Aleuts: Ecosystem, Holocene History, and Siberian Origin

• Published in: Science
• Main Author: Laughlin, William S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1975
• Subjects: Aleut Point; Northern Arm; aleut; eskimo*; Beringia; Siberia
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.189.4202.507; https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.189.4202.507

An original objective of these multidisciplinary studies was to determine the position of the Aleuts in the Aleutian ecosystem with time depth. This has been done in a variety of ways. One of the most useful approaches is the construction of life expectancy tables. The greater longevity of Aleuts compared with Eskimos represents an effective biological and cultural human adaptation within this ecosystem. The Aleuts defined their ecosystem by expanding to the limits of the area they could effectively exploit with their complex technology, population structure, and population deployment system. Their intellectual achievements played a tangible role in their longevity in the pre-Russian period, and their sophisticated knowledge of human anatomy is both a causal and a consequential correlate of their longevity. From the Aleut point of view, the food resources were diverse, abundant, and accessible, and they also provided fabricational materials necessary for their complex material culture. The Aleuts successfully hunted the world's largest range of sea mammals, from the sea otter to the whales. At the same time, extensive use of invertebrates easily available on the ice-free strandflats enabled disadvantaged sectors of the population to make important contributions to their own food supply and thus improve life expectancy. The rich food and fabricational materials antedate the Holocene history of Nikolski Bay and the arrival of the ancestral Aleuts. The natural resources of this area are fundamentally related to the former peninsular extension of Beringia and the permanent upwelling system in Samalga Pass. Sea otters, seals, and sea lions were present when the first Aleuts came to the area. Nikolski Bay has been an ideal place to obtain samples representing the entire Holocene Epoch. The earliest Asiatic migrants came from Siberia and traversed the southern coastline of Beringia. They established a large and permanent village on the northern arm of Nikolski Bay and remained there while expanding to the far ends of ...