The AvonLea Point

Abstract

The authors define a readily distinguished type of small, triangular, side-rotched projectile point previously assigned to the Late Prehistoric Period of the northwestern Plains but which was thought too generalized to be used in studies of cultural and ethnic affiliation.

Type sites are described, geographical distributions made, and factors considered which may have influenced the development of this point type in southwestern Saskatchewan.

It is concluded that the Avonlea point is sufficiently unique and temporally delimited to serve as a useful marker for the early Late Prehistoric Period in the northwestern Plains.     

A Reexamination of Roper’S Trend-Surface Analysis of Central Plains Radiocarbon Dates

Abstract

A reexamination of Roper’s (1976) trend-surface analysis of Central Plains radiocarbon dates indicates that 1) a nonlinear trend in the data was not recognized, and 2) the dates of the trend-surface contours given in her map of the Central Plains are in error. A revised trend-surface model is presented which better describes the site data and more closely agrees with the Central Plains cultural sequence.     

The Great Bend Aspect: A Multivariate Investigation Of Its Origins And Southern Plains Relationships

Abstract

The origins of the Great Bend aspect as well as its relations with a series of southern Plains sites are analyzed using ceramic attributes and multivariate statistics. Although the data is inadequate in certain areas the results suggest that in-situ development from earlier cultural groups is a more likely explanation than is a migration of peoples from the southern Plains.     

Cord-Roughened Pottery in North Central North America

Abstract

Basic data are offered on 2 pottery bearing localities in the Souris Basin, North Dakota. Additional data from adjacent areas are introduced to support the assertion that there was a relatively heavy occupation of the Northern Plains by a number of closely related groups which manufactured only slightly differentiated cordroughened pottery. The presence of this pottery reveals that the Woodland occupation of the Northern Plains was far more intensive and extensive than might be suspected from the extant literature.     

Nominal Data And Factor Analysis: A Comment On Geier

Abstract

Use of nominally coded data in a factor analysis is incorrect. This paper first critiques a recent Plains Anthropologist article incorrectly using nominal data, and then provides a comparative example to illustrate the problem. Several alternatives are discussed briefly.     

High Plains wheat mosaic virus: An enigmatic disease of wheat and corn causing the High Plains disease

Brief historyIn 1993, severe mosaic and necrosis symptoms were observed on corn (maize) and wheat from several Great Plains states of the USA. Based on the geographical location of infections, the disease was named High Plains disease and the causal agent was tentatively named High Plains virus. Subsequently, researchers renamed this virus as maize red stripe virus and wheat mosaic virus to represent the host and symptom phenotype of the virus. After sequencing the genome of the pathogen, the causal agent of High Plains disease was officially named as High Plains wheat mosaic virus. Hence, High Plains virus, maize red stripe virus, wheat mosaic virus, and High Plains wheat mosaic virus (HPWMoV) are synonyms for the causal agent of High Plains disease.TaxonomyHigh Plains wheat mosaic virus is one of the 21 definitive species in the genus Emaravirus in the family Fimoviridae.VirionThe genomic RNAs are encapsidated in thread‐like nucleocapsids in double‐membrane 80–200 nm spherical or ovoid virions.Genome characterizationThe HPWMoV genome consists of eight single‐stranded negative‐sense RNA segments encoding a single open reading frame (ORF) in each genomic RNA segment. RNA 1 is 6,981‐nucleotide (nt) long, coding for a 2,272 amino acid protein of RNA‐dependent RNA polymerase. RNA 2 is 2,211‐nt long and codes for a 667 amino acid glycoprotein precursor. RNA 3 has two variants of 1,439‐ and 1,441‐nt length that code for 286 and 289 amino acid nucleocapsid proteins, respectively. RNA 4 is 1,682‐nt long, coding for a 364 amino acid protein. RNA 5 and RNA 6 are 1,715‐ and 1,752‐nt long, respectively, and code for 478 and 492 amino acid proteins, respectively. RNA 7 and RNA 8 are 1,434‐ and 1,339‐nt long, code for 305 and 176 amino acid proteins, respectively.Biological propertiesHPWMoV can infect wheat, corn (maize), barley, rye brome, oat, rye, green foxtail, yellow foxtail, and foxtail barley. HPWMoV is transmitted by the wheat curl mite and through corn seed.Disease managementGenetic resistance against HPWMoV in wheat is not available, but most commercial corn hybrids are resistant while sweet corn varieties remain susceptible. Even though corn hybrids are resistant to virus, it still serves as a green bridge host that enables mites to carry the virus from corn to new crop wheat in the autumn. The main management strategy for High Plains disease in wheat relies on the management of green bridge hosts. Cultural practices such as avoiding early planting can be used to avoid mite buildup and virus infections.     

