The principles of culture ecology suggest that many facets of a people’s lives are influenced by the environment. Native Americans of the Great Basin, Arctic Circle, and Pacific Northwest were exposed to dramatically different environments and resources. The resource base influenced, directly and indirectly, various aspects of their lives including group size, degree of mobility, the types of housing they used, the material possessions they had, and their social structure. By comparing the traditional lifeways of the tribes within these different geographic zones, we can demonstrate how cultures adapt to their resources.
Conditions of the Great Basin, Arctic Circle, and Pacific Northwest had a distinct impact upon the areas of which they encompassed. Terrain, temperature, flora, and fauna are characteristics which demonstrate the differences between these unique areas — making up the whole of Nevada, parts of California, Oregon, Utah, and Idaho. The Great Basin is a geographical depression surrounded by both the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountain ranges, which in whole makes up roughly 24 million acres of land (Miller 1/31/19; Oswalt 2009: 170-173). In the summer, temperatures in the lowlands reach up to 90°F or higher considering the area high desert. However, sections of mountain ranges reaching heights of 10,000 feet and above experience lower temperatures due to a difference in elevation. Annual precipitation ranges from 10 to 15 inches, yet because of lower temperatures in the mountains the accumulation of snow in the winter later leads to snowmelt runoff when the warm temperatures arrive with spring (Oswalt 2009: 170-171; Miller 1/31/19). Over time, the formation of various watercourses of runoff has lead to the formation of the Great Salt Lake, an ecological hotspot at the core of the basin. Additionally, the appearance and distribution of animal and plant life correlate with the varying temperatures and terrains. During the spring in the hot, sprawling valleys, marsh and bushlands are home to cottonwood trees, cattails, reeds, Indian ricegrass, deer, waterfowl, bush rodents such as kangaroo rat, cricket, and junipers complete with berries. While above the timberline in the more mountainous areas there is a presence of herbs, pinon pine trees, and bigger game such as antelope or bighorn sheep (Oswalt 2009: 171-172; Miller 1/31/19). Similarly, the Arctic may also be categorized as a desert because of its general bareness but is known instead as a tundra; an environment where freezing temperatures stunt plant growth. The Arctic Circle makes up the entirety of the Arctic Ocean, the east coast of Canada, the southeast coast of Alaska, a majority of Greenland, the far west coast of Russia, and many of the islands or land masses scattered between as a majority of the land is water based (Miller 2/5/19). Temperatures reach as low as -40℉, and because of this, vegetation is almost entirely non-existent within the vast expanse of frozen, mostly flat terrain during colder times of the year. While driftwood appears, it is difficult to find any grand expanse of forest. Seaweed and smaller areas of grasslands represent the height of the flora present when warmer seasons such as spring and summer lessen the impact of the tundra. As a result, most life resides under water. Narwhals, seals, walrus, fish, and other sea creatures are teaming in the ocean, while foxes, polar bears, and wild dogs inhabit the surface (Nanook Movie; Miller 2/5/19). When temperatures die down in the spring, caribou migrate north to take advantage of the thawing grasslands, and there feast (Miller 2/5/19). In sharp contrast, environments of the Pacific Northwest have been a cradle for diverse plant life and distinct animal species. Stretching from the upper to the midwest coast of Canada, and parts of the southwest coast of Alaska, the Pacific Northwest is defined by deeply forested mountains which kiss the Pacific and its many glaciers, islands, and bays. Because of this, there are many streams and rivers, confined to the valleys, reaching inland. The meeting of these two ecozones, ocean and forest, as well as high precipitation, makes the Pacific Northwest an optimal environment of resource abundance (Miller 2/12/19; Oswalt 2009: 268-273). Oysters, muscles, and clams are just a few of the many kinds of seafood. While orca whales, candlefish, and salmon patrol the rivers, streams, and oceans, each representing an integral part of the local, seasonal food chain. Bears, elk, mink, foxes, Irman, beavers, and geese are just some of the many species located on land. Furthermore, the inland population of animals is sheltered by rows of towering maple, cottonwood, and alder trees (Miller 2/12/19; Oswalt 2009: 268-273). Each one of these environments, Great Basin, Arctic Circle, and Pacific Northwest, possessed different resources because of a difference in temperature, terrain, and seasonal conditions, which ultimately influenced their inhabitants.
As a result of differing environments, resource bases affected group size. Native Americans who inhabited the Great Basin, Arctic Circle, and Pacific Northwest landscapes each had differing group sizes. The scarcity of resources often leads to smaller group sizes, while abundance promotes an increase in group size. The presence of resources, or lack therefore, denotes group size (Miller 1/31/19). A nation is the largest unit of group size, and typically refers to the overall occupation of a vast ecosystem. Within a nation, a tribe is made up of groups of families, known as bands, which may be one of many in the area. Many tribes may exist within a given nation. Bands consist of clans, which are defined by relationships of extended family and make up the lowest unit of group size (Miller 1/31/19). The Western Shoshone of the Great Basin traveled in small familial clusters, which could be made of up to two ten-member family groups of male hunters and female gathers. However, the general lack of resource abundance and climate in the basin forced the Western Shoshone specifically to make up such small group sizes (Oswalt 2009: 170-173). Small rodents, waterfowl, and edible plants represented the primary food source of these Native Americans and could only sustain the nutritional needs of a few people. It would prove detrimental if large groups of Shoshone Indians were to poach, or overhunt, the limited amount of small game in settled areas. It was more advantageous for these peoples to be in small groups to be more mobile, allowing them to find new areas within the nation that had predictable resources, moving on from the section of land whose resources they had just used at a cost-effective rate (Miller 1/31/19; Oswalt 2009: 170-173).
