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In this paper, we argue for the inclusion of archaeology in discussions about how humans have contributed to and dealt with climate change, especially in the long term. We suggest Niche Construction Theory as a suitable framework to that end. In order to take into account both human and environmental variability, we also advocate for a situated perspective that includes the Global South as a source of knowledge production, and the Neotropics as a relevant case study to consider. To illustrate this, we review the mid-Holocene Hypsithermal period in the southern Puna and continental Patagonia, both in southern South America, by assessing the challenges posed by this climate period and the archaeological signatures of the time from a Niche Construction Theory perspective. Finally, we emphasize the importance of these considerations for policymaking. This article is part of the theme issue 'Climate change adaptation needs a science of culture'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes that the use of the bow and arrow and boleadoras (stone throwers) as a weapon system was simultaneously employed --in different environments-- by the Aonikenk hunter-gatherer groups in the post 1520 AD period, which is different from the hypothesis found in previous historical-ethnographic studies. To test our hypothesis and due to the scarcity of stone balls in the stratigraphic excavations, we chose an analysis of the frequency of projectile points, end-scrapers and side-scrapers found in 38 post-contact sites. These three types of artefacts presented different frequencies, which may be associated with the different functions of the respective sites (limited activities vs. multiple activities). This analysis, together with the topography of the sites, allowed us to confirm our initial hypothesis, showing the usefulness of a regional approach to the analysis of post-Contact archaeology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hunter-gatherer occupations of the forests of Patagonia are still not well understood compared to those of the open steppe and the coasts. The paucity of forest sites with a thorough chronological framework and the incomplete picture of climatehuman dynamics in such environments pose a challenge to understanding the occupations of such habitats. This paper presents recent work at the Las Quemas rockshelter, an archaeological site located in the Andean forests of the Aisén region (44°38'S) dating between 6100 and 2400 cal BP. We examine the context of the site, its rock art, and the technological and functional dimensions of its lithic assemblage. By comparing these records with local environmental reconstructions that report forest area fluctuations after the Post-Glacial period, this study provides novel data for a comprehensive regionalscale model of human occupations in central Patagonian forests. Following an initial mid-Holocene occupation, recurring occupational events at the site coincide with a significant contraction of forested area in the region during the late Holocene. The results are discussed in regard to regional archaeological data and current models of forest occupation in Patagonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this paper was to characterize fibers and vessel elements in the wood of Nothofagus nervosa (Phil.) Dim. et Mil., Nothofagaceae, (raulí), determining the variation of their lengths in the tree in radial and axial orientations and evaluating their variability between trees. Four trees with DBH (diameter at breast height) above 40 cm were used from Quilanlahue site, Neuquén, Argentina, from which sections were removed at three different heights. The north radius of each section was used and microscopic preparations and macerations were produced every ten years from pith to bark. The characteristics of fibers and vessel elements were described. The length of both cells was significantly greater in radial orientation from pith to bark. In axial orientation the length of the fiber is variable, while the length of vessel elements does not show significant changes. The greatest source of variation was observed in the tree related to the different ages at which wood was formed. A diminishing in the variation coefficient was observed for the length of fibers and vascular elements from twenty years of age of the tree. Variability among trees was not significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents an updated, extensive review of glacier fluctuations during the past 1000years in the extratropical Andes of South America between ca. 17° and 55°S. Given the variety of environmental conditions and evidence available for glacier fluctuations across this wide latitudinal range, regional accounts are given for the Desert Andes (∼17°–31°S), the Andes of central Chile and Argentina (31°–36°S), and the North (36°–45°S) and South (45°–55°S) Patagonian Andes. The techniques, dating limitations, and interpretations of the glacier records along this transect are also discussed. Information on glacier fluctuations in the Desert Andes is limited to the 20th century. Documentation on past glacier variations is more abundant in the Central Chilean-Argentinean Andes, but the number of chronologies dealing with glacier fluctuations prior to the 1900s is also limited. Most records indicate that glaciers were generally more extensive prior to the 20th century, with dates of maximum expansion ranging from the 16th to the 19th centuries. The number and extent of glaciers increase significantly in the Patagonian region, where the evidence available for dating glacier variations during the past centuries is more abundant and the dating control for glacier events is generally better than in the northern parts of the study area. For some Patagonian glaciers, maximum Little Ice Age (LIA) or post-LIA advances have been precisely dated by dendro-geomorphological determinations or in situ measurements. However, for most sites, the evidence available is still preliminary and there is considerable variability in the extent and timing of events related to the maximum LIA expansion identified in most