Late Quaternary Bison Population Changes On The Southern Plains

Abstract

An analysis of faunal lists from 160 archaeological and paleontological sites in the Southern Plains reveals a success of long-term periods of presence and absence of the genus Bison in the region. Two absence periods are from about 6000-5000 B.C. to 2500 B.C. and A.D. 500 to A.D. 1200-1300. These long-term changes seem to indicate a combination of fluctuating bison population densities and range shifts. Certain previously documented prehistoric cultural events in particular subareas ofthe Southern Plains vicinity are examined in light of these data.     

Was There a Northwestern Plains Sub-Culture? An Ethnographical Appraisal*

Abstract

On the basis of an examination of economy, political organization, intertribal warfare, religious life, and other factors, there is no justification for regarding the Northwestern Plains as a distinct division of the Plains Indian Culture Area.     

Craniometric Relationships of Plains Populations: Historical and Evolutionary Implications

Abstract

Large skeletal samples from cemeteries in the Northern Plains near Mobridge, South Dakota have made possible the accurate determination of craniometric relationships between populations ancestoral to the historic Arikara. There is considerable change throughout the approximately 200 years represented, due primarily to gene flow from adjacent Siouan speaking groups. Arikara crania from the Northern Plains are seen to be morphologically similar to earlier crania further south, in particular St. Helena materials in northeastern Nebraska. This offers Support for the archaeological hypothesis that Coalescent Tradition cultures grew out of the Central Plains Tradition. Early crania from the Northern Plains are markedly different from those in the Central Plains and more similar to historic Mandan. The craniometric evidence argues for biological continuity rather than replacement in the Plains area.     

Hell Gap: Paleo-Indian Occupation on the High Plains

Abstract

A resume of archaeological investigations in the Hell Gap Valley of southeastern Wyoming is presented. This research produced a detailed sequence of Plains PaleoIndian occupation of this section of the High Plains. from about 9000 to 5500 B.C. Identifiable complexes recognized include Goshen, Midland, Folsom, Agate Basin, Hell Gap, Alberta, Cody, and Frederick. Materials recovered represent camping activities rather than the better known game kills, and add dimension to our knowledge of Plains Paleo-Indian cultures.     

A Center of Primary Sources for Plains Indian History

Abstract

Preservation of the nation’s Indian records is recogni: zed as a task of national importance. Public access to government documents and data is now possible at ten regional records centers across the country. The material stored provides detailed and analytic accounts of daily activity and business at Indian agencies. The nature and content of the data relevant to Plains Indian agencies is described in this paper.     

Introduction

Abstract

In the space of 20 years the Plains region has progressed from one of the least known to one of the better known regions as far as skeletal studies are concerned. This paper reviews the development of skeletal biology and the accumulation of the large, well documented samples. It provides up-to-date bibliographic citations of the recent literature relating to the United States Plains, including M.A. theses and Ph.D. dissertations which deal with or utilize Plains skeletal material.     

