Native American culture and prehistoric bison hunting in the Black Hills
Wolley Vawser AM and Schilling T. 2013. Native American culture and prehistoric bison hunting in the Black Hills. Park Science. 30(2):26-29
Archeology integrates new and existing data to understand how humans interacted with their environment, in both the recent and distant past. This article provides an example of research into human-environment interactions and insights into how resulting information can assist park managers across programs. Wind Cave National Park has played a pivotal role in restoring bison to the Great Plains as well as preserving their once extensive grassland habitats. The Midwest Archeological Center is contributing to the park’s knowledge about the history of bison through research at a park archeological site that includes remnants of an occupation by Native Americans whose culture was centered on plains bison. Archeological evidence recovered at the site suggests that while these people practiced communal hunting by driving bison off a nearby cliff, they apparently did not regularly kill more bison than the group could use as no large bone bed was discovered below the bluff. The site was also occupied multiple times over hundreds of years suggesting sustained bison populations through time.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Wolley Vawser, Anne; Schilling, Timothy
- Units
- MWAC , WICA
- Keywords
- Archeology, bison ecology, Black Hills, Plains Indian culture, Wind Cave National Park