Additionally, the harsh summer climate made it so that small groups could travel fast enough to reach the lower temperatures of the mountains as summer arrived. Similarly, the Netsilik of the Arctic Circle traveled in moderate groups, but also formed sedentary bands of around 20 to 50 people (Oswalt 2009: 71-73). The presence of polar bears, walrus, and narwhal, made it so in order to survive male hunters would need to travel in packs big enough to kill these animals and collect their resources, but small enough to traverse the tundra quickly (Miller 2/5/19; Oswalt 2009: 71-78). However, when not hunting, bands of family clans would remain sedentary as traveling consistently in negative degree temperatures would hinder survival (Miller 2/5/19; Nanook Movie; Oswalt 2009: 71-78). Most differently, the Tlingit people of the Pacific Northwest were able to develop entire tribes and coastal towns of a couple thousand, because of the abundance of environmental resources (Oswalt 2009: 268-273). The trees, animals, and eco-diversity propelled the Tlingit into massive groups of families. The Tlingit developed longhouses to shelter these countless families, and even reached the point of a stratified social structure, or class system, because of their population and wealth (Miller 2/12/19; Oswalt 2009: 268-273). The varying resource abundance of different geographical locations determined the group sizes of the Western Shoshone, Netsilik, and Tlingit peoples, demonstrated through their social structures, possessions, and degree of mobility.
Resource abundance and availability determines the amount and type of possessions a people may have. Often, Native American possessions are pieces and bits of their environment, crafts, or trophies from animals, reflecting resources in that area. The Western Shoshone had few possessions which were majorly crucial to their lifestyles. With only cottonwood branches, most Shoshone possessions were made from plant stalks, fibers, and stems (Miller 1/31/19; Oswalt 2009: 170-173). A thump was a Native American backpack used for carrying smaller items and food. For collecting seeds, the Western Shoshone used a seed beater and cone-shaped basket, which allowed them to gather enough of this small resource. Other smaller baskets were saved as well for cooking and miniature storage. Other than these tools, the Shoshone had nets for catching the smaller, quicker rodents and shells, animal claws, and bones which were used for jewelry or ornaments. The Shoshone possessions were representative of their adaptability to strict conditions but allowed them to move to the next anticipated food source quickly (Miller 1/31/19; Oswalt 2009: 170-173).
The Netsilik also needed mobile possessions. Using driftwood and animal skin, the Netsilik made sleds and kayaks, which were two of the most useful possessions of the Netsilik; additionally their large coats, boots, blankets, made from animals, were also necessary against the harsh tundra (Nanook Movie; Miller 2/5/19). However, in order to hunt, the Netsilik used harpoons, nets, fishing rods, and when disassembling the animal, a sharpened obdurate walrus tusk knife. So the Netsilik needed possessions which could be transported, ultimately to be used to hunt and butcher large, dispersed animals and also kept warm clothes in order to survive in their cold environment, but this demonstrates these possessions were made directly from their available resources (Nanook Movie; Miller 2/5/19). The Tlingit, because the available resources were animals and driftwood, their possessions were created from these materials for warmth. Because they had access to extensive forests and wood, the Tlingit were able to create longhouses, kayaks, totem poles, masks, bows, spears, storage boxes which they then could save food, ornaments, and tools. They also used candlefish oil for candles and to preserve food in their wooden boxes. The Tlingit with these tools then hunted whales and bears, but created pottery and extensive, intricate clothing and wear (Miller 2/12/19; Oswalt 2009: 268-273). The Tlingit had so many possessions; they had ceremonies every few years in order to gift neighboring tribes hundreds of articles of clothing, jewelry, pottery, tools, and fish oil to establish power or show wealth, obligating that tribe to beat there then gesture during the next ceremony (Miller 2/12/19; Oswalt 2009: 268-273). This creation of a stratified social structure proves the Tlingit adapted to their resource base quite well. The possessions of these Native American peoples correlated directly with the resource abundance of their environments.
Chief Anotklosh of the Taku nation. He wears a woven Chilkan blanket of cedar bark and mountain goat wool and a European-style cape, and holds a carved wooden bird rattle. Photograph by W.H. Case, ca. 1913, Juneau, Alaska
The Western Shoshone, Netsilik, and Tlingit were all exposed to intensely different bases of resources. The meager, scattered resources of the Great Basin pushed the Shoshone people to travel in small group sizes to areas of predictable abundance, and only keep mobile possessions which could exploit these areas. So because a general lack of wood, the Shoshone adapted by using smaller plants for tools and shelter, and because they faced scarcity their group size was smaller. The Netsilik adapted to the cold, harsh Arctic Circle by creating warm fur clothing and tools from the parts of the creatures which they hunted across the snowscape, which resulted in animal and snow based possessions. Netsilik had moderate group size because their animal resources were abundant and dispersed. And the Tlingit, because of their abundance of wood and animal presence created an entire civilization with a class system and mass housing. These examples demonstrates by comparison of lifeways that these peoples adapted to their resource bases, meaning that ultimately a person’s environment effects, directly and indirectly, through group size, possessions, social structures, and degree of mobility.
08.03.2019