Some Wooden Scraper Handles From the Great Plains and The Southwest

Abstract

Adze-shaped scraper handles of antler are well known from the Plains area. Tools of the same pattern, of wood, are less well known and are virtually unmentioned in the literature and the tool in both antler and wood is unmentioned from the Pueblo area. Data on size and distribution of a large group of these objects in wood, from both the Plains and the Pueblo area are presented here, with some discussion of their possible origin.     

The Red River Valley In The Prehistory Of The Northern Plains

Abstract

Archaeological reconnaissance in the valley of the Red River of the North indicates a heavy utilization of this area by Late Woodland peoples, especially manufacturers of Sandy Lake pottery. Artifact style, raw materials procurement, and the general pattern of northern Plains trade suggest the Red River area was integrated into a larger reticulum joining the northern Midwest woodlands with the northern Plains. Referring to this region as a “periphery” is acceptable only in a geographic sense, not a cultural-historical sense.     

A Shoshonean Origin for the Plains Shield Bearing Warrior Motif

Abstract

The shield bearing warrior is a distinctive motif characteristic of the rock art of the Northwestern Plains. It also occurs commonly in the eastern Great Basin as an element of Fremont rock art. Detailed similarities between Plains and Great Basin shield figures suggest cultural relationships between the two areas. This has led some authors to propose that the motif originated in the Northwestern Plains and diffused to the Great Basin. Others argue that the motif spread from the Great Basin to the Plains. Relative dates recently obtained for shield figures at Northwestern Plains sites support the latter hypothesis. A Shoshonean origin for the Northwestern Plains shield figures is suggested by the dates, and the coincidence between the distribution of the motif, the distribution of diagnostic Shoshonean artifacts. and the ethnohistorically known range of the Plains Shoshone. It is suggested that the Shoshone borrowed the motif from the Fremont Culture during a period of interaction between the two groups.

The shield bearing warrior, a distinctive motif that depicts a pedestrian warrior whose body is represented by a large circular shield (Fig. 1), is frequently encountered in the rock art of the western United States. It is especially common at sites on the Northwestern Plains and in the eastern Great Basin (Fig. 2).     

a Terrace Habitat and Late Prehistoric Settlement in North-Central Texas: Pollen And Geological Evidence

Abstract

Ecologically oriented studies in archaeology tend to suffer from over-generalized models. Pollen and geological data from the Cobb-Poole site in northcentral Texas illustrate how reconstruction of specific habitats can beof use in building testable ecological models. New evidence is presented that suggests failure to recover prehistoric pollen from alkaline soils in the Southern Plains is thli! result of inappropriate laboratory methods     

The Central Plains Tradition Revisited

Abstract

Recent interpretations of the Central Plains Tradition are critically evaluated. In the process special attention is given to:( 1) alternative interpretations of the extant data base, (2) the cogency of taxonomic proposals, and (3) the construal of radiocarbon determinations. Blakeslee’s ”trade network thesis” is examined and an origin in the exigencies of population growth and spread is suggested.     

Late Prehistoric Settlement Patterns in Southwestern Kansas

Abstract

During the summer of 1975, an intensive archeological site survey was carried out by the University of Kansas in the Cimarron National Grassland, southwestern Kansas, for the U.S. Forest Service. Work focused on the recovery of data to enable the determination of site functions in order to develop a predictive model of prehistoric site locations for the High Plains of western Kansas. Eight functional site types were derived from analysis of recovered stone tools and fauna remains. Analysis of site physiographic data with respect to site functions made it apparent that landform, the availability of water, and raw materials are resources which had statistically significant effect on prehistoric site location strategy in southwestern Kansas. Moreover, for functional site types some physiographic variables are more important than others. It is suggested that the results of this study are applicable to other portions of the High Plains.     

The Plains Agon - A Gross Typology

Abstract

In the prevailing view of Plains experts the classic post-horse, post-gun agon (the total physical and psychological military complex) consisted of either two or three different types of military event, generally divided into “scalp raids” and “horse raids.” The literature on Plains agonistics indicates, however, that the Equestrian pattern of intergroup hostilities consisted of at least seven disti net types of military operations.