The Ashland Bottoms Site (14RY603):

Abstract

The Ashland Bottoms site (14RY603) is a multi-component habitation consisting of a turn of the 20th century American corncrib superimposed upon a Kansas City Hopewell occupation. The ceramics suggest the site is late Kansas City Hopewell dating c. 300-500 A.D. while the artifact assemblage indicate it was a specialized, limited activity site, probably a bison and meat/hide processing base camp. Whether the Kansas City Hopewell population is resident in the Manhattan area or seasonally came into the region from Kansas City cannot be completely ascertained on the present data, but there is a strong possibility these people were permanent residents.     

Applying and testing a predictive vegetation model to management of the invasive cattail, Typha angustifolia L., in an oligohaline tidal marsh reveals priority effects caused by non-stationarity

Effective tidal marsh restoration requires predictive models that can serve as planning and design tools to answer basic questions such as which, if any, plant species will colonize a proposed restoration site. To develop such a tool, a predictive model of oligohaline tidal marsh vegetation was developed from reference marshes in the Skagit River Delta (Washington, USA) and applied to a 1.1-ha restoration treatment site. Probability curves for the elevational distributions of common marsh species were generated from RTK-GPS point samples of reference tidal marshes. The probability curves were applied to a LIDAR-derived digital elevation model to generate maps predicting the occurrence probability of each species within treatment and control sites. The treatment and control sites, located within a recently restored area that had been diked but never completely drained, were covered by a mono-culture of non-native Typha angustifolia L. (narrow-leaf cattail) growing 40–60 cm lower in elevation than in the reference marsh. The T. angustifolia was mowed repeatedly in the treatment site to allow colonization by predicted native marsh species. Four years after mowing, T. angustifolia was replaced on 60 % of the treatment site by native sedges (Carex lyngbyei, Eleocharis palustris), consistent with the predictive vegetation model; the control site remained covered by T. angustifolia. The mowing experiment confirmed that pre-emptive competition from T. angustifolia was preventing vegetation recovery in the restoration site following dike removal, and implied that some vegetation species may be refractory to environmental change, such as dike removal or sea-level rise, because of differences in recruitment and adult niches.     

Phosphorus kinetics of planktonic and benthic assemblages in a shallow subtropical lake

1. Phosphate uptake kinetics and uptake rates were calculated for planktonic (phytoplankton and bacterioplankton) and benthic (epiphyton and epipelon) assemblages in a large, shallow, subtropical lake. Samples were taken bimonthly over the period of 1 year at three different sites to examine spatial and temporal variability in these processes. 2. Two of the sites, located at the edge of the littoral zone next to the open water (ecotone sites), had low irradiance at the sediment surface and high total phosphorus (TP) concentration (annual mean TP = 112 μg L^–1). The third site, located in the littoral marsh zone, had high irradiance at the sediment surface and low TP concentration (annual mean TP = 7 μg L^–1). 3. Based on ³²P-PO₄ turnover time, P availability varied temporally and spatially. At the two high TP ecotone sites, P concentration was lowest in July and August. At the low TP marsh site, P limited algal production throughout the year. 4. The quotient of maximum uptake rate to half saturation constant (V_m/K_s) in the plankton increased by over two orders of magnitude during the P-limited (summer) period at the two ecotone sites, suggesting that plankton used the scarce phosphorus more efficiently. The specific uptake rate of plankton was significantly greater than that of periphyton at all sites, suggesting that the plankton were more efficient than periphyton at taking up phosphate. 5. Periphyton biomass, as well as absolute and percentage P uptake rate, was greater at the marsh site than at the ecotone sites, despite the lower P concentrations in the marsh. This was probably a result of rapid nutrient cycling, combined with high light availability in the marsh.     

Late Woodland In The Kansas City Locality

Abstract

14WYB, situated near Edwardsville, Kansas, is a single-component site representative of terminal Kansas City Hopewell. Comparisons with other components with similar artifact assemblages, which are radiocarbon dated, demonstrates this terminal period to be from ca. A.D. 500 to A.D. BOO, and equivalent to early Late Woodland in the Illinois River Valley. Settlement and subsistence changes are not recognizable at this time, but do occur between A.D. BOO and A.D. 1000, perhaps as reflection of the adoption of agriculture as important to the subsistence base during the late Late Woodland period.     

