Man-Extinct Faunal interaction in the Pleistocene Holocene transition in south-central Chile: A review

Abstract

Extinct fauna and man interaction in south-central Chile (31°S- 42°S degrees latitude), has almost complete! y lacked of research programs or systematic works situation that is reflected in the presence of only four isolated and dissimilar sites for the period. This article examines the known data on these sites adding information of recent studies, and -in some cases- reinterpreting the «classic» evidence. Considering the variety of fauna that inhabited the region at the time, only a reduced number of species was in fact used by the first settlers of the region, apparently in a nonintensive way not related with the great number of species that disappeared at the beginning of the Holocene. The problematic of the first inhabitants of the region is assessed in a flexible way, reevaluating the paper of gathering, hunting of modem fauna and scavenging, recognizing extinct fauna only as another option in a broader panorama of subsistence strategies.