Ancient Hunting Strategies in Southern South America

This book presents the state of the art for the studies of strategies and tactics for the procurement of preys in Argentina in different regions and chronologies (from the end of the Pleistocene until historic moments). The chapters are related to the performance of these practices in hunter-gatherer, shepherd and farmer societies. From the environmental point of view, they show cases in diverse areas such as plains, mountains, forests, sea coast, steppes and puna. Likewise, the range of preys considered includes ungulates (camelids and deer), runner birds (Rhea pennata) and minor prey (mammals and fish). The book is aimed at professionals and students of archaeology interested in the analysis of tactics and strategies for prey capture. Every chapter offers an important contribution in theoretical, methodological and technical terms. In addition, these works possess a high comparative value on study cases of very different chronologies and environments of the Southern hemisphere. This book is a result of the 1st Workshop "Strategies and tactics in order to obtain preys in the past: its discussion from the integration of different lines of evidence" which was conducted in San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina, between the 8th and 10th of August, 2018. Ancient Hunting Strategies in Southern South America: An Introduction List of Reviewers Contents Contributors 1 Ancient Hunting Strategies of Wild Camelids Through the Study of Multiple Lines of Archaeological Evidences at Southern Argentine Puna 1.1 Introduction: About Hunting as a Practice 1.2 Hunting Strategies and Its Relevance in Argentine Puna 1.3 Antofagasta de la Sierra: Environmental Characteristics 1.4 Knowing the Preys: Vicuñas 1.5 The Construction of Hunting Models at Southern Argentine Puna 1.5.1 Quebrada Seca Case 1.5.2 Antofalla Ravine 1.6 Discussion: Intersecting Knowledges 1.7 Final Remarks References 2 Tiny Arrow Points, Bone-Tipped Projectiles, and Foraging During the Late Prehispanic Period (Sierras of Córdoba, Argentina) 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Materials and Methods 2.3 Results 2.4 Discussion 2.5 Conclusion References 3 Assessing Strategies for Coypu Hunting and Use in the Salado River Depression (Buenos Aires Province, Argentina) 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Natural Environment 3.2.1 Myocastor coypus (Molina 1782) 3.3 Methodological Aspects 3.4 The Exploitation of Coypu in the Salado River Depression 3.4.1 The Archaeofaunal Record 3.4.2 Lithic Weapons: Projectile Points and Bola Stones 3.4.3 Pottery 3.4.4 Actualistic Studies 3.4.5 Documentary Sources 3.5 Discussion 3.6 Final Comments References 4 Guanaco Hunting Strategies in the Southeastern Pampas During the Late Holocene 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Environmental and Ecological Characteristics of the Area 4.3 Characterisctis of Guanaco (Lama Guanicoe) 4.4 Materials and Methods 4.4.1 Archaeological Sites 4.4.2 Methodology 4.5 Results 4.5.1 Mortality Profiles 4.5.2 Representation of Guanaco Skeletal Parts 4.5.3 Projectile Point Types 4.6 Discussion 4.6.1 Trends for the Initial Late Holocene 4.6.2 Trends for the Final Late Holocene 4.7 Conclusion References 5 Fish Capture Strategies in Atlantic Littoral of Monte Hermoso District (Pampean Region Argentina) During Middle Holocene 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Study Sector: Monte Hermoso District 5.2.1 Environmental Settings 5.2.2 Fish Species Composition 5.3 Materials and Methods 5.4 Results 5.4.1 Fish Remains 5.4.2 Lithic Technology 5.4.3 Palaeoenvironmental Background of Study Area 5.4.4 Fish Species Biological Information 5.5 Discussion 5.6 Conclusions References 6 The Introduction of the Bow and Arrow Across South America’s Southern Threshold