Paleoparasitological and Archaeobotanical Studies of Fecal Remains from the Argentine Puna (Pueblo Viejo de Tucute archaeological site, province of Jujuy, 11 th to 15 th centuries)

RAMIREZ, DARÍO ALEJANDRO; TAVARONE, ALDANA MELISA; PÉREZ PINCHEIRA, EGLY VERÓNICA; COLOBIG, MARÍA DE LOS MILAGROS; BASSO, DIEGO MARTÍN; BELTRAME, MARÍA ORNELA; NORES, RODRIGO

Environmental Archaeology

Taylor and Francis Gropus

Año: 2023 p. 1 - 14

1461-4103

Paleoparasitological and archaeobotanical studies provide useful information to reconstructpast scenarios where humans and animals inhabited. However, multi-proxy studies includingthese research lines are scarce. Here we applied paleoparasitological and archaeobotanicaltechniques to study a carnivore coprolite and a dung ball from Pueblo Viejo de Tucutearchaeological site, in the Argentine Puna. Among parasites, Physaloptera sp.,acantocephalan, and ascaridid-like eggs were identified, which shed light on potentialparasitic infections and their possible implications for human health. Regarding thebotanical evidence, morphotypes related to wild – Prosopis sp. and Geoffroea decorticans –and cultivated plants -Solanum tuberosum and Zea mays- were identified. In addition, pollengrains corresponding to the Amaranthaceae-Chenopodiaceae complex, the familiesAsteraceae, Myrtaceae and Poaceae, and the genera Taraxacum, Atriplex and Nototriche werefound. Also, six diatom genera: Denticula, Pinnularia, Encyonema, Cocconeis, Surirella andRhoicosphenia were identified. These botanical results suggest that the animals were livingwith humans or wandering around the settlements, which reinforce the hypothesis ofpossible zoonotic infections. This is the first ancient dung ball analyzed for this kind ofstudy, proving to be a valuable source of information. Altogether, the results provide noveldata to reconstruct paleoecological conditions of the region, which complement theavailable archaeological information.