archaeobotanical and soil chemistry investigation of a woodland site on whitefish lake, northwestern ontario
abstract
whitefish lake is a large, shallow lake abundant in wild rice (zizania palustris)
that lies near the transitional zone between the boreal forest and great lakes-st.
lawrence forest regions of northwestern ontario. the lake exhibits extensive use
during the woodland period (150 bc- ad 1600) inferred from the lithic and pottery
recoveries and the presence of burial mounds at several archaeological sites. the
soils here are typical of those elsewhere in the boreal forest, characterized by
poor organic preservation and disturbed, compacted stratigraphy thus limiting
knowledge of plant use at many sites. on-going research from whitefish lake,
particulary the martin-bird site (dbjm-5), is revealing aspects of paleoecology and
human paleodiet in the absence of conventional lines of evidence through the
analysis of plant microfossils, like starch and phytoliths. the objectives of this
thesis are to further understand aspects of paleoecology and precontact land-use
at the martin-bird site and to assess the utility of subtle lines of evidence at sites
exhibiting poor organic preservation. a multi-proxy approach, combining the
analysis of plant microfossils (starch, phytoliths, and charcoal) and soil chemistry
(phosphorus) on soils from the site, is used to address these objectives. my thesis
explores the information and land-use patterns that can be obtained from plant
microfossils and soil chemistry analyses in the absence of organic lines of
evidence, while providing a greater understanding of the woodland period of the
eastern woodlands culture history.