Isotopic investigation of pre-Hispanic macaw breeding in Northwest Mexico

The pre-Hispanic settlement of Paquimé (ca. 1200–1450 AD) lay outside of urban Mesoamerica in arid northern Chihuahua, Mexico, yet the excavated remains of 322 scarlet macaws, tropical parrots whose northernmost habitat is 500 km to the south, suggest that Paquimé had relationships with distant comm...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of anthropological archaeology 2010-03, Vol.29 (1), p.125-135
Main Authors: Somerville, Andrew D., Nelson, Ben A., Knudson, Kelly J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
American civilisations
Animal husbandry
Archaeological research
Archaeology
Art and archaeology
Birds
Bones
Carbon isotopes
Carbonate
Casas Grandes
Exchange
Ideology
Interregional interaction
Isotopes
Mayas
Mesoamerica
Mexico
Mexico and Central America civilisations
North American Southwest
Northwest Mexico
Oxygen isotopes
Paquimé
Prehistoric agriculture
Scarlet macaw
Social organization
Species
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Summary:The pre-Hispanic settlement of Paquimé (ca. 1200–1450 AD) lay outside of urban Mesoamerica in arid northern Chihuahua, Mexico, yet the excavated remains of 322 scarlet macaws, tropical parrots whose northernmost habitat is 500 km to the south, suggest that Paquimé had relationships with distant communities. Here, carbon and oxygen stable isotope analysis of 30 macaw bones determines whether the Paquimeños actively bred these parrots or traded with Mesoamerican groups to obtain the birds. The δ 13C values indicate that the macaws ate a diet of C 4 plants, foods that were unavailable to wild macaws. In addition, δ 18O data suggest that the majority of the macaws spent their entire lives at Paquimé. We conclude that the ancient Paquimeños were in fact breeding scarlet macaws, although one bone with δ 18O values outside the local range suggests that the breeders also maintained exchange ties with the source areas of the birds. By confirming that Paquimeños implemented a system of local macaw reproduction outside the Mesoamerican region itself, this analysis provides new evidence about the economic and ideological interdependence of pre-Hispanic societies in the Americas. It is also suggestive of the pre-industrial capabilities of humans to extend the natural ranges of animal species.
ISSN:0278-4165
1090-2686
DOI:10.1016/j.jaa.2009.09.003