Archaeology of the Mcclure Site (39Hu7) and the Protohistoric Period in the Big Bend Region of South Dakota

Abstract

The McClure site is an Arikara village in central South Dakota dating from the Protohistoric period at the end of the 17th Century. The settlement consisted of at least 35 earth lodges, was unfortified, and was located below the bluffs on the Missouri River bottoms a few feet above the floodplain. Excavations in two houses, one of them a specialized small lodge, produced artifacts typical of the Felicia phase of the Big Bend region, including ceramics largely assignable to the lona and Talking Crow ware categories, but with a small element of Stanley ware. Because of the location of McClure in the Bad River district around the decade A.D. 1690-1700 and other factors, it is thought to have played some role in the emerging Bad River Phase     

The Ax Fight on CD‐ROM

In The Ax Fight [1975], Timothy Asch and Napoleon Chagnon introduced many innovative techniques that have since become standard in nonlinear multimedia. Yanomamö Interactive, a CD‐ROM for computer use, extends these techniques to enhance understanding of the film. The CD contains a copy of the film as well as analytical essays, photographs, maps, genealogies and raw genealogical data from the village where the film was made. Features of the CD are described in relation to five sections of The Ax Fight. Then research exercises with the CD version of the film are proposed. Exercises explore difficulties of fieldwork, selective perception, and debates that surround Yanomamö studies.     

High site fidelity and low site connectivity in temperate salt marsh fish populations: a stable isotope approach

Adult and juvenile fish utilise salt marshes for food and shelter at high tide, moving into adjacent sublittoral regions during low tide. Understanding whether there are high levels of site fidelity for different species of coastal fish has important implications for habitat conservation and the design of marine protected areas. We hypothesised that common salt marsh fish species would demonstrate a high site fidelity, resulting in minimal inter-marsh connectivity. Carbon (¹³C) and nitrogen (¹⁵N) stable isotope ratios of larvae and juveniles of five common salt marsh fish (Atherina presbyter, Chelon labrosus, Clupea harengus, Dicentrarchus labrax, Pomatoschistus microps), seven types of primary producer and seven secondary consumer food sources were sampled in five salt marshes within two estuary complexes along the coast of south-east England. Significant differences in ¹³C and ¹⁵N signatures between salt marshes indicated distinct sub-populations utilising the area of estuary around each salt marsh, and limited connectivity, even within the same estuary complex. ¹⁵N ratios were responsible for the majority of inter-marsh differences for each species and showed similar site-specific patterns in ratios in primary producers, secondary consumers and fish. Fish diets (derived from isotope mixing models) varied between species but were mostly consistent between marsh sites, indicating that dietary shifts were not the source of variability of the inter-marsh isotopic signatures within species. These results demonstrate that for some common coastal fish species, high levels of site fidelity result in individual salt marshes operating as discrete habitats for fish assemblages.     

Co‐occurrence dynamics of endangered Lower Keys marsh rabbits and free‐ranging domestic cats: Prey responses to an exotic predator removal program

The Lower Keys marsh rabbit (Sylvilagus palustris hefneri) is one of many endangered endemic species of the Florida Keys. The main threats are habitat loss and fragmentation from sea‐level rise, development, and habitat succession. Exotic predators such as free‐ranging domestic cats (Felis catus) pose an additional threat to these endangered small mammals. Management strategies have focused on habitat restoration and exotic predator control. However, the effectiveness of predator removal and the effects of anthropogenic habitat modifications and restoration have not been evaluated. Between 2013 and 2015, we used camera traps to survey marsh rabbits and free‐ranging cats at 84 sites in the National Key Deer Refuge, Big Pine Key, Florida, USA. We used dynamic occupancy models to determine factors associated with marsh rabbit occurrence, colonization, extinction, and the co‐occurrence of marsh rabbits and cats during a period of predator removal. Rabbit occurrence was positively related to freshwater habitat and patch size, but was negatively related to the number of individual cats detected at each site. Furthermore, marsh rabbit colonization was negatively associated with relative increases in the number of individual cats at each site between survey years. Cat occurrence was negatively associated with increasing distance from human developments. The probability of cat site extinction was positively related to a 2‐year trapping effort, indicating that predator removal reduced the cat population. Dynamic co‐occurrence models suggested that cats and marsh rabbits co‐occur less frequently than expected under random conditions, whereas co‐detections were site and survey‐specific. Rabbit site extinction and colonization were not strongly conditional on cat presence, but corresponded with a negative association. Our results suggest that while rabbits can colonize and persist at sites where cats occur, it is the number of individual cats at a site that more strongly influences rabbit occupancy and colonization. These findings indicate that continued predator management would likely benefit endangered small mammals as they recolonize restored habitats.     

