Reconstructing landscape and vegetation through multiple proxy indicators: A geoarchaeological examination of the St. Louis site, Saskatchewan, Canada

Abstract

The St. Louis site, located in the Plains–Parkland transition zone along the South Saskatchewan River, in Saskatchewan, Canada, is a multiple‐component site consisting of stratified floodplain alluvium with multiple, weakly developed soils. Human occupation at the site spans the Late Paleoindian to Middle Precontact periods (10,000–5,000 14C yr B.P.), a time poorly represented archaeologically on the Northern Plains. The dearth of early–middle Holocene‐age archaeological sites is often attributed to reduced inhabitability of the Northern Plains during the Hypsithermal, a period of maximum aridity and limited water availability. Stable isotope and phytolith data from the site indicate increased temperatures during the Hypsithermal and an expansion of Northern Plains grasslands into north‐central Saskatchewan. Although characterized by increased xeric conditions, human occupation at the St. Louis site, as well as the predominance of C3 grasses, attests to the habitability of Northern Plains river systems during this time period. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Geoarchaeology and Paleoenvironmental Context of the Burntwood Creek Rockshelter, High Plains of Northwestern Kansas, U.S.A

“…Sixteen soil and sediment samples from Trenches 1 and 3A were processed for phytoliths following methods outlined by Piperno (). Two lycopodium spore tablets, each containing 18,585 spores, were added to each sample to calculate phytolith concentration (phytoliths per gram of pretreated sediment) (Cyr et al., ). Plant species nomenclature follows the PLANTS Database (USDA, ).…”

“…Stable carbon isotope ratios determined on pedogenic carbon (Boutton, ) paired with the extraction of phytoliths, or “plant stones” (Piperno, ), from soils and sediments has proved effective for paleoenvironmental reconstruction (Fredlund & Teiszen, ; Kelly et al., ; Cyr et al., ). Changes in the relative proportions of C 3 versus C 4 species inferred from the δ 13 C values on soil organic matter (SOM) can be compared to the phytolith data, and inferences can be made about the input of carbon from C 3 trees and shrubs that are under‐represented in the phytolith record (Fredlund & Tieszen, ; Piperno, ).…”

Engaged Palaeoethnobotany on the Northern Plains: A Compelling Future for Medicinal Plant Research

“…Archaeobotanical research focused on Northern Plains palaeoenvironmental reconstruction and how these changing environments might have affected past peoples has also occurred (Cummings, 1995(Cummings, , 1996Cyr, McNamee, Amundson, & Freeman, 2011;Klassen, 2004;Siegfried, 2002), as have some interesting experiments in palaeoethnobotany (S. W. Armstrong, 1993).…”