Thesis
Long-term and Multiscalar Variability in Northwest Coast Fish Traps
Washington State University
Master of Arts (MA), Washington State University
01/2021
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7273/000003098
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/122705
Abstract
This thesis explores the spatial and temporal distribution of fish traps across the Pacific Northwest Coast over the last 6,000 years. I utilize fish trap variables associated with physical and social practices to better understand the role fish traps have played in the subsistence economy. I specifically demonstrate trends of increasing intensification and closer spatial proximity to adjacent archaeological sites through time. I interpret these trends as an increase in investment into the coastal landscape as well as a reflection of ownership or proprietorship systems for managing fish trap features and harvesting practices. I provide two case studies that offer a more contextual and small-scale perspective on the use of fish traps in specific locales across the coast. The first case study considers the relationship between fish traps and salmon streams of varying productivity on the Prince of Wales archipelago. The second case study incorporates a niche construction theoretical framework in an analysis of the consequences of these constructions on local ecologies, arguing that they function to draw multiple animal species into an anthropogenic niche for more efficient harvesting by humans. More broadly, this thesis discusses the multiple ways fish traps impact the subsistence economy and how increased investment into trap features contributes to intensification and institutionalized systems of management.
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Details
- Title
- Long-term and Multiscalar Variability in Northwest Coast Fish Traps
- Creators
- Michael S Lorain
- Contributors
- Colin Grier (Advisor)Shannon Tushingham (Committee Member)Andrew Duff (Committee Member)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Anthropology, Department of
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Arts (MA), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University
- Number of pages
- 145
- Identifiers
- 99900651792301842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Thesis