Prehistoric Marine Mammal Overki l l in the Northeastern Pacific: A Review of New Evidence

Prehistoric exploitation of marine mammals in the northeastern Pacific has been a subject of considerable attention since 1992 when Hildebrandt and Jones used an optimal foraging model to argue that when congregated in rookeries, seals and sea lions represent highly attractive resources vulnerable to overpredation. Using archaeofaunal data from sites along the Oregon and California coasts they pointed to many cases where the remains of terrestrially breeding species (elephant seals [Mirounga angustirostris], northern fur seals [Callorhinus ursinus], Guadalupe fur seals [Arctocephalus townsendi], California sea lions [Zalophus californianus]and Steller sea lions [Eumetopias jubatus]) decrease through time at the expense of smaller, more elusive, aquatic breeders (sea otters [Enhydra lutris]and harbor seals [Phoca vitulina]). These trends were argued to represent overexploitation of highly ranked taxa and their replacement by lowerranked species pursued with sophisticated watercraft and maritime weaponry. Because such technologies are commonly associated with advanced socio-political organization, this model is closely tied to contentious, ongoing debate over the causes and chronology of emergent complexity among southern California coastal foragers (see Arnold 1992a, 1992b, 1997; Arnold et al. 1997; Kennett 1998; Kennett and Kennett 2000; Raab and Bradford 1997; Raab and Larsen 1997; Raab et al. 1995;). Marine mammal overexploitation is also one of a growing number of cases that illustrate the affects of prehistoric hunting on North American faunal populations. Increasing Prehistoric Marine Mammal Overki l l