of landscape formation, resource management practices, and mobility. We show how, despite important changes visible in the archaeological record of the shellmound during this period, there persisted an ancient, local, and resilient pattern of plant management which implies a degree of stability in both subsistence and settlement patterns over the last 6000 years. This pattern is characterized by management practices that relied on increasingly diversified, rather than intensive, food production systems. Our findings have important implications in debates regarding the history of settlement permanence, population growth, and carrying capacity in the Amazon basin

Facing Change through Diversity: Resilience and Diversification of Plant Management Strategies during the Mid to Late Holocene Transition at the Monte Castelo Shellmound, SW Amazonia

Recent advances in the archaeology of lowland South America are furthering our understanding of the Holocene development of plant cultivation and domestication, cultural niche construction, and relationships between environmental changes and cultural strategies of food production. This article offers new data on plant and landscape management and mobility in Southwestern Amazonia during a period of environmental change at the Middle to Late Holocene transition, based on archaeobotanical analysis of the Monte Castelo shellmound, occupied between 6000 and 650 yr BP and located in a modern, seasonally flooded savanna–forest mosaic. Through diachronic comparisons of carbonized plant remains, phytoliths, and starch grains, we construct an ecology of resource use and explore its implications for the long-term history of landscape formation, resource management practices, and mobility. We show how, despite important changes visible in the archaeological record of the shellmound during this period, there persisted an ancient, local, and resilient pattern of plant management which implies a degree of stability in both subsistence and settlement patterns over the last 6000 years. This pattern is characterized by management practices that relied on increasingly diversified, rather than intensive, food production systems. Our findings have important implications in debates regarding the history of settlement permanence, population growth, and carrying capacity in the Amazon basin