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Several foodborne diseases have been described in coastal populations from the past, many of them including parasitic infections related to marine diets. Considering this background, the strong relationship between hunter-gatherers from Patagonia and the marine species implies a possible source of parasitic infections and zoonotic risk. However, marine parasitic species have not been identified in archaeological sites from Patagonia so far. The aim of this paper is to propose the potential parasitic infections produced by the consumption of marine molluscs, fishes, birds and sea mammals by human populations from Patagonia during the Holocene, considering the current parasitic species identified in the Southern Atlantic Ocean. We searched in journal articles and book chapters for references of archaeological remains of molluscs, fishes, seabirds and marine mammals recorded in archaeological sites from the Atlantic coast below the 42nd parallel South. Afterwards, we surveyed all the macroparasites of marine origin identified by current parasitological research in the same species found in the archaeological record. We found that most of the marine species in the zooarchaeological record of Patagonia are currently hosts of many parasites. Some species of molluscs, fishes and pinnipeds are highly infected by larvae that are potentially hazardous for human health. Some of them are responsible for acute or chronic zoonotic diseases, with severe consequences depending on how the food was cooked, the amount of consumed parasites and the immune response of the host, in this case, humans. Fishes are host of several parasites related to anisakidosis and corynosomiasis. Sea lions species were also a potential source of the same zoonosis but also diphyllobothriasis. Molluscs are hosts of several parasitic species, but with less severe consequences for human health. On the other hand, birds are infected by adult parasites, without direct zoonotic importance. These findings, although limited by temporal and environmental variability, can provide a speculative overview about the potential influence of marine diets in the health of past hunter-gatherers of Patagonia, particularly if fishes, molluscs or marine mammals were consumed inadequately cooked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central Western Patagonia (CWP) is a key area for assessing long-distance procurement of high-quality obsidians throughout the Holocene given that almost all relevant types represented in the archaeological record are exotic to this region. By using surface and stratigraphic obsidian artifacts from archaeological sites compared to standards from known sources in Patagonia, this paper discusses the spatial and temporal distribution of this lithic material. Sampling was oriented to assemblages from deposits with radiocarbon-based time frames (10,700 − 300 cal BP). This paper presents geochemical (ICP-MS) analyses of 178 samples from 58 archaeological sites at 11 surveyed areas located along the Pacific coast, the Andean forest, and eastern steppe. Out of six potential sources, the Chaitén Volcano source (Los Lagos Region, Chile) dominates exclusively the occurrence of obsidians along the coastal fringe, while the Pampa del Asador source (PDA, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina) largely dominates (86% of samples) obsidian in the eastern steppe and the forest/steppe ecotone. This broad distribution is explained by the presence of the densely forested Andean mountain range acting as a biogeographical barrier. East of the Andes, we recorded an absolute dominance of PDA south of 45°30′S, while more variability prevailed north of this point. The highest diversity of obsidians was recorded in the Cisnes River valley, probably because it is located closer to other alternative northern sources (Telsen/Sierra Negra, Sacanana and Angostura Blanca, all in Chubut Province, Argentina) and because it also hosts a local low-quality obsidian type. Based on this distribution, we discuss obsidian procurement behaviors by considering obsidian frequency and tool/debitage-class representation with increasing distance. We use the analysis of fall-off curves based on the distance of studied locations from the sources and include the use of least-cost paths for providing the most likely procurement routes. No obsidian diversification was recorded during the Holocene, hence the main driver for its procurement seems to be the distance from the source rather than the antiquity of its knowledge. Alternative procurement behaviors are discussed, specifically direct acquisition, exchange, and/or sporadic visits as mechanisms for explaining the archaeological patterns throughout the Holocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the different practices employed in the acquisition of woody material used by hunter–gatherer societies from the northwestern region of the Santa Cruz Province, Argentine Patagonia, during the early and middle Holocene. In addressing this theme, we study carbonized and non-carbonized wood recovered from six stratigraphic levels from the Cerro Casa de Piedra 7 site. This research revealed that during the lowest level of occupation, a distinct range of woody species were utilized; these were subsequently absent in the rest of the stratigraphical levels studied. In fact, all the other levels analyzed presented the homogeneous presence of a single plant species: Nothofagus pumilio. This species has the largest representation among both the charcoal and uncharred wood fragments of the six levels studied. The study of the assemblage samples allowed us to identify differences between the various archaeological levels, which could be the product of behavioral and/or environmental differences. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]