areas between the 16th and 19th centuries. Evidence is starting to appear at a growing number of sites for glacier advances during the first half of the past millennium. These events were generally less extensive than the LIA maximum pulses. Despite the occurrence of several post-LIA readvances over the past 100–110years, most areas in the Andes of extratropical South America have experienced a general pattern of glacier recession and significant ice mass losses. The differences in the glacier histories observed at local and regional scales probably reflect the inherent limitations associated with the glacier records and/or the dating techniques used in each case together with the varying dominance of precipitation, temperature and other climatic and non-climatic factors on glacier mass balance and glacier dynamics. These differences indicate that the late Holocene glacier history of southern South America is more complex than commonly assumed. The evidence discussed in this study highlights not only the immense potential for glaciological studies of this region but also a significant need for an increased number of detailed, well-dated records of glacier fluctuations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

South America appears as a paradox for building the images of the New World''s human colonization. It is a paradox, because according to the models of the Peopling of America, it was the last part of the continent to be occupied by humans, but in spite of that sites as old as or older than the “Clovis” sites from North America, started to be discovered since the last century. It is a laboratory, because the amount of the Pleistocene archaeological sites is as great as their variability. In this way, since the last two decades, the hemi-continent is placed in a privileged situation for questioning and reconstructing theories concerning the first Americans, and also for answering questions as when did they arrive, how did they arrive, what strategies (social, ecological and economic) did they develop for the colonization of such different environments, which were their ideas for achieving this colonization, and how does their use of space and resources reflect in the archaeological record. The model “Clovis the first”, brings an image of unidirectional migration of the first people, from the great North American plains to southern Patagonia. For a decade, this model showed itself insufficient for explaining the great archaeological variability of America and especially for referring those South American contexts directly to a Clovis migration. The new findings in South America are creating more anomalies for this model, which predicts that the arrival of Pleistocene hunter–gatherers should be around 10,000 years in Patagonia. The object of this paper is to discuss these models in view of South American archaeological evidence, and thus propose answers for removing the paradox. The axes which are considered are: the geographical and chronological distribution of the main localities of Patagonia and South America; the function of the sites within regional mobility systems; the use of subsistence resources; the differences in the circulation of lithic raw materials; and the different taphonomical histories. These characteristics will be compared with models of social network among mobile peoples and American paleolandscapes at the Pleistocene/Holocene transition and a new alternative route of peopling in South America will be presented. In this sense, the data of Patagonia are highly relevant. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Pleistocene–Holocene transition was a critical time for the dispersal of human societies all over South America. People looking for places to settle had to accept high environmental variability during the colonizing process. The case studied for this paper is Patagonia (Southern South America), where the oldest dates (ca. 13–10.5 ka BP) have been obtained for the peopling in the Deseado River Basin and Magellan Basin, as well. However, two archaeological sites yielded similar dates on the western side of the Andes (Monte Verde and Tagua Tagua).Following archaeological and palaeoenvironmental data (palynological, faunal, sedimentological and glaciological information), as well as radiocarbon datings, a hypothesis about the colonization of Patagonia is presented. Analysing the ways and time of colonization for this region, it is remarkable the coincidence of these ages in the centre of the steppe and close to the Magellan Strait, even in the present Tierra del Fuego island, though the eastern Andean foothills seems to be occupied at least two millennia later. It is proposed that independent peopling entries would have occurred both through the Atlantic and Pacific facades, and that the Andean foothills were colonized much later, only when the available spaces allowed it. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper models the extent of the Patagonian icesheet during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and its subsequent deglaciation. It constrains a new coupled icesheet/climate numerical model with empirical evidence and simulates the icesheet at the LGM and at stages of deglaciation. Under LGM conditions an icesheet with a modelled volume slightly in excess of 500,000 km3 builds up along the Andes. There is a marked contrast between the maritime and continental flanks of the modelled icesheet, with positive mass balance exceeding 2 m in the west and declining tenfold to the east. Modelled ice velocities commonly reach 400 m yr−1 in the western fjords. The model is most sensitive to variations in temperature and good agreement between modelled ice extent and empirical evidence was achieved by applying a temperature decrease of 6°C relative to present day temperatures with constant wind fields over the model domain. Assuming a stepped start to deglaciation, modelled ice volumes declined sharply, contributing 1.2 m to global sea level, 80% of it within 2000 years. The empirical record suggests that such a stepped warming occurred around 17,500–17,150 cal yr ago. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]