Archaeological hunting patterns of Amazonian horticulturists: the Guarani example

AbstractWe analyze the hunting patterns based on faunal records of horticultural groups from the Atlantic Forest grouped in the Guarani archaeological unit, which are the material and behavioral expression of populations of Amazon origin who practiced slash ‐and‐burn agriculture in the Atlantic Forest of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay. The analyzed temporal block ranges fromca. 1373 – 1698 of the Common Era. The characteristics of the faunal assemblages are the high level of the taxa richness and the equitability, where no taxa predominate over the others. The capture decision was probably guided primarily by the weight of the potential prey (preferentially terrestrial mammal s) considering thresholds above 10 kg per individual, which have provided the greatest biomass. Nevertheless, small preys are numerically important and taxonomically very diverse. Fish mostly comprise small individuals, with no taxonomic selectivity. The hunted animals were transported completely to the villages. Terrestrial prey and fish were preponderantly boiled in ceramic containers. All the best‐ranked preys locally available were hunted, so in the long term, there were no exceptions to consumption. The hunting strategies are concordant with historical and ethnographic observations whic h include a broad diet with low taxonomic selectivity, small foraging range and garden hunting.
Source: International Journal of Osteoarchaeology - Category: Science Authors: Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research