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In the Atacama Desert from northern Chile (19–24°S), Prosopis (Leguminosae) individuals are restricted to oases that are unevenly distributed and isolated from each other by large stretches of barren landscape constituting an interesting study model as the degree of connectivity between natural populations depends on their dispersal capacity and the barriers imposed by the landscape. Our goal was to assess the genetic diversity and the degree of differentiation among groups of Prosopis individuals of different species from Section Algarobia and putative hybrids (hereafter populations) co‐occurring in these isolated oases from the Atacama Desert and determine whether genetic patterns are associated with dispersal barriers. Thirteen populations were sampled from oases located on three hydrographic basins (Pampa del Tamarugal, Rio Loa, and Salar de Atacama; northern, central, and southern basins, respectively). Individuals genotyped by eight SSRs show high levels of genetic diversity (H O = 0.61, A r = 3.5) and low but significant genetic differentiation among populations (F ST = 0.128, F ST‐ENA = 0.129, D JOST = 0.238). The AMOVA indicates that most of the variation occurs within individuals (79%) and from the variance among individuals (21%); almost, the same variation can be found between basins and between populations within basins. Differentiation and structure results were not associated with the basins, retrieving up to four genetic clusters and certain admixture in the central populations. Pairwise differentiation comparisons among populations showed inconsistencies considering their distribution throughout the basins. Genetic and geographic distances were significantly correlated at global and within the basins considered (p, We assess the genetic diversity and the degree of differentiation among groups of Prosopis individuals of different species from Section Algarobia and putative hybrids co‐occurring in isolated oases from the Atacama Desert (19–24°S) in Chile. Genetic results are discussed in relation to the fragmented landscape, considering both natural and non‐natural (humans) dispersal agents that may be moving Prosopisin the desert.

Recovery methods and techniques for archaeological sampling can yield major differences in abundance and anatomo-taxonomical representation of animals, affecting past social and ecological reconstruction. Despite being a common organic material in archaeological sites, faunal remains typically exhibit differential preservation of species and skeletal elements due to pre- and post-depositional processes. This is particularly true for small-sized animals such as certain species of fish, whose often small and fragile fragments are difficult to recover and identify. Here, we present the results of a comparative analysis between two ichthyoarchaeological assemblages from Caleta Vitor 3 in northern Chile (CV3, 18°45′09″ S), an Early to Middle Holocene (9.2–7.6 ka cal BP) Chinchorro shell midden site. We compare samples obtained and processed, both in the field and the lab, using different recovery techniques. We developed a data standardisation procedure to compare and evaluate skeletal representation, taxa distribution and variations throughout the stratigraphic sequence. Our results show that mesh screen size affects not only the abundance and density of fish but also species representation. Moreover, the identification of small pelagic fish at CV3 sheds further light upon prehistoric fishing strategies and social organisation during the site’s early occupation., This work was supported by FONDECYT [grant number 1150763] project under grant Becas Chile – Doctorado en el Extranjero 2018. The authors thank FONDECYT [grant number 1191568] (to C. L. and C. M. S.) and the Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo (Chile) [grant number AFB170008] for funding past and ongoing excavations. S. R. and D. Z. acknowledge Grups de Recerca de Qualitat CaSEs – Culture and Socio-Ecological Dynamics [grant number 2017 SGR 212], AGAUR-Generalitat de Catalunya for funding this work in the 40th AEA Conference. C. L. and C. M. S. also acknowledge ongoing funding from the Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo (Chile), Millennium Nucleus UPWELL [grant number NCN19_153]., We acknowledge support of the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI).

