Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, 1-2 South Parks Road, OX1 3TG, UK; Merton College, University of Oxford, Merton Street, OX1 4JD, UK.
Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, School of Archaeology, University of Oxford, 1-2 South Parks Road, OX1 3TG, UK.
J Hum Evol. 2019 Mar;128:1-16. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.12.009. Epub 2019 Jan 10.
This study assesses the seasonal scheduling of shellfish harvesting among hunter-gatherer populations along the southernmost coast of South Africa, based on a large number of serial oxygen isotope analyses of marine mollusk shells from four archaeological sites. The south coast of South Africa boasts an exceptional record of coastal hunter-gatherer occupation spanning the Holocene, the last glacial cycle and beyond. The significance of coastal adaptations, in this region in particular, for later modern human evolution has been prominently debated. Shellfishing behaviors are an important focus for investigation given the dietary and scheduling implications and the abundant archaeological shell remains in numerous sites. Key to better understanding coastal foraging is whether it was limited to one particular season, or year-round. Yet, this has proven very difficult to establish by conventional archaeological methods. This study reconstructs seasonal harvesting patterns by calculating water temperatures from the final growth increment of shells. Results from two Later Stone Age sites, Nelson Bay Cave (together with the nearby Hoffman's Robberg Cave) and Byneskranskop 1, show a pronounced cool season signal, which is unexpected given previous ethnographic documentation of summer as the optimal season for shellfishing activities and inferences about hunter-gatherer scheduling and mobility in the late Holocene. Results from two Middle Stone Age sites, Klasies River and Pinnacle Point 5-6, show distinct seasonal patterns that likely reflect the seasonal availability of resources in the two locations. The Pinnacle Point 5-6 assemblage, which spans the MIS5-4 transition, records a marked shift in shellfishing seasonality at c. 71 ka that aligns with other indications of archaeological and environmental change at this time. We conclude that the scheduling and intensity of shellfishing in this region is affected by a suite of factors, including environmental and cultural drivers, rather than a single variable, such as population growth.
本研究基于四个考古遗址的大量海洋软体动物贝壳的连续氧同位素分析，评估了南非最南端沿海狩猎采集人群的贝类季节性捕捞。南非南部海岸拥有非凡的全新世、末次冰期及其后沿海狩猎采集者居住记录。特别是，沿海适应对后来现代人类进化的意义一直是一个备受争议的话题。贝类捕捞行为是一个重要的研究焦点，因为它涉及到饮食和时间安排，以及许多遗址中丰富的考古贝壳遗存。更好地理解沿海觅食的关键是，它是否仅限于一个特定的季节，还是全年都有。然而，通过传统的考古方法，这一点很难确定。本研究通过计算贝壳最后一次生长增量的水温来重建季节性捕捞模式。两个晚期石器时代遗址，纳尔逊湾洞（与附近的霍夫曼·罗伯格洞）和比内斯克兰斯科普 1 号的结果显示出明显的凉爽季节信号，这与之前关于夏季是贝类捕捞活动最佳季节的民族志记录以及关于晚全新世狩猎采集者时间安排和流动性的推断不一致。两个中石器时代遗址，克拉斯河和尖峰点 5-6 的结果显示出明显的季节性模式，这可能反映了这两个地点资源的季节性可用性。尖峰点 5-6 组合，跨越 MIS5-4 转换，记录了大约 71ka 时贝类捕捞季节性的明显变化，与此时其他考古和环境变化的迹象一致。我们的结论是，该地区贝类捕捞的时间安排和强度受到一系列因素的影响，包括环境和文化驱动因素，而不是单一变量，如人口增长。