Between Food-Producing Societies and Hunter-Gatherers 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Background 6.3 Environmental Setting 6.4 Sites and Phases 6.5 Methods 6.6 Results 6.7 Discussion 6.8 Conclusion References 7 Hunting, Butchering and Consumption of Rheidae in the South of South America: An Actualistic Study 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Methodology 7.3 Study Area 7.4 The “Puesteros” 7.5 Observations and Oral Stories from Rural People 7.5.1 Hunting 7.5.2 Processing and Consumption 7.6 Discussion 7.7 Final Remarks References 8 The Role of Small Prey in Human Populations of Northwest Patagonia and Its Implications 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Archaeological and Ethnohistorical Lines of Evidence 8.2.1 Zooarchaeological Data to Describe Spatial and Temporal Diet Changes 8.2.2 Stable Isotope Data to Explore Mean Diet in Each Subregion 8.2.3 Ethnohistorical Data 8.3 Socio-Ethological and Nutritional Parameters of the Consumed Prey in the Study Area 8.4 Discussing the Role of Small Prey in the Diets of Northwestern Prehistoric Populatons 8.5 Conclusion References 9 Hunting Techniques Along the Rain Shadow Gradient in North-Central Patagonia, Argentina 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Environments 9.3 Forest and Steppe Preys 9.3.1 Guanaco 9.3.2 Huemul 9.3.3 Choique 9.4 Hunting Techniques Data from Historical and Ethnographical Sources 9.4.1 Guanaco 9.4.2 Huemul 9.4.3 Choique 9.5 Hunting Models 9.5.1 Into the Forest 9.5.2 Forest-Steppe Ecotone 9.5.3 Steppe 9.6 Archaeological Data 9.7 Analytical Methods 9.7.1 Lithic Points 9.7.2 Bone Assemblages 9.8 Results 9.8.1 Lithic Points 9.8.2 Zooarchaeology 9.9 Contrasting the Models 9.10 Hunting Techniques Comparison 9.11 Final Words References 10 Changes and Continuities of Hunting Practices from the Late Pleistocene to the Late Holocene Among Nomadic Societies of the Patagonian Plateaus 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Archaeological and Ethnographic Models of Large Ungulate Hunting 10.3 Factors Approached in the Studied Cases 10.4 Patagonian Landscapes and The Studied Localities 10.5 The Evidence in the Deseado Massif 10.5.1 Piedra Museo Locality 10.5.2 La Primavera Locality 10.6 Evidence in the Somuncura Plateau 10.6.1 Yamnago Complex 10.6.2 Los Dos Amigos: The Gate of the Yamnago Complex 10.6.3 Laguna Azul Locality 10.7 Hunting Strategies in the Archaeological Sites 10.8 Discussion and Conclusions References 11 Technological Strategies and Guaranteed Return: Hunting Blinds and Patagonian Plateaus 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Palaeoclimatic Conditions 11.3 Research Background 11.4 Environment and Prey 11.5 Demographic Conditions 11.6 Hunting Blinds and Provisioning of Places 11.7 Hunting Blinds Chronology 11.8 Characteristics of Sample and Hunting Blinds 11.8.1 Characteristics of Stone Structures 11.8.2 Archaeological Record in Hunting Blinds 11.9 Discussion References 12 Hunting Blinds in the Southern End of the Deseado Massif: Collective Hunting Strategies During the Late Holocene 12.1 Introduction 12.2 General Background 12.3 Methodology 12.4 Results 12.4.1 Hunting Blinds Characteristics and Visibility of Nearby Spaces 12.4.2 The Archaeological Record Related to the Hunting Blinds 12.4.3 Comparison Between Cases and Estimated Chronologies 12.5 Discussion and Perspectives References 13 Hunting Landscapes in the North Margin of Lake Viedma (Southern Patagonia, Argentina): Preys, Strategies and Technology 13.1 Introduction 13.2 Lake Viedma Basin: Paleoenvironmental Evolution and Current Seasonality 13.3 Prey Availability at Different Altitudinal Levels 13.4 Archaeological Information 13.4.1 Chronological Frame 13.4.2 Distributional Data and Landscape Use 13.4.3 Weapon Systems 13.5 Discussion and Conclusions References Index