The social groups that initially inhabited the hyper arid core of the Atacama Desert of northern Chile during the late Pleistocene integrated a wide range of local, regional and supra regional goods and ideas for their social reproduction as suggested by the archaeological evidence contained in several open camps in Pampa del Tamarugal (PdT). Local resources for maintaining their every-day life, included stone raw material, wood, plant and animal fibers, game, and fresh water acquired within a radius of ∼30 km (ca. 1-2 days journey). At a regional scale, some goods were introduced from the Pacific coast (60-80 km to the west, ca. 3-4 days journey), including elongated rounded cobbles used as hammer stones in lithic production, and shells, especially from non-edible species of mollusks. From the Andes (ranging 80-150 km to the east, ca. 5-8 days of journey), they obtained camelid fiber, obsidian and a high-quality chalcedony, in addition to sharing knowledge on projectile point designs (Patapatane and Tuina type forms). Pieces of wood of a tropical forest tree species (Ceiba spp.) from the east Andean lowlands (600 km away, ca. 30 days of journey) were also brought to the PdT. While local goods were procured by the circulation of people within the PdT, the small number of foreign items would have been acquired through some sort of exchange networks that integrated dispersed local communities throughout several ecosystems. These networks may have been a key factor behind the success exhibited by these early huntergatherers in the hyper arid ecosystems of the Atacama Desert at the end of the Pleistocene. Different lines of archaeological evidence including open camps, workshop-quarries, lithic artifacts, archaeofaunal remains, plant and animal fibers and textiles, archaeobotanical remains, and paleoecological data show that people of the PdT managed a wide range of cultural items from the Pacific coast, the Andean highland and the tropical forest, that were integrated with resources gathered locally within the socio-cultural systems established by the end of the Pleistocene. These results are interpreted as material expressions of multi-scalar networking for resource management and other social material and immaterial requirements, which in other words, means that these people were actively connected to regional (coastal and highland), and supra-regional (trans-Andean) exchange networks from and out of the PdT. Los grupos sociales que inicialmente habitaban el núcleo hiperárido del Desierto de Atacama en el norte de Chile durante el Pleistoceno tardío integraron una amplia gama de bienes e ideas, locales, regionales y supra regionales, para su reproducción social, como lo sugieren las evidencias arqueológicas materiales recuperadas en varios campamentos al aire libre en Pampa del Tamarugal (PdT). Los recursos locales para mantener su vida diaria, incluían materias primas líticas, fibras de plantas y animales, presas de caza y agua dulce adquiridos en un radio de ̴30 km (ca. 1-2 días de viaje). A escala regional, se introdujeron algunos elementos desde la costa del Pacífico (60-80 km hacia el oeste, ca. 3 a 4 días de viaje), incluidos rodados redondeados alargados, utilizados como percutores en la producción lítica y conchas, especialmente de especies no comestibles de moluscos. Desde los Andes (80-150 km al este, ca. 5-8 días de viaje), obtuvieron fibra de camélido, obsidiana y una calcedonia de alta calidad, además de compartir conocimientos sobre diseños de puntas de proyectil (tipo Patapatane y Tuina). También se llevaron a la PdT trozos de madera de una especie de árbol de los bosques tropicales (Ceiba spp.) de las tierras bajas al este de los Andes (600 km de distancia, ca. 30 días de viaje). Mientras que los bienes locales fueron adquiridos por la circulación de personas dentro de la PdT, el pequeño número de artículos foráneos se adquirieron a través de redes de intercambio que integraron comunidades locales dispersas en varios ecosistemas; lo que debió ser un factor clave detrás del éxito demostrado por estos primeros cazadores-recolectores en los ecosistemas hiperáridos del Desierto de Atacama hacia el final del Pleistoceno. Diferentes líneas de evidencia arqueológica que incluyen campamentos al aire libre, talleres, canteras, artefactos líticos, restos arqueofaunales, fibras y textiles de plantas y animales, restos arqueobotánicos y datos paleoecológicos, muestran que la gente de la PdT manejaron una amplia gama de elementos culturales desde la costa del Pacífico, el altiplano andino y el bosque tropical, que se integraron a los recursos recolectados localmente dentro de los sistemas socioculturales establecidos al final del Pleistoceno. Estos resultados se interpretan como una expresión material de una red de múltiples escalas para la gestión de recursos y otros requisitos sociales e inmateriales, lo que en otras palabras, significaría que estos grupos sociales estaban conectados activamente con redes de interacción regionales (costa y tierras altas) y supra-regionales (transandinas) desde y hacia la PdT. Fil: Santoro, Calógero M.. Universidad de Tarapaca.; Chile Fil: Gayo, Eugenia M.. Centro de Ciencia del Clima y la Resiliencia; Chile. Universidad de Concepción; Chile Fil: Capriles Flores, Jose Mariano. State University of Pennsylvania; Estados Unidos Fil: Rivadeneira Valenzuela, Marcelo Michel. Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica. Centro de Investigación Regional. Centro de Estudios en Zonas Áridas; Chile. Universidad Católica del Norte; Chile. Universidad de La Serena; Chile Fil: Herrera, Katherine A.. Universite Paris Ouest Nanterre la Defense; Francia. Universidad de Tarapaca.; Chile Fil: Mandakovic, Valentina. No especifíca; Fil: Rallo, Mónica. No especifíca; Fil: Rech, Jason A.. University of Miami; Estados Unidos Fil: Cases, Bárbara. Universidad de Tarapaca.; Chile Fil: Briones, Luis. Museo Municipalidad de Pica; Chile Fil: Olguín, Laura. Universidad Católica del Norte, San Pedro de Atacama; Chile Fil: Valenzuela, Daniela. Universidad de Tarapaca.; Chile Fil: Borrero, Luis Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Historia y Ciencias Humanas; Argentina Fil: Ugalde, Paula C.. University of Arizona; Estados Unidos. Universidad de Tarapaca.; Chile Fil: Rothhammer, Francisco. Universidad de Tarapaca.; Chile Fil: Latorre, Claudio. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; Chile. Instituto de Ecología y Biodiversidad; Chile Fil: Szpak, Paul. Trent University; Canadá

