![]() Traditional farmers here today practice slash-and-burn agriculture on steep hill sides as flat alluvial terraces and gentle slopes become less available, and it is probable that prehistoric villagers did the same. 2400-1000 B.P.), large agricultural villages were established not only in narrow river valleys but also on moderate mountain slopes and high summits, likely due to a general lack of level land. Archaeological survey of the study area revealed that during the peak of population density (ca. Observations of present-day casual cultivation behaviors provided insights into how the earliest domesticated plants in the region (squashes and gourds) may have been incorporated into a primarily hunter-gatherer economy with minimal disruptions. Some curated specimens indicate that even when local populations lived in permanent habitations in villages, foraging activities drew them as far as 30 km away. ![]() ![]() Inspection of plant materials curated in several facilities in the United States and Mexico revealed a range of wild plants that are not mentioned previously in publication. Although most published sources acknowledge that wild plants comprised the majority of the local diet (especially during the early cultural phases), these sources often do not describe the species in question. This dissertation expands on earlier work through an examination of curated plant collections from MacNeish’s excavations and an archaeological survey near the Ocampo caves. However, the spectrum of land use and wild plant utilization over the prehistoric sequence remains poorly understood, as MacNeish’s Ocampo investigations focused on one aspect of a larger settlement pattern (cave occupations), and his results are incompletely published. This research remains central to discussions of early Mesoamerican agriculture. MacNeish excavated in a series of dry cave sites within the study area and discovered evidence for the local adoption of domesticated plants and the subsequent development of a mixed foraging-farming economy that persisted for millennia, before culminating in the establishment of settled farming villages. ![]() Fritz, Chairperson In this dissertation, I examine plant use, food production, and land use in the Ocampo region of southwestern Tamaulipas, northeastern Mexico. Kevin Hanselka Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology Washington University in St. ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION PREHISTORIC PLANT PROCUREMENT, FOOD PRODUCTION, AND LAND USE IN SOUTHWESTERN TAMAULIPAS, MEXICO by J. ![]()
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