Oldest fish-trapping facility in Central America discovered in Mayan lowlands

Archaeologists at the University of New Hampshire and their team have collected data showing the existence of large-scale pre-Columbian fish-trapping facilities. Discovered in Belize’s largest inland wetland, the Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary (CTWS), the researchers believe it was built in the Late Archaic period (c. 2000-1900 BC), more than a thousand years older than the Amazon example. It was estimated that more.

“The canal network was designed to channel annual floodwaters into fish catchment ponds, and conservatively they were able to catch enough fish to feed up to 15,000 people throughout the year.” ” said Eleanor Harrison-Buck, professor of anthropology and director of the institute. Belize River East Archeology (BREA) Project. “Datings indicate that this fishing area was first established by hunter-gatherer-fishermen in late antiquity and continued to be used by the descendants of the Maya during the formative period (ca. 2000 BC to 200 AD), and in Mesoamerica in general. , we tend to think of agricultural production as agricultural production. However, this study shows that it was not just agriculture, but also had the potential for mass harvesting of aquatic species.”

The study, published in the journal Science Advances, used 26 radiocarbon dates taken at CTWS test drilling sites and found that such landscape-scale wetland enhancement dates from 2200 to 1900 B.C. The results show that this may have been an adaptive response to long-term climate changes recorded in Mesoamerica during the year. .

“The early date of the canal surprised us at first, because we all thought these huge structures were built by the ancient Mayans, who lived in nearby urban centers. ” said Harrison Buck. “However, numerous radiocarbon dates revealed that they were built much earlier.”

Sediment samples were collected along the walls of the excavation unit, sequenced for specific elements such as nitrogen and carbon, and examined for environmental changes over time. Sediments indicate a predominance of strong tropical forest during that period, and there was no evidence that crops, particularly maize, were cultivated. In addition to the complete absence of pollen from cultivated crops, there was no sign of trenched and drained farmland in the neighborhood at the time. Multiple proxy data collected suggest that the characteristic long, straight, zigzag channels served primarily as large-scale fish capture facilities.

“The canal would have allowed for annual fish harvests and social gatherings, which would have encouraged people to return to the area each year and congregate for longer periods of time,” said University of Wisconsin anthropology professor. says Marika Brouwer Burg. Co-director of Vermont and BREA. “This intensive investment in the landscape may have ultimately led to the development of the complex societies characteristic of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization, which then occurred in the region by around 1200 BC. I did.”

“Wetlands have always been important ecosystems for humans around the world,” said Samantha Kraus, a professor of geography and environmental studies at Texas State University. “Knowing how to manage wetland resources responsibly is essential to the continued resilience of these ecosystems in the past and today. Ancient hunter-gatherer-fisher peoples protected their resources and They knew how to utilize the resources in a way that could sustain these habitats, which would explain their long occupation in this area.”

With support from local communities, the research team plans to return to Crooked Tree to examine a larger sample of the landscape-scale changes identified across large areas of northern Belize to more fully understand the complexity of human wetlands. I hope that you will. past interactions.

Other co-authors include Mark Willis from the School of Archeology at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia. Angelina Perotti, Palynology and Environmental Archeology Laboratory; Monona, Wisconsin. and Katie Bailey, Department of Anthropology, University of Vermont.