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Explaining Prehistoric Variation In The Abundance Of Large Prey: A Zooarchaeological Analysis Of Deer And Rabbit Hunting Along The Pecho Coast Of Central California, Brian F. Codding, Judith F. Porcasi, Terry L. Jones

Social Sciences

Three main hypotheses are commonly employed to explain diachronic variation in the relative abundance of remains of large terrestrial herbivores: (1) large prey populations decline as a function of anthropogenic overexploitation; (2) large prey tends to increase as a result of increasing social payoffs; and (3) proportions of large terrestrial prey are dependent on stochastic fluctuations in climate. This paper tests predictions derived from these three hypotheses through a zooarchaeological analysis of eleven temporal components from three sites on central California’s Pecho Coast. Specifically, we examine the trade-offs between hunting rabbits (Sylvilagus spp.) and deer (Odocoileus hemionus) …