RISING RIVERS AND SHIFTING SHORELINES: EXPLORING LANDSCAPE CHANGE IN MID TO LATE HOLOCENE PUERTO RICO AND IMPLICATIONS FOR ARCHAEOLOGY

Mid to late Holocene archaeological records in Puerto Rico indicate changes in diet and settlement patterns typically explained by changes in cultural preferences. However, extensive review of geological and archaeological literature indicates a period of intense landscape change at this time. Coastal morphologies, including beach ridges and marine terraces, indicate a higher than present sea level ~4 ka to ~1.5 ka. This pattern of shoreline position is observed at several points around the island, but is at odds with regional sea level predictions for the Caribbean. Roughly contemporaneous periods of flooding in both the Coamo River and the Río Indio suggest more than coastal landscapes were in flux. Landscape change of this magnitude would have had a striking effect on the resources available to the island’s inhabitants, and may shed light on changes in diet and settlement patterns documented in the archaeological record. The project explores the use of onshore indicators of sea level change, including archaeological sites, in the construction of regional sea level histories, and the importance of understanding landscape change when interpreting the archaeological record.