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Ecological Anthropology Hunting Gathering Subsistence Food Production 1204014294732222 2
Ecological Anthropology Hunting Gathering Subsistence Food Production 1204014294732222 2
Chapter Five:
Hunting and Gathering
Until about 10 thousand years ago all humans were
hunters and gatherers (exploiters of wild resources
rather than domesticated)
Foraging, moving about a landscape with no permanent
dwelling, is now the more accepted term
Four Characteristics:
Under produce resources, few material possessions
Routinely share food
Tend to be egalitarian
Division of labor by gender, men hunt & women gather
The Nuu-ChanNulth
Little environmental manipulation
All things animals, trees, and rocks
had spirits and had to be treated as one
would treat a human.
Stripping bark would entail asking the tree
permission and providing explanation
Whaling would require months-long
ceremonies
Horticulture
Gardens: small fields cultivated repeatedly by
individuals or small groups
Chinampas: small raised gardens built in water
usually as part of a large agricultural system
Terraced Gardens: small fields constructed on
sloping terrain
Slash and Burn: one-time cultivation of a small field
consisting of poor soil due to constant rain,
woodlands and forests
Swidden Agriculture: Integrates slash and burn with
fallow periods and crop rotation to create long-term
sustainable cultivation
Chapter 8: Pastoralism
Primary subsistence derives from the
husbandry of one or a few domestic animals
Herbivores: cattle, horses, sheep, llamas, alpacas,
goats, camels, & similar animals (reindeer are an
example of pastoralism with non-domesticated
animals
Mutually beneficial relationship
Animals provide: meat, milk, hide, dung, wool, labor,
companionship, transportation
Humans provide: protection from predators, steady food
supply, health care, an expanded habitat, and assured
reproductive success
Pastoralism
Requires a great deal of land as a pasture base
More productive than hunting and gathering typically less
productive than agriculture
Efficient way to store resources, on the hoof
Diverse social-political organization and when moving
their animals they need to interact effectively with other
groups whose lands they traverse
Greater population than hunting and gathering typically
less than agriculture
Significant landscape alteration from grazing, however,
typically less environmental degradation than from
agriculture, i.e. ecological equilibrium of Alpine herders