International audience; Hunter-gatherers collected and used various woody species depending on the landscape, availability of plant communities, and sociocultural considerations. With extensive paleo-wetlands and groundwater-fed oases, the Atacama Desert was interspersed with riparian woodlands that provided vital resources (fuel, water, and game) at the end of the Pleistocene in areas such as the Pampa del Tamarugal (PdT) basin. We use anthracological analyses to determine the fuel management strategies of hunter-gatherer societies in this hyperarid environment and explore whether the “Principle of Least Effort” applies. First, we present the combustion qualities and characteristics of woody taxa from the Atacama and analyze possible exploitation strategies. Second, we use anthracological analyses from Quebrada Maní 12 (QM12), a late Pleistocene archaeological site (dated from 12,750 to 11,530 cal B.P.) located in the PdT basin, to show the prevalence of two woody species that were either freshly collected or gathered (very likely on purpose) from subfossil wood. Our results suggest that fuel selection strategies were based on prior knowledge of the qualities of these woody taxa and how they burned. Thus we conclude that fuel management was part of a number of social and economic decisions that allowed for effective colonization of this region. Furthermore, we stress the need for caution when using charcoal to exclusively date archaeological sites located in desert environments.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has been used to investigate ceramic vitrification stages since the 1970s, however its application has been primarily restricted to stoneware and high-fired ceramics. The purpose of this study was to determine whether stages of vitrification could also be identified in prehistoric low-fired archaeological earthenware ceramics via SEM using northern Chilen samples covering a period c. 2000 to 500 years BP as a case study. This was achieved by visually comparing microstructural changes between original and re-fired ceramic sherds. The microstructural changes identified in this study indicate that the potters who made these vessels achieved early stages of vitrification. This result demonstrates that SEM is a useful technique to investigate the development of firing technology in earthenware manufacture.

This paper presents the results of bulk chemical compositional analyses of ceramic pastes through Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA), which is the most precise method available for this kind of research. The analyses were carried out on 94 fragments of pottery from several archaeological sites in northern Chile?s Atacama Desert (Fig 1, Table A.1). We aimed to examine the possible origins of pottery vessels distinguished by Inka and local styles within the process of the Inka State expansion into the territories south of Cusco, known as Collasuyu.On the basis of these analyses, we discuss the idea that the State introduced to the zone pottery with Inka iconographic styles from the Lake Titicaca region (more than 500 km away). But, more important, the State seems to have encouraged the replication of State pottery standards by local artisans, who consciously or unconsciously maintained certain traditional procedures. This means that skilled local artisans imitated Inka iconographic style but using paste of local origin. These results show the importance of archaeometric analysis of high-prestige fine Inka and local pottery as it sheds light on how the State managed their political strategies, their impact on the prehistoric polities of northern Chile (NCh). Fil: Williams, Veronica Isabel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Instituto de Las Culturas. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Las Culturas; Argentina Fil: Santoro Vargas, Calogero Mauricio. Universidad de Tarapacá; Chile Fil: Speakman, Robert J.. University of Georgia; Estados Unidos Fil: Glascock, Michael. University of Missouri; Estados Unidos Fil: Romero Guevara, Álvaro Luis. Consejo de Monumentos Nacionales; Chile Fil: Valenzuela, Daniela. Universidad Alberto Hurtado; Chile Fil: Standen, Vivien G.. Universidad de Tarapacá; Chile Fil: D'Altroy, Terence N.. Columbia University; Estados Unidos

