Foragers of the Terminal Pleistocene in North America

Foragers of the Terminal Pleistocene in North America. RENEE B. WALKER and BOYCE N. DRISKELL (eds.). University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, 2007. xv +315 pp., preface, introduction, 42 b&w illus., 26 tables, biblio., index. $59.95 (hardcover), ISBN 0-8032-4802-4. Reviewed by J. Scott Jones The term "forager" refers to hunter-gatherers with a generalized economy that is distinct from the archaeological signature of other hunter-gatherers such as collectors. The volume Foragers of the Terminal Pleistocene in North America edited by Renee B. Walker and Boyce N. Driskell provides an exceptional collection of papers that explores the meaning and archaeological record of Paleoindian foragers, which have traditionally not been considered to be exemplary of a foraging lifestyle. This volume contains a preface, an introduction, 11 regional chapters, and a summary conclusion. The introduction summarizes the content of the volume as well as presenting the traditional view of Paleoindian specialists that gave rise to this volume. Chapters 1 to 10 are ordered in a manner that mirrors early settlement of North America beginning in the far north and extending southward and outward to outlying regions such as the Northeast and Rorida. Chapter 11 is the most theoretical in the volume. Chapter 12 is a summary chapter by the editors. Chapters 1 and 2 explore Paleoindian subsistence in the far north. In chapter 1 Stuart J. Fiedel addresses the relationship between waterfowl and the initial exploration of North America via the Ice-Free Corridor, and suggests waterfowl were the compelling factor in driving Paleoindians through the Ice-free Corridor. Fiedel's interpretations are within the foraging context of this volume, but harken to the traditional view of highly mobile Paleoindians following great herds (flocks?) of fauna. David Yesner addresses subsistence in Alaska in chapter 2. Cultural Zones 3 and 4 at the Broken Mammoth site provide a surprisingly diverse faunal assemblage with mammoth exploitation restricted to tusk ivory. The chapter concludes with seven points to explain the faunal diversity as well as the lack of nondentition mammoth remains. Yesner's interpretations significantly transform the view of eastern Beringian Paleoindian subsistence in a region once thought to typify specialist hunters. Paleoindian subsistence is considered from the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains in chapters 3 and 4. Marcel Kornfeld challenges the perception of Paleoindian big-game specialization in this region in chapter 3. Kornfeld discusses the history and investigations of mammoth and bison bone middens, and summarizes the nonbone midden Paleoindian sites that have not received the same attention. The overall contribution of bison, which is very small, from all middens to the entire Paleoindian diet is calculated, but while intended to illustrate the importance granted to big-game specialization, it is something of a straw-man proposition as undoubtedly not all bison have been accounted for. The final section summarizes the nonmidden archaeological record, and illustrates the range in assemblage variation and activities conducted at the various sites, which is considered indicative of a foraging economy. This is an important contribution in the spirit of the volume, but is somewhat contradictory to other interpretations of subsistence, particularly Folsom. In chapter 4, Michael B. Collins presents data from the Texas Gault site to argue that Clovis subsistence was based on a generalized economy. The majority of inferences concerning subsistence from the lithic assemblage is based on use-wear analysis, which suggests that the tools were utilized in a wide variety of functions. The faunal remains from Gault are compared to other Clovis and Archaic sites from the Southern Plains and illustrate the similarity of Clovis with generalized Archaic while contrasting with Folsom subsistence data. Finally, site distributions of Clovis and Archaic sites in the Southern Plains are compared and demonstrate that both are situated in settings with varied ecotones offering a wide resource base. …