Settlement Pattern Variability in Brush Creek Valley,Platte County,Missouri

Abstract

During the summer of 1971, a field party from the Museum of Anthropology at the University of Kansas conducted an intensive archaeological- ·survey along Brush Creek, a tributary of the Missouri River four miles west of Parkville, Missouri. Data collected during this survey provides a preliminary characterization of the local environmental setting and a comparativecontrastive statement on prehistoric settlement pattern variability from the Early Archaic to the Steed-Kisker phase.

Topographic, geological, and botanical features of importance in establishing the parameters of effective biophysical environments for prehistoric occupants are summarized, and four resource zones tentatively identified: an upland prairie zone, an oak-history forest zone, a river-bottom forest zone and the Missouri River itself. Although the time depth for these resource zones is unknown, their presence throughout the history of man’s presence is a possibility.

Aspects of the human occupation and utilization of Brush Creek valley, which began as early as 8000 B.C., are viewed as adaptations to the local environmental setting. During the Archaic period (8000 B.C.-A.D. 1), £rush Creek valley was apparently exploited by hunters and gatherers who established short-duration camps. A large and probably permanent village was established during the period of Kansas City Hopewell occupation (A.D. 1-500), although small, temporary, camps were also in evidence. The Late Woodland occupation (A.D. 500-1 000) is marked by small sites with little evidence of any long term occupation. The final occupation of the valley, by Steed-Kisker peoples (A.D. 1 000-1250), is characterized by a pattern of many small homesteads occupied by populations who made their living through a combination of hunting, gathering, and horticulture.     

Using Functional Trajectories to Track Constructed Salt Marsh Development in the Great Bay Estuary, Maine/New Hampshire, U.S.A.

A growing number of studies have assessed the functional equivalency of restored and natural salt marshes. Several of these have explored the use of functional trajectories to track the increase in restored marsh function over time; however, these studies have disagreed as to the usefulness of such models in long‐term predictions of restored marsh development. We compared indicators of four marsh functions (primary production, soil organic matter accumulation, sediment trapping, and maintenance of plant communities) in 6 restored and 11 reference (matched to restored marshes using principal components analysis) salt marshes in the Great Bay Estuary. The restored marshes were all constructed and planted on imported substrate and ranged in age from 1 to 14 years. We used marsh age in a space‐for‐time substitution to track constructed salt marsh development and explore the use of trajectories. A high degree of variability was observed among natural salt marsh sites, displaying the importance of carefully chosen reference sites. As expected, mean values for constructed site (n = 6) and reference site (n = 11) functions were significantly different. Using constructed marsh age as the independent variable and functional indicator values as dependent variables, nonlinear regression analyses produced several ecologically meaningful trajectories (r ²> 0.9), demonstrating that the use of different‐aged marshes can be a viable approach to developing functional trajectories. The trajectories illustrated that although indicators of some functions (primary production, sediment deposition, and plant species richness) may reach natural site values relatively quickly (<10 years), others (soil organic matter content) will take longer.     

An Archaeological and Ethnohistorical Investigation of Selected Areas in Kootenai National Forest,Northwestern Montana

Abstract

During a preliminary archaeological survey of selected areas in Kootenai National Forest, located in northwestern Montana, ten archaeological sites were recorded. The majority of these sites were located on the terraces of the Kootenai River. These sites vary from surface and buried occupations, to numerous buried firehearth sites, a rockpile site and a vision quest site. Data from this survey were utilized in conjunction with ethnohistorical data to determine significant aboriginal use of river bank areas in extreme northwestern Montana.     

Blue Blanket Island (39WW9) an Historic Contact Site in the Oahe Reservoir Near Mobridge,South Dakota

Abstract

The Blue Blanket Island site (39WW9), a small, fortified, proto-historic Indian village on an island in the Missouri River, in Walworth County, South Dakota, was partially excavated by a River Basin Surveys crew in August 1961. One centrally located earthlodge, sections of the fortification, storage pits, and middens were excavated. Artifacts were scanty but architectural details were informative. The lodge was 18 sided with a short entry wayto the south (river side) and leaner posts of split cedar. The palisade was of split posts and the ditch was wide and shallow. The site appears to have been an Arikara village of short duration, probably occupied during the 1780’s and 1790’s. The abandoned remains of this village were noted by Lewis and Clark in 1804.     

