Human ecology of the early neolithic kuahuqiao culture in east asia

Abstract

The synthetic analyses of the plant and animal assemblages from the Kuahuqiao site, dated to 8000-7000 BP, located in the Yangzi Delta, and within the theoretical framework of human niche construction indicate that the occupants not only already cultivated rice, but also intervened in the life cycles of a variety of plant and animal species through many different forms of anthropogenesis. These activities enhanced the abundance, diversity, and reliability of the Kuahuqiao resource base and helped to ensure their long-term sedentary lifeways. The study suggests that, in addition to the evidence of species domestication defined by morphological change, research of agricultural origins should pay more attention to the long-term process of domestication in association with human behaviors’ impacts on the environment. The realm of studying the emergence of agriculture should be extended into this stage prior to the appearance of a visible morphological change.