Title
Ecosystem controls and the archaeofaunal record: an example from the Wyoming Basin, USA
Abstract
Regional palaeoenvironmental reconstructions and data on artiodactyl response to climate change suggest that large game densities would have expanded in response to increasingly mesic conditions during the late Holocene in the Wyoming Basin. We use the prey model of foraging theory to predict late-Holocene increases in artiodactyls, relative to lagomorphs and rodents, and more specifically in bison relative to pronghorn. This prediction is then tested against 284 dated archaeofaunas from the Wyoming Basin. Close fits are found between the deductively derived prediction and the empirical records. Although artiodactyls demonstrate a general increasing trend across the most recent 5000 years, during the period of most intense human occupation hunting pressure appears to have depressed large game populations. Access Options
Document Type
Article
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1177/0959683607085122
Keywords
holocene climate change, artiodactyl population histories, Wyoming Basin, ecosystem controls, archaeofaunal record, prey model, foraging theory, resource depression
Publication Date
2007
Recommended Citation
Byers, David A., and Craig S. Smith. "Ecosystem controls and the archaeofaunal record: an example from the Wyoming Basin, USA." The Holocene 17, no. 8 (2007): 1171-1183.
Journal Title
The Holocene