Use of GIS and high resolution LiDAR in salt marsh restoration site suitability assessments in the upper Bay of Fundy, Canada

Salt marshes exhibit striking vegetation zonation corresponding to spatially variable elevation gradients which dictate their frequency of inundation by the tides. The salt marshes in the upper Bay of Fundy, a dynamic hypertidal system, are of considerable interest due to increasing recognition of salt marsh ecosystem values and the extent of prior conversion of salt marshes to agricultural lands, much of which are no longer in use. To determine the suitability of two potential restoration sites at Beausejour Marsh in New Brunswick, Canada, geomatics technologies and techniques were used to assess vegetation and elevation patterns in an adjacent reference salt marsh and the proposed restoration sites. Light detection and ranging digital elevation models (DEMs) were created for the reference marsh and the restoration sites in both the spring (leaf-off) and late summer (leaf-on, maximum biomass) periods. Aerial photographs and Quickbird multispectral imagery were used to visually interpret vegetation zones on the reference marsh and were field validated using vegetation characteristics from quadrats referenced with differential GPS. Elevation limits of the salt marsh vegetation zones were extracted from the DEM of the reference marsh and applied to the DEM of the restoration sites to determine the percentage area of each site that would be immediately suitable for new salt marsh growth. Of the two restoration sites assessed, one had experienced significant subsidence since dyking; only about 40 % of the site area was determined to be of sufficient elevation for immediate vegetation colonization. The second site, while more than 88 % suitable, would require the installation of a large dyke on the landward side of the restoration site to prevent flooding of adjacent lands. This study provides essential high resolution elevation and vegetation zonation data for use in restoration site assessments, and highlights the usefulness of applied geomatics in the salt marsh restoration planning process.     

A Predictive Model for Site Location in the Alberta Foothills

Abstract

In response to imminent annexation, 44 km2of the lower Simons Valley was subjected to foot survey. The resulting data were used to develop a predictive model for foothills site location, using physiographic zones as the independent variable. Statistical testing shows that the size of the site is related to the physiographic zone it occupies. For habitation sites, it is hypothesized that this variation in size and placement reflects summer and winter occupations, with large summer-winter sites located on low river terraces and congregating in the southern (sheltered) portion of the survey area, while smaller summer sites are spread throughout the survey area. Although no significant relationship was discovered between site type, site size, and the distance of the site from permanent water, the density of the total number of sites was related to this variable.     

Site 39Lm219 In The Big Bend Reservoir,South Dakota

Abstract

Site 39LM219, an earth-lodge village located in the neck of the Big Bend of the Missouri River in Lyman County, South Dakota, is assigned to the Chouteau Aspect and is presumed to date at about A. D. 1700. Probably the site is part of the Crazy Bull Site previously described in this journal.     

Neolithisation at the site Brandwijk-Kerkhof, the Netherlands: natural vegetation, human impact and plant food subsistence

Brandwijk-Kerkhof (ca. 4600 to 3630 cal b.c.) is a Neolithic site, located on a river dune in the Dutch Rhine/Maas river area. The natural vegetation and human impact upon it have been investigated by analysis of pollen and macroremains from four cores that are located at increasing distances up to 20 m from the site. The relationship between the strength of human impact on the vegetation and the distance of the cores from the river dune has been investigated as well. The results show that the natural vegetation on top of the river dune consisted of deciduous woodland, while in the surrounding wetlands alder carr and eutrophic marsh vegetation dominated. Human impact of limited strength resulted in more open and disturbed vegetation. There is no correlation between the strength of the evidence of human impact in the pollen diagrams and the distance of the cores from the river dune. The evidence for presence of crop plants from the cores is compared with evidence from the excavation. The first presence of crop plants from ca. 4200 b.c. onwards corresponds with data from other Dutch wetland sites. Large-scale local crop cultivation cannot however be demonstrated. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

A Site in the Fort Randall Reservoir1

Abstract

Site 39BR201 is an earth-lodge village located in the upper Fort Randall reservoir, Brdle County, South Dakota. Excavation of 1/2 of each of 2 circular earth-lodges, a midden area, and 8 test pits was done in the late summer of 1954 by Paul L. Cooper of the Smithsonian Institution, River Basin Surveys. Talking Crow Straight Rim, Talking Crow Indented, and Cadotte Collared pottery types make up most of the rim sherd sample. The presence of a few fragments of brass and iron in the features indicates a date in the late 17th or early 18th centuries for the occupation of the site. The ceramic material is related to that from the Two Teeth site and the Talking Crow site.     

