European Colonization and Ecological Change in Southern New England

Описание: Guest: UConn graduate student (Anthropology) Elic Weitzel

The first half of this discussion discussed various aspects of land-use by the Native American population and the European Colonial population. These were markedly different, and based on different views of land-use itself: Native Americans viewed the land as communal, whereas Colonial people viewed it as something to be individualized and fenced in.

This did NOT mean that Native Americans were not intensive users of the land. They were, but in a more sustainable and less-intrusive manner. That said, the mantra of "the Indians don't own the land or use it" quickly took root and was used to excuse the appropriation of the land by the Colonials; it is a view still largely held.

Elic's research thus far has suggested that, in contrast to other sections of the country, deer populations began declining in the 17th century. While deer seem to prefer "border" areas between smaller-scale burning and clearing of land for cultivation of crops, although too much of either is not good for them. It's also, oddly, an open question whether the introduction of free-roaming livestock helped or hindered deer populations. What is clear is that the Colonial lust for things such as beaver skins, to satisfy Europeans' changing taste in clothing, has led to the destruction of many local species, in particular the beaver. Deer, though, have not been part of this decline, at least in the New England area.

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