Historical Ecology in the Mesa Verde Region: Results from the Village Ecodynamics Project

Abstract

Using the occupation histories of 3,176 habitation sites, new estimates of maize-agriculture productivity, and an analysis of over 1,700 construction timbers, we examine the historical ecology of Pueblo peoples during their seven-century occupation (A.D. 600-1300) of a densely settled portion of the Mesa Verde archaeological region. We identify two cycles of population growth and decline, the earlier and smaller peaking in the late-A.D. 800s, the later and larger in the mid-A.D. 1200s. We also identify several episodes of immigration. Formation of aggregated settlements, which we term community centers, is positively correlated with increasing population and the time elapsed in each settlement cycle, and it persists during periods of regional population decline, but it does not correlate with climatic variation averaged over periods. Architectural and land-use practices depleted piny on-juniper woodlands during the first cycle, but more stable field systems and greater recycling of construction timber resulted in more sustainable management of wood resources during the second cycle, despite much higher population densities. Our estimates for maize production are lower than previous estimates, especially for the A.D. 1200s, when population reached its peak in the study area. Even so, considerable potential agricultural production remained unused in the decades that immediately preceded the complete depopulation of our study area.En este trabajo examinamos la ecologia historica de las gentes Pueblo a traves de siete siglos de ocupacion (600-1300 d.C.) en una densa porcion asentada en la region arqueologica de Mesa Verde. Usamos como datos las historias ocupacionales de 3, 1 76 sitios habitacionales, unos cdlculos nuevos de la productividad agricola del maiz, y un andlisis de mas de 1, 700 muestras de madera de construccion. Identificamos dos ciclos de crecimiento y disminucion poblacional, el mas temprano y pequeho con su apogeo hacia finales de los 800 d.C, y el mas tardio y grande con su mdximo auge hacia los 1200 d.C. Tambien identificamos varios episodios de inmigracion. Laformacion de los asentamientos agregados, los cuales denominamos como centros comunitarios, estd correlacionada positivamente con el incremento de la poblacion y el tiempo asociado con cada ciclo del asentamiento, y persiste durante los periodos de disminucion de la poblacion regional, pew no se correlaciona con la variacion climdtica promediada a traves de los periodos. Durante el primer ciclo, las necesidades de materiales constructivos y del uso del suelo dieron lugar a la reduccion de los recursos en los bosques de pinon y enebro. Sin embargo, y a pesar de que las densidades de poblacion fueron mas grandes, durante el segundo ciclo se manejaron los recursos de la madera de manera mas sustentable a traves de sistemas de cultivo mas e stables, y del reciclamiento de la madera de construccion. Nuestros cdlculos de la produccion de maiz son mas bajos que los previamente calculados, especialmente para los 1200s d.C, cuando la poblacion alcanzo...

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