Exploratory Models of Intersite Variability in Mid to Late Holocene Central Alaska

Potter, Ben A.

doi:10.14430/arctic49

Cited by 10 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 45 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…Component 1 fauna are well-preserved, but no fish have been identified. The fauna are dominated by waterfowl and mammals (44). The very low SIAR mixing model estimates of the proportional contribution of salmon to these hearths (4-11%, with 95% CI overlapping with 0%) are consistent with the faunal data suggesting little or no salmon presence in this earliest occupation.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 66%

Chemical profiling of ancient hearths reveals recurrent salmon use in Ice Age Beringia

Choy

Potter

McKinney

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Current approaches to reconstruct subsistence and dietary trends in ancient hunter-gatherer societies include stable isotope analyses, but these have focused on human remains, cooking pottery, and food residues, which are relatively rare in the archaeological record. In contrast, short-term hearths are more ubiquitous worldwide, and these features can provide valuable evidence for ancient subsistence practices, particularly when faunal remains are not preserved. To test the suitability of hearths for this purpose, we conducted multiple chemical analyses: stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses of total organic matter (expressed as δ 13 C and δ 15 N values) and compound-specific carbon isotope analyses of individual fatty acids (δ 13 C 16:0 and δ 13 C 18:0 ) from 17 well-preserved hearths present in three occupations dating between ∼13,200-11,500 calibrated years B.P. at the Upward Sun River (USR) site in central Alaska. We combined δ 15 N and δ 13 C FA data in a Bayesian mixing model (stable isotope analysis in R) with concentration dependency to each hearth. Our model values were tested against faunal indices, indicating a strong positive relationship between marine proportional contributions to each hearth and salmon abundance. Results of the models show substantial anadromous salmon use in multiple USR components, indicating recurrent use of the site for salmon processing during the terminal Pleistocene. Our results demonstrate that salmonid and freshwater resources were more important for late Pleistocene hunter-gatherers than previously thought and highlight the potential of chemical profiling of hearth organic residues for providing greater geographic and temporal insights into resource use by prepottery societies. stable isotopes | hearths | organic residue analysis | GC-combustion-IRMS | Beringia

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 66%

Chemical profiling of ancient hearths reveals recurrent salmon use in Ice Age Beringia

Choy

Potter

McKinney

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…These sites are typically found on elevated features and people focused on a broad spectrum of subsistence resources such as bison and elk (Wapiti) (Yesner, 2007;Graf and Bigelow, 2011;Potter, 2011;Blong, 2016). Caribou, sheep, waterfowl and fish were also used, albeit in low quantities (Potter, 2008b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Late-Glacial Paleoecology of the Middle Susitna Valley, Alaska: Environmental Context for Human Dispersal

et al. 2019

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We present here the results of multi-proxy analyses (sediment geochemistry, diatoms, and pollen) from sediment cores collected at four lakes in the middle Susitna Valley, Alaska. These lakes form a transect from the tundra to the boreal forest. The retrieved cores span from ∼12,000 cal yr BP to the present, with age control provided by radiometric dates and tephra deposits, some of which are newly identified. Results indicate that deglaciation occurred before 12,000 cal yr BP and that by that time, the lakes were deep, productive, and surrounded by shrub tundra. The lake with the highest sampling resolution indicates a brief climatic reversal ∼11,500 cal yr BP with decreased diatom-inferred lake level and lowered lake productivity, and reduced shrub presence. During the early to middle Holocene, all of the sedimentary records provide evidence of climatic amelioration with tree expansion and productive lakes. A middle to late Holocene climatic deterioration with reduced trees and a shallower, less productive lake is also indicated. In addition, the prominent Watana tephra at ∼4,000 cal yr BP likely reduced lake productivity and affected the vegetation. Even though the region was relatively productive soon after deglaciation, people did not occupy the region until ∼11,000 cal yr BP, about 1000 years later, and then only sparsely. By the middle and late Holocene, the region was more densely populated and this shift in human occupancy presumably reflects changes in resource abundance, especially caribou. Whether the Watana ashfall influenced caribou abundance and thus people, is still under investigation, but given the tephra's effect on vegetation and lake productivity, it seems likely.

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“…; Coffman & Potter, ; Holmes, Reuther, Adams, Bowers, & Little, ; Wygal, ), and there is comparatively little evidence for sustained human use of the central Alaska Range until the early‐mid Holocene (Potter, ). At this time, there is evidence for a shift to a logistically mobile settlement system including increased use of seasonally available upland resources like caribou ( Rangifer tarandus ) and fish, possibly driven by spreading lowland boreal forest (Esdale, ; Mason & Bigelow, ; Potter, , ). The ethnographic and ethnohistoric record indicates that late prehistoric Athabascan groups in the region had a seasonal subsistence round consisting of summer/fall hunting and gathering in the central Alaska Range and more permanent winter camps in lowland valleys (de Laguna & McClellan, ; Hosley, ; McKennan, ; Reckord, ; Townsend, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The low frequency and ephemeral nature of LP/EH archaeological sites in the Alaska Range has been argued to represent a residentially mobile LP/EH land-use system primarily focused in the lowlands of the Tanana River basin and foothills of the Nenana River basin (Potter, 2008a(Potter, , 2008bPotter, Holmes, & Yesner, 2013). However, despite low archaeological visibility, there is evidence that huntergatherers procured upland resources in the Alaska Range as highly mobile, logistically oriented groups spread through the Alaska Range and into southern Alaska during the Younger Dryas (YD) and EH (Blong, 2018;Graf & Bigelow, 2011;Guthrie, 2017;Mason, Bowers, & Hopkins, 2001;Potter et al, 2013;Wygal, 2018).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Regional stratigraphy and human occupation of the upper Susitna River basin, central Alaska Range

Blong

2018

Geoarchaeology

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This study presents geomorphological, paleoenvironmental, and archaeological data from the upland upper Susitna River basin in the central Alaska Range. The goal of this study is to establish the landscape history and record of human use of the study area and test regional land‐use models. The results indicate that the upper Susitna was first occupied in the early Holocene at least 2,000 years after the end of full‐glacial conditions and 1,000 years after evidence of landscape recovery. Early Holocene land‐use consisted of short‐term task‐specific camps occupied by highly mobile groups on logistical forays. Upland land use intensified in the middle and late Holocene after modern vegetation patterns were established; during this time hunter‐gatherers occupied both residential and task‐specific camps in the study area in a logistical land‐use system. These results support a shift in land use in the early Holocene to include upland landscapes and intensification of upland landscape use in the late–middle Holocene. A shift in residential base camp location in the late Holocene may be tied to changing subsistence activities. There is evidence for a hiatus in human occupation following Holocene tephra fall, but it is unclear whether this was related to tephra deposition or broader climate instability.

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Exploratory Models of Intersite Variability in Mid to Late Holocene Central Alaska

Cited by 10 publications

References 45 publications

Chemical profiling of ancient hearths reveals recurrent salmon use in Ice Age Beringia

Chemical profiling of ancient hearths reveals recurrent salmon use in Ice Age Beringia

Late-Glacial Paleoecology of the Middle Susitna Valley, Alaska: Environmental Context for Human Dispersal

Regional stratigraphy and human occupation of the upper Susitna River basin, central Alaska Range

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