3. How Did the Karankawas Adapt to their Environment?

Researcher ________________________________ Research Team _________

     To a newcomer, the central coast of Texas can be a confusing maze of islands, lagoons and salt marshes. The topography is low and flat with thick marsh and river floodplain vegetation. The Karankawas had a thorough understanding of this land and the rich resources that it could provide. They adapted to this environment by integrating the use of these resources into their lives. You and your team will investigate how the Karankawas interacted with and adapted to the coastal environment.

Materials: none

Procedure:

1. To understand how the Karankawa used the available food resources found in their environment, you must analyze the food resources that were available to them. Why would all the questions below be important to understanding the Indians and their use of resources?
     a. Where is the resource found?
     b. What amount of the resource was available?
     c. When was the resource available?
     d. Is the availability of the resource predictable or not?
     e. Is the resource concentrated in one area?

Fig. 3.1 Percent of fish harvested from Cpano Bay.(Source: Ricklis: The Karankawa Indians