Long-term trends in vegetation dominance and infaunal community composition in created marshes

An increase in salt marsh restoration efforts,especially over the last two decades, underscores theneed for effective methods to evaluate long-termsuccess. Most marsh restoration/creation efforts areonly evaluated over the first few years afterestablishment and in many cases only vegetativecharacteristics are examined. This study examinesvegetation as well as dominance and abundance patternsof benthic infauna at three created marsh sites ofvarying ages in Winyah Bay, South Carolina, and acreated marsh site in North Carolina, using data fromearlier studies and from sampling undertaken in 1998. Abundances fluctuated strongly between years, withpatterns of numerical abundance changing betweensites. In contrast, species dominance as measured bypercent occurrence tended to remain constant afterestablishment of a site. The same suite of specieswas dominant at all sites regardless of marsh age oryear of sampling. These results indicate that whilefaunal abundance is an important factor in determiningmarsh function (i.e., are higher trophic levelssupported?), dominance may be as useful in monitoringstability, especially in areas where the faunalassemblage is not closely tied to the vegetativecommunity.

     

Salt Marsh Restoration in Connecticut: 20 Years of Science and Management

In 1980 the State of Connecticut began a tidal marsh restoration program targeting systems degraded by tidal restrictions and impoundments. Such marshes become dominated by common reed grass (Phragmites australis) and cattail (Typha angustifolia and T. latifolia), with little ecological connection to Long Island Sound. The management and scientific hypothesis was that returning tidal action, reconnecting marshes to Long Island Sound, would set these systems on a recovery trajectory. Specific restoration targets (i.e., pre‐disturbance conditions or particular reference marshes) were considered unrealistic. However, it was expected that with time restored tides would return ecological functions and attributes characteristic of fully functioning tidal salt marshes. Here we report results of this program at nine separate sites within six marsh systems along 110 km of Long Island Sound shoreline, with restoration times of 5 to 21 years. Biotic parameters assessed include vegetation, macroinvertebrates, and use by fish and birds. Abiotic factors studied were soil salinity, elevation and tidal flooding, and soil water table depth. Sites fell into two categories of vegetation recovery: slow, ca. 0.5%, or fast, more than 5% of total area per year. Although total cover and frequency of salt marsh angiosperms was positively related to soil salinity, and reed grass stand parameters negatively so, fast versus slow recovery rates could not be attributed to salinity. Instead, rates appear to reflect differences in tidal flooding. Rapid recovery was characterized by lower elevations, greater hydroperiods, and higher soil water tables. Recovery of other biotic attributes and functions does not necessarily parallel those for vegetation. At the longest studied system (rapid vegetation recovery) the high marsh snail Melampus bidentatus took two decades to reach densities comparable with a nearby reference marsh, whereas the amphipod Orchestia grillus was well established on a slow‐recovery marsh, reed grass dominated after 9 years. Typical fish species assemblages were found in restoration site creeks and ditches within 5 years. Gut contents of fish in ditches and on the high marsh suggest that use of restored marsh as foraging areas may require up to 15 years to reach equivalence with reference sites. Bird species that specialize in salt marshes require appropriate vegetation; on the oldest restoration site, breeding populations comparable with reference marshland had become established after 15 years. Use of restoration sites by birds considered marsh generalists was initially high and was still nearly twice that of reference areas even after 20 years. Herons, egrets, and migratory shorebirds used restoration areas extensively. These results support our prediction that returning tides will set degraded marshes on trajectories that can bring essentially full restoration of ecological functions. This can occur within two decades, although reduced tidal action can delay restoration of some functions. With this success, Connecticut's Department of Environmental Protection established a dedicated Wetland Restoration Unit. As of 1999 tides have been restored at 57 separate sites along the Connecticut coast.