High‐Altitude Occupations, Cultural Process, and High Plains Prehistory: Retrospect and Prospect

Abstract

Models of hunter-gatherer occupation in mountainous areas are evaluated in light of current data bases and Jield research strategies. Utilizing evidence j o m the mountain fnnges of the North American High Plains, both climatic and task-specific models are rejected in favor of a broad spectrum model. It is argued that the broad spectrum model better explains the extant data base j i r the Central Rocky Mountains and that it provides a pointof departure for research strategies in other high-country regions. N MANY REGIONS, MOUNTAINS FORM AN INTEGRAL PART of the landscape. For a few

Human Responses to Middle Holocene (Altithermal) Climates on the North American Great Plains

“…in the number of archaeological sites in the Colorado and Wyoming Front Range (Larson, 1992)including a dozen in Benedict's "Mount Albion Complex"-at elevations between ϳ2000 and ϳ3700 m asl (Benedict and Olson, 1978, p. 179;Frison, 1975). That increase, if significant (see Bender and Wright, 1988), might only reflect better archaeological visibility in these areas. But it is attributed by Benedict to an in-migration of groups fleeing drought on the Plains, an inference based on an apparently "rudimentary" transhumance system that he believes is indicative of new arrivals in the region (Benedict, 1992, p. 12).…”

Climate change, uncertainty and prehistoric hunter–gatherer mobility

“…Almost without exception, mountain environments are seen as highly seasonal and marginal in terms of resource productivity (Aldenderfer 2006; but see Walsh, 2005;Walsh et al, 2006). Hunter-gatherer adaptations to these conditions consequently tend to focus on male-dominated logistical hunting, a pattern seen in North America's Rocky Mountains (Bender and Wright, 1988;Wright et al, 1980), Sierra Nevada (McGuire et al, 2007Stevens, 2005), and Great Basin (Bettinger, 1991;Thomas, 1982); in the Andes (Aldenderfer, 1998(Aldenderfer, , 1999Rick, 1980); and on the Tibetan and Ethiopian Plateaus (Aldenderfer, 2006). Only in rare circumstances do hunter-gatherers build residential structures indicating some form of residential mobility (e.g., Thomas, 1982), a phenomenon that appears to be conditioned by population pressure, at least in the Great Basin (Bettinger, 1991;Zeanah, 2000).…”

Cultural responses to the altithermal: The role of aquifer‐related water resources

“…Some scholars (Reeves, 1973;Bender and Wright, 1988) argue that the Altithermal did not require a cultural response. Therefore, it seems particularly relevant and timely to examine hunter-gatherers.…”

“…Although this conclusion may appear to be a statement of the obvious, it is important to note that the nature of Early Archaic responses to the Altithermal has been a subject of debate for many years. Some scholars (Reeves, 1973;Bender and Wright, 1988) argue that the Altithermal did not require a cultural response. Therefore, it seems particularly relevant and timely to examine hunter-gatherers.…”