The Huron of the Kawartha Lakes: faunal exploitation strategies as indicators of change during the Pre, Proto and Historic Periods

This research involves the analysis of the faunal remains from three Huron village sites and two Huron hamlets in order to reconstruct the subsistence strategies practiced by the Huron of the Upper Trent River Valley, south central Ontario, throughout the 16th century. Examination of the faunal remains allows for the shifting exploitation patterns of the period to be addressed in relation to increased contact with the St. Lawrence Iroquois and increased exposure to European goods acquired through trade. The most important economic shift seen in the faunal remains is the increasing relative importance of beaver and dog exploitation to the determent of deer exploitation. This increased beaver specialization is interpreted in relation to the early onset of a European motivated fur trade, and the arrival of St. Lawrence Iroquois peoples at Huron habitation sites in the Upper Trent River Valley