The influence of tropical lowland migrations on the emergence of cultural change in the Central Andes has been postulated in general terms since the beginning of last century (Tello 1929). Archeological and molecular genetic evidence, particularly agriculture of tropical cultigens and ancient mtDNA haplogroup typing in northern Chile, suggest a chronologically more precise relationship between both regions. We test in this article the hypothesis that the process of cultural transformation of prehistoric populations living on the coast and the desert valleys of northern Chile can be partially linked to gene flow from the eastern slopes of the Andes and/or from the tropical lowlands during the Late Archaic / Formative periods (ca. 3,500-2,000 B.P.).La influencia de migraciones desde las tierras bajas tropicales en la emergencia de cambios culturales en los Andes Centrales, ha sido propuesta en términos generales desde comienzos de la última década (Tello 1929). Evidencia arqueológica y genético molecular reciente, particularmente la agricultura de cultígenos tropicales y la haplotipificacion de ADNmt antiguo, obtenida en el norte de Chile, sugieren una relación cronológicamente más acotada entre ambas regiones. Contrastamos en este artículo la hipótesis que el proceso de transformación cultural de las poblaciones prehistóricas costeras y vallunas del norte de Chile podría explicarse parcialmente por flujos migracionales originados en la vertiente oriental de los Andes y/o en las tierras bajas tropicales durante el periodo Arcaico Tardío / Formativo Temprano (ca. 3,500-2,000 A.P.).

The microevolution of the archaic populations from Chile's northern coast and its morphological contribution to Formative period groups was studied. The sample comprised 181 individuals belonging to two Archaic (Morro-Uhle and Morro 1-1/6) and one Formative (Playa Miller-7 [Plm-7]) series of the coast and one sample from the Formative (Alto Ramírez) exhumed at the Azapa Valley. A total of 29 metric variables of the cranium were analyzed. Biological variability was assessed using discriminant analysis and Mahalanobis' D² distance stadistic (MDS). Population structure was inferred using a method based on quantitative genetic theory that predicts a lineal relationship between average within-group phenotypic variance and group distance to the population centroid. The four samples studied proved to be different from a morphologic point of view. The greatest distance was observed between Plm-7 (coast Formative) and Alto Ramirez (valley Formative), the least between Morro-Uhle and Morro 1-1/6, the remaining distances presenting intermediate values. Regarding the total population, the most divergent group was Alto Ramírez and the least divergent was Morro1-1/6. A gradual biologic change was observed between Archaic (Morro Uhle and Morro 1-1/6) and coastal Formative populations (Plm-7) pointing to a morphological (genetic) contribution of Archaic fishermen to Formative population of Chile's northern coast, without excluding gene flow from other groups of the South Central Andean AreaEstudiamos la microevolución de las poblaciones arcaicas de la costa norte y sus contribuciones morfológicas al Período Formativo. La muestra comprendió 181 individuos pertenecientes a dos colecciones arcaicas de la costa (Morro-Uhle y Morro 1-1/6) y una al formativo (Alto Ramírez) exhumada en el Valle de Azapa. Un total de 29 variables métricas del cráneo fueron analizadas. La variabilidad biológica fue determinada utilizando análisis discriminante y distancias de Mahalanobis (MDS). La estructura de población se analizó utilizando un método basado en teoría genética cuantitativa que predice una relación lineal entre la varianza promedio intragrupal y su distancia hacia el centroide poblacional. Las cuatro muestras analizadas demostraron ser morfológicamente diferentes. La mayor diferencia fue observada entre Plm-7 (Formativo costero) y Alto Ramírez (Formativo valluno), la menor entre Morro-Uhle y Morro 1-1/6, teniendo las otras distancias valores intermedios. El grupo más divergente fue Alto Ramírez y el menos divergente Morro 1-1/6. Un cambio gradual morfológico se observó entre el arcaico (Morro Uhle y Morro 1-1/6) y el Formativo costero (Plm-7) indicando una contribución morfológica (genética) de los pescadores arcaicos a las poblaciones formativas en la costa del norte de Chile, sin excluir, por cierto, flujo génico de otros grupos de la región centro-sur andina

Few archeological sites in South America contain uncontroversial evidence for when the first peopling of the continent occurred. Largely ignored in this debate, extreme environments are assumed either as barriers to this early wave of migration or without potential for past habitability. Here, we report on a rare 12–13 ka human occupation from Quebrada Mani (site QM12), a plantless, near rainless landscape (1240 m asl and 85 km from the Pacific Ocean) located in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert. This location harbored wetlands and riparian woodlands that were fed by increased rainfall further east in the central Andes during the latest Pleistocene. Excavations at QM12 yielded a diverse cultural assemblage of lithics, burned and cut bones, marine gastropods, pigments, plant fibers, and wooden artifacts alongside a prepared fireplace. Sixteen radiocarbon dates from site QM12 on charcoal, marine shells, animal dung, plant remains and wood reveal that the occupation took place between 12.8 and 11.7 ka. These results demonstrate that the Atacama Desert was not a barrier to early American settlement and dispersal, and provide new clues for understanding the cultural complexity and diversity of the peopling of South America during the Last Glacial–interglacial transition.

