Identifying Humanized Ecosystems: Anthropogenic Impacts
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University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 11-4-2015 Identifying Humanized Ecosystems: Anthropogenic Impacts, Intentionality, and Resource Acquisition at Crystal River (8CI1) and Roberts Island (8CI41) Charles Trevor Duke University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, and the History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons Scholar Commons Citation Duke, Charles Trevor, "Identifying Humanized Ecosystems: Anthropogenic Impacts, Intentionality, and Resource Acquisition at Crystal River (8CI1) and Roberts Island (8CI41)" (2015). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/5941 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Identifying Humanized Ecosystems: Anthropogenic Impacts, Intentionality, and Resource Acquisition at Crystal River (8CI1) and Roberts Island (8CI41) by C. Trevor Duke A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Anthropology College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Major Professor: Thomas J. Pluckhahn, Ph.D. Nancy Marie White, Ph.D. Diane Wallman, Ph.D. Date of Approval: November 4, 2015 Keywords: Shell Midden, Zooarchaeology, Agency, Resource Management, Historical Ecology, Florida Archaeology Copyright © 2015, C. Trevor Duke ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis would not have been possible without the help and support of a variety of individuals and institutions, all of which have my sincerest thanks and gratitude. The unwaivering support and mentorship provided by my advisor, Dr. Thomas J. Pluckhahn, has undoubtedly improved my work, and has inspired me to become a better researcher and anthropologist. For this, I owe him the utmost gratitude. Dr. Gregory Herbert also went above and beyond the normal duties of a professor to help me better develop my ideas, and has shown unending support in helping me achieve my research goals. I also thank my committee members, Drs. Nancy White and Diane Wallman, whose perspectives drastically enhanced the overall quality of this thesis. Drs. Elizabeth Reitz and Matthew Compton deserve my sincerest thanks, due to their willingness to lend their expertise to a graduate student that would have been otherwise lost. The hard work of Lori O’Neal, Eric Koenig, Joshua Foster, Sarah Gilleland, Alex Delgado, Shaun West, and all others that aided in laboratory analysis, contributed substantially to this project, and your diligence is appreciated. Finally, I thank all of my friends and family members that drove me forward throughout the constant pressures of graduate school. Mom, your undying love and support have been unparalleled, and I surely wouldn’t have made it through this process without it. My sister Taylor also deserves thanks for providing me with support during difficult times. The friendship of Lori O’Neal, Eric Prendergrast, Ryan Harke, Isabella Chan, Martin Menz, Shaun West, and many others, has made life over these last few years a great experience. I thank you all. TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. iii List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ iv Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... vi Note on Funding ........................................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................................1 Research Agenda .................................................................................................................3 Chapter 2: Environmental and Cultural Contexts ............................................................................7 Environmental Setting .........................................................................................................7 Geologic History and Expansion of the Florida Platform ...................................................9 Tracking the Development of the Crystal River Estuarine System: Geological and Ecological Considerations ...........................................................................................11 Seagrass Productivity and Biodiversity .............................................................................19 A Note on Terrestrial Ecology ...........................................................................................23 The Crystal River Archaeological Site: Mapping the Trajectory of Previous Excavations and Recent Fieldwork ..............................................................................26 Chapter 3: Theoretical Context ......................................................................................................38 Archaeology’s Legacy of Category and its Effect on Perceptions of Indigenous Agency .........................................................................................................................38 Historical Ecology and Human Landscapes ......................................................................42 History and Environment in the Floridian Past..................................................................46 Applied Historical Ecology: Measuring Indigenous Impacts and Evaluating Stress Indicators ...........................................................................................................51 Chapter 4: Methods ........................................................................................................................55 Outlining Relevant Research .............................................................................................55 Stress Indicators and Attention from the Archaeological Community ..............................57 Collection Methods ............................................................................................................62 Laboratory Analysis ...........................................................................................................67 Characterizing the Debate Over Quantifying Invertebrate Archaeofauna .........................82 Assessing Size Distributions of Florida Crown Conch......................................................84 The Temporality of Midden Deposits and Phasing Correlations.......................................86 i Chapter 5: Results ..........................................................................................................................92 Diversity and Equitability ................................................................................................115 Potential Issues and Sampling Biases ..............................................................................120 Size Distribution of Florida Crown Conch ......................................................................121 Chapter 6: Discussion ..................................................................................................................125 Early Crystal River: Community Coalescence and the Establishment of Persistent Places .........................................................................................................................125 Revisiting the Mullet Problem .........................................................................................128 Beds of Plenty ..................................................................................................................130 Assessing the Role of Intentionality and Decision Making with Regard to Resource Acquisition .................................................................................................................133 Contextualizing Environment in the Mid-Holocene Crystal River Estuarine System: Implications for Human Impacts ...............................................................................137 Potential for Applied Research ........................................................................................143 Chapter 7: Conclusion and Directions for Future Research ........................................................148 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................148 Limitations of this Study ..................................................................................................149 Directions for Future Research ........................................................................................150 References ....................................................................................................................................152 ii LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1. Formulae Used for Invertebrate Biomass Calculations .........................................75 Table 4.2. List of Species and Corresponding Trophic Levels ...............................................78 Table 4.3. Phase/Strata Correlations for Midden Deposits Analyzed.....................................89 Table