New records for prehistoric introduction of Neotropical mammals to the West Indies: evidence from Carriacou, Lesser Antilles

Abstract

Aim This paper investigates the prehistoric introduction of five mammalian taxa to Carriacou (Lesser Antilles) and refines the known anthropogenic ranges for these fauna in the pre-Columbian West Indies. The importance of such records for understanding the region's historical biogeography and ecology is considered.Location Carriacou Island, Grenada (12°28¢ N, 61°26¢ W).Methods Zooarchaeological assemblages from Carriacou's earliest documented prehistoric sites, Grand Bay and Sabazan, were analysed, and exotic taxa were identified and quantified. The timing of introductions was established based on multiple radiocarbon assays, including three new accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) direct dates obtained on the bone of exotic taxa. Source species and location(s) are considered and compared with known prehistoric records for the Caribbean to synthesize anthropogenic distributions for the pre-Columbian period. The contexts of the zooarchaeological remains are evaluated to better understand the nature and purpose of introductions.Results Zooarchaeological investigation on Carriacou reveals the occurrence of multiple mammal introductions from South American between c. ad 700 and ad 1400. This paper presents the first records for guinea pig (Cavia sp.), armadillo (Dasypus sp.), peccary (Tayassu/Pecari sp.), opossum (Didelphis sp.) and agouti (Dasyprocta sp.) from the island. Human-mediated transport of these taxa is indicated by their absence from the record prior to human settlement of Carriacou. Several translocated species are either rare or entirely unknown for the region, and overall West Indian distributions are temporally and spatially discontinuous. Archaeological contexts indicate that mammalian introductions arose from human subsistence needs, but other social factors may have shaped the dispersal of these fauna. Main conclusionsThe taxonomic combination and richness of Carriacou's introduced fauna are unusual within the region. Importantly, the new records significantly improve the known pre-Columbian geographic range for peccary, guinea pig and armadillo. Integrated with regional records, these data augment our understanding of the Caribbean's historical biogeography, and have the potential to improve our understanding of human mobility and anthropogenic environmental impacts in the West Indies prior to the arrival of Europeans.

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

“…During the Ceramic Age, people continued importing animals to the islands, including dogs (Wing, 2008), agouti, peccary, and guinea pigs, as suggested by the zooarchaeological record at Carriacou, in the West Indies (Giovas et al, 2012). The effect that all these activities had on the island ecology has not been measured.…”

Archaeology, historical ecology and anthropogenic island ecosystems

“…Amerindian groups settled Trinidad as early as c. 8000 BP (although it was in close proximity or partially connected to the Venezuelan coast in the Early Holocene), and Cuba, Hispaniola and Puerto Rico perhaps as early as c. 6000-5000 BP (Fitzpatrick 2015), introducing a suite of non-native plants and animals in a process that accelerated beginning c. 2000-1500 BP (Hofman et al 2008;Giovas et al 2012;Mickleburgh & Pagán-Jiménez 2012).…”

Disease: A Hitherto Unexplored Constraint on the Spread of Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) in Pre-Columbian South America

“…AD (Blick et al 2016). Their presence in the Caribbean is explained as a result of transport by people migrating north from near the mouth of the Orinoco River, who brought with them plants and animals of undoubtedly South American origin (Fitzpatrick 2015;Giovas et al 2012). Dogs were subsequently widely traded within the Antilles (Laffoon et al 2015).…”