The impact of expanding civilization on the health of American indigenous societies has long been studied. Most studies have focused on infections and malnutrition that occurred when less complex societies were incorporated into more complex civilizations. The details of dietary change, however, have rarely been explored. Using the analysis of starch residues recovered from coprolites, here we evaluate the dietary adaptations of indigenous farmers in northern Chile's Atacama Desert during the time that the Inka Empire incorporated these communities into their economic system. This system has been described as "complementarity" because it involves interaction and trade in goods produced at different Andean elevations. We find that as local farming societies adapted to this new asymmetric system, a portion of their labor had to be given up to the Inka elite through a corvée tax system for maize production. In return, the Inka system of complementarity introduced previously rare foods from the Andean highlands into local economies. These changes caused a disruption of traditional communities as they instituted a state-level economic system on local farmers. Combined with previously published infection information for the same populations under Inka rule, the data suggest that there may have been a dual health impact from disruption of nutrition and introduction of crowd disease.

La comparacion de datos arqueologicos del desierto de Atacama y de la zona arida de Australia muestra el impacto de El Nino-Oscilacion del Sur en los ultimos 5.000 anos. Con base en un listado de > 1.400 dataciones radiocarbonicas de ambas regiones, utilizadas como fuente indirecta de fluctuaciones de la poblacion, se realizaron graficos de densidad de las dataciones para explorar las respuestas de las poblaciones prehistoricas a las variaciones climaticas provocadas por ENSO. Bajo un regimen ENSO las precipitaciones se encuentran en antefase entre Australia y la costa del norte de Chile. Dado que ENSO impacta en la productividad de los recursos marinos y suprime el ingreso de humedad de la cuenca del Amazonas, su efecto en las economias de subsistencia de ambos lados del Pacifico Tropical deberia correlacionarse positivamente. Esto se confirma a traves de analisis cruzados de espectros de graficos de densidad de radiocarbonos, lo que muestra fluctuaciones sincronicas de la poblacion en ambos lados del Pacifico Tropical (r = > 0,82). Las bases de datos de Australia y del desierto de Atacama muestran un aumento gradual de la poblacion desde los 13 mil cal anos a.p., y un incremento importante durante el optimo climatico del Holoceno medio. La intensificacion de ENSO a partir de los 3,7 cal anos a.p. se correlaciona con ciclos de florecimiento y declinacion de la ocupacion humana en ambos lados del Pacifico, incluyendo el colapso del sistema economico y cultural en la costa del desierto de Atacama alrededor de 3 mil anos cal a.p. y la declinacion de la poblacion en las zonas interiores aridas del Atacama y del centro de Australia, entre 3-2 mil anos cal a.p. Posterior a 2 mil anos cal a.p. las respuestas adaptativas varian entre ambas regiones, aunque se produce una recuperacion general de las poblaciones en sus zonas aridas interiores.

Assessing the impact of cultural change on parasitism has been a central goal in archaeoparasitology. The influence of civilization and the development of empires on parasitism has not been evaluated. Presented here is a preliminary analysis of the change in human parasitism associated with the Inca conquest of the Lluta Valley in Northern Chile. Changes in parasite prevalence are described. It can be seen that the change in life imposed on the inhabitants of the Lluta Valley by the Incas caused an increase in parasitism.

The relations between humans and animals extend into socio-cultural aspects that go beyond the mere acquisition of food, meaning that animals constitute cultural resources that fulfill diverse roles in social and cultural systems. Visual images in different media, including rock art, represent one of the ways in which these complex relationships take place. While in the New World few comparative analyses of archaeofaunal and visual data have been addressed, in the Old World these studies have been framed by a dichotomist view between drawn (thought) and consumed (eaten) understanding, both terms as separate and disconnected social realms. This view also structures an abstract, non-pragmatic, rather passive, world drawn in art, against a concrete, practical, active world of consumption. The analysis we present here, based on principles of substantive economy theory, explores the relation between humans and animals in the prehistory of the Atacama Desert (ca. 13,000–410 BP), by comparing visual images of fauna depicted in rock art (engravings and paintings) with archaeofaunal remains from domestic and funerary contexts. The dataset (comprised of 1534 archaeofaunal items and 729 rock art animal motifs from 117 sites) was standardized by calculating the percentage of ubiquity of each animal item per period of time, using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients to identify synchronic and diachronic changes in the relative importance of certain animals consumed. We observed important temporal and contextual variations in the consumption of animals drawn in rock art in the Atacama Desert, and we conclude that they reflect a selection of a wide range of ritual and utilitarian, but not mutually exclusive, functions. In particular, images of camelids emphasized the importance of providing fiber for the creation of textile artifacts and camelid use as pack animals in the caravan trade, both activities that were fundamental in the economy of local societies.