The archaeology and palaeobiological record of Pasimbahan-Magsanib site, northern Palawan, Philippines

Recent
excavations in northern Palawan, Philippines provide zooarchaeological
and macrobotanical evidence documenting human
occupation and changes in faunal composition and subsistence
strategies. Here we present the archaeobiological record of
Pasimbahan-Magsanib site dating from c. 10,500 yr. BP to the
subrecent. The terrestrial vertebrate record provides for a
more robust Palawan biostratigraphy and chronicles Late Quaternary
changes in mammalian composition and human responses to
the changing abundance of large mammal communities. Well-stratified
shell layers and middens contain a wide variety of taxa
derived from freshwater, estuarine and marine environments that also
provide insights on varying subsistence strategies and
the local ecology. Macrobotanical evidence provides further evidence
for both foraging and possible plant management strategies
in the Holocene.