Hunting and Gathering in Tropical Rain Forest: Is It Possible?

Bailey, Robert C.; Head, Genevieve; Jenike, Mark R.; Owen, B. D.; Rechtman, Robert B.; Zechenter, Elzbieta

doi:10.1525/aa.1989.91.1.02a00040

Cited by 326 publications

(153 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…As recently as the 1980s and 1990s, anthropologists argued that tropical forests were unattractive environments for human occupation (e.g. 22 ). This view was further promoted by archaeologists, who, for example, saw tropical forests as barriers to the expansion of Late Pleistocene Homo sapiens foragers 23 , and also deemed them incapable of supporting agricultural populations 24 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The deep human prehistory of global tropical forests and its relevance for modern conservation

et al. 2017

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Abstract/first paragraphSignificant human impacts on tropical forests have been considered the preserve of recent societies, linked to large-scale deforestation, extensive and intensive agriculture, resource mining, livestock grazing, and urban settlement. Cumulative archaeological evidence now demonstrates, however, that Homo sapiens has actively manipulated tropical forest ecologies for at least 45,000 years. It is clear that these millennia of impacts need to be taken into account when studying and conserving tropical forest ecosystems today. Nevertheless, archaeology has so far provided only limited practical insight into contemporary human-tropical forest interactions. Here, we review significant archaeological evidence for the impacts of past hunter-gatherers, agriculturalists, and urban settlements on global tropical forests. We compare the challenges faced, as well as the solutions adopted, by these groups with those confronting present-day societies, which also rely on tropical forests for a variety of ecosystem services. We emphasise archaeology's importance not only in promoting natural and cultural heritage in tropical forests, but also in taking an active role to inform modern conservation and policy-making.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The deep human prehistory of global tropical forests and its relevance for modern conservation

et al. 2017

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“…1 Previous studies have shown that the divergence between ancestral pygmy populations and ancestral non-pygmy populations is quite ancient and occurred around 60 000 years ago. 2,3 Many evolutionary hypotheses have been proposed to explain this phenotype, 4 which could be due to an adaptation to food scarcity, 5 to the hot and humid climate of the rainforest, 6 to the density of this environment where mobility is uneasy, 7 to a life-history tradeoff in a context of high mortality 8,9 or to particular mate choices. 10 However, none of these hypotheses has proven to be true 4,11 and the evolution of the short stature of African pygmies remains largely unknown.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of GHR and IGF1 genes in the genetic determination of African pygmies’ short stature

Becker¹,

Verdu²,

Georges³

et al. 2012

Eur J Hum Genet

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African pygmies are at the lower extreme of human variation in adult stature and many evolutionary hypotheses have been proposed to explain this phenotype. We showed in a recent study that the difference in average stature of about 10 cm observed between contemporary pygmies and neighboring non-pygmies has a genetic component. Nevertheless, the genetic basis of African pygmies' short stature remains unknown. Using a candidate-gene approach, we show that intronic polymorphisms in GH receptor (GHR) and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) genes present outlying values of the genetic distance between Baka pygmies and their non-pygmy Nzimé neighbors. We further show that GHR and IGF1 genes have experienced divergent natural selection pressures between pygmies and non-pygmies throughout evolution. In addition, these SNPs are associated with stature in a sample composed of 60 pygmies and 30 non-pygmies and this association remains significant when correcting for population structure for the GHR locus. We conclude that the GHR and IGF1 genes may have a role in African pygmies' short stature. The use of phenotypically contrasted populations is a promising strategy to identify new variants associated with complex traits in humans.

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“…Gamble, 1986). Not only would hunting game have been much harder in woodland (Bradley et al, 1989) but dispersal itself would have been particularly difficult in closed forest environments. Indeed, it is currently argued that most movement of human populations took place along the narrow open corridors provided by the floodplains of large rivers (Ashton et al,this issue,.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Humans in the Hoxnian: habitat, context and fire use at Beeches Pit, West Stow, Suffolk, UK

Preece

Gowlett

Parfitt

et al. 2006

J Quaternary Science

110

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A Lower Palaeolithic industry at Beeches Pit, West Stow, Suffolk, occurs within an interglacial sequence that immediately overlies glacial deposits, referable to the Anglian Lowestoft Formation. There is strong biostratigraphical evidence from both vertebrates and molluscs that the interglacial represented is the Hoxnian (MIS 11). This conclusion is supported by uranium series dates from carbonate nodules (>400 kyr), TL dates from burnt flint (414 AE 30 kyr) and a range of amino acid racemisation data. The archaeology consists of flint artefacts of Acheulian character, including many refitting examples. Charred material is abundant in three stratigraphical units and many bones and flints have been burnt, indicating repeated occurrence of fire. Several discrete areas of burnt sediment appear to be hearths. This interpretation is supported by: (1) the intensity of burning (600-8008C) implied by the charred and calcined bones; (2) the intersection of two of the burnt areas, implying separate burning events at slightly different, overlapping locations; (3) the discovery of two burnt flakes that refit onto an adjacent group that are unburnt, indicating that the burning was highly localised; and (4) the spatial distribution of artefacts respects the features interpreted as hearths, suggesting fireside knapping. Fossils associated with the archaeology indicate occupation within closed deciduous forest in a fully temperate climate. Attractions to this unusual environment would have included the fresh water provided by springs, a rich supply of potential food and a prolific source of good quality flint for tool manufacture. The archaeological evidence therefore suggests that the site repeatedly served as an area of focused activities (perhaps a 'home-base') during much of the interglacial. The upper levels of the sequence provide clear faunal evidence of climatic deterioration during which human occupation and fire use persisted. Biostratigraphical correlations with other Lower Palaeolithic sites lend support to the suggestion that Acheulian and Clactonian industries occurred in Britain during the same substage of the Hoxnian, although not necessarily at precisely the same time.

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Hunting and Gathering in Tropical Rain Forest: Is It Possible?

Cited by 326 publications

References 61 publications

The deep human prehistory of global tropical forests and its relevance for modern conservation

The deep human prehistory of global tropical forests and its relevance for modern conservation

The role of GHR and IGF1 genes in the genetic determination of African pygmies’ short stature

Humans in the Hoxnian: habitat, context and fire use at Beeches Pit, West Stow, Suffolk, UK

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