Prey Depletion and the Zooarchaeological Record: Implications from Bofi and Aka Ethnoarchaeological Research

Changes in the abundances of certain animals in zooarcheological assemblages are often viewed as indicators of prey depletion from anthropogenic causes or natural environmental change. Central assumptions in these analyses are that depletions of larger-bodied and higher value prey will lead to increased diet breadth and the inclusion of smaller-sized and lower value animals in the diet. In this paper, we use quantitative data derived from ethnoarchaeological studies of forest foragers to test these assumptions. By comparing prey harvesting rates and resulting zooarchaeological assemblages from 2 different villages, we show how anthropogenic effects  (over-hunting and roads) influence hunting patterns and prey choice. Our analyses show that changes in hunting patterns resulting from prey depression generally match some of the traditional assumptions that guide zooarchaeological analyses but these data also show important deviations from expectations. Specifically, we find deviations in hunters prey selection resulting from a desire to maintaining social networks.