Daksi: The Ethnozooarchaeology of the Eastern Box Turtle Terrepene Carolina

The development of connections between archaeologically known populations and contemporary peoples is a crucial missing piece in understanding the story of southeastern native peoples. Ethnoecological models demonstrate the persistence of practices in durable environmental contexts as opposed to the interpretation of signs, symbols and structures left behind. We developed a protocol for extending the anthropological interpretation of late precontact archaeological sites by combining zooarchaeological analysis of Eastern box turtles from Mississippian sites with the Native American ethnohistorical, ethnographic and linguistic record. This protocol allows for greater insights into subsistence, medicinal, technological, and ecological practices prior to the arrival of Europeans.