Prehistoric Sea Turtle Hunting on the Pacific Coast of Mexico

摘要

Archaeological sites on the west coast of Mexico provide long-term recordsof human predation on sea turtle populations. These large reptiles, valuable for their meat, eggs, shell, oil, and skin, are easily obtained from nesting beaches, but prolonged predation can disrupt rookeries and lead to population fragmentation and local extirpation. Our recent excavations at two sites in coastal Guerrero near Acapulco indicate that people hunted sea turtles, most likely from nesting grounds, by at least 5500 cal yrs BP and significantly reduced their local availability within a 3,000 year period. These data help provide a deeper historical and environmental framework Address correspondence to Carley B. Smith, Department of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. E-mail: csmith15@uoregon.edu for evaluating the disposition and vulnerability of these endangered species today (Limpus 1995; Spotila 2004).