Weathering the storm: Coastal subsistence and ecological resilience on Late Holocene Santa Rosa Island, California

Archaeological research on California’s Channel Islands has significantly enhanced understanding of the diversity and variability of coastal hunter-gatherers and the shell middens these people left behind. On the Channel Islands, the Late Holocene was a time of substantial population growth, territoriality, and the emergence of social hierarchies. The role of marine and terrestrial climate change, population growth, human environmental impacts, and other variables in driving Late Holocene cultural and ecological developments is a subject of considerable debate. Analysis of faunal remains (especially finfish and shellfish), complemented by human skeletal and stable isotope analyses, from a massive shell midden and village complex (CA-SRI-2) on Santa Rosa Island provides insight into Late Holocene human responses to coastal resource stress and environmental change. Despite significant population growth, the emergence of social stratification, and increased pressure on local resources and ecosystems, these data demonstrate that there is significant continuity in the coastal resources Channel Island peoples exploited through time. These results document the long-term resilience and adaptability of coastal hunter-gatherers, the marine resources they harvested, and Channel Island ecosystems.