Fishing Down a Prehistoric Caribbean Marine Food Web: Isotopic Evidence From Punta Candelero, Puerto Rico

Abstract

In recent years, a debate about the degree to which prehistoric fishing practices may, or may not, have adversely impacted local fish communities has re-emerged in the Caribbean archaeological and fisheries literature. Through carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analyses of radiocarbon dated human skeletal remains from southeastern Puerto Rico, the present work identifies a significant (one to two trophic level) decline in the mean trophic level of human-consumed fish over a period of six centuries (fifth-eleventh centuries AD). While the extrapolation of such results to a pan-Caribbean scale would be foolhardy, this work provides complementary evidence that, at least on a local scale, fishing pressure brought to bear by prehistoric peoples may have had the capability to "fish down" marine food webs in a manner akin to that seen in many global fisheries in more recent years.

Human dietary assessment in the Pre-colonial Lesser Antilles: New stable isotope evidence from Lavoutte, Saint Lucia

“…Lesser Antilles) and in many cases even at smaller scales (individual islands or sites). Furthermore, with the possible exception of Punta Candelero, Puerto Rico, where a temporal shift in diet has been reported (Pestle, 2010a;Pestle, 2013b), these spatial dietary patterns seem to persist over long periods of time. Whether this chronological consistency in stable isotope results, and presumably dietary practices, extends into earlier time periods is difficult to assess owing to a general lack of data from Pre-Ceramic (Archaic Age) contexts in the circum-Caribbean, although recent studies have begun to address this deficiency (Buhay et al, 2013;Chinique de Armas et al, 2015;Mickleburgh and Laffoon, in press).…”

Por el camino verde: Long-term tropical socioecosystem dynamics and the Anthropocene as seen from Puerto Rico

“…It seems that during the late Ostionoid, the exploitation of offshore resources was intensified in spite of its higher energetic and technological costs, as increased population exerted more pressure on near-shore environments, lowering their productivity (Pestle, 2013;Wing, 2001). This assessment requires additional consideration.…”

“…Even though more detailed research is needed (Keegan, 2010), it has been argued that pre-Columbian exploitation of marine resources could have had different impacts on the local ecosystems, including the elimination of highly ranked species (Fitzpatrick et al, 2008;Keegan et al, 2003;Pestle, 2013;Wing, 2001;Wing and Wing, 2001). It seems that during the late Ostionoid, the exploitation of offshore resources was intensified in spite of its higher energetic and technological costs, as increased population exerted more pressure on near-shore environments, lowering their productivity (Pestle, 2013;Wing, 2001).…”

“…In the Caribbean, human impact and habitat loss are considered highly significant only after the European colonization ca. 1490 (see Anadón-Irizarry et al, 2012;Baisre, 2010), but little consideration is given to the impact that 4500 years of constant human activity had on the islands before that (see Butzer, 1996), outside of a few studies on the archaeology of the overexploitation of marine resources (Butler, 2010;Curet, 2010;Fitzpatrick, 2010;Keegan, 2010;McClenachan et al, 2010;Pestle, 2013). In this situation, the Anthropocene concept is useful because it emphasizes that humans have had a central role in shaping the characteristics of what we today consider nature.…”

Molluscs emergent, Part II: themes and trends in the scientific investigation of molluscs and their shells as past human resources

“…Other responses might involve a shift in the marine trophic levels exploited. Quitmyer and Reitz (2006) used zooarchaeological data to suggest a downward shift over time in the trophic levels exploited at sites on the Georgia coast, while Pestle (2013) used d 13 C and d 15 N in human bones from a prehistoric site in Puerto Rico, to suggest there had been a 'fishing down' over time of one or two trophic levels. 'Fishing up' the food web is an alternative response, if knowledge, skills and technology permit, as Erlandson et al (2008) inferred from human impacts on shellfish on San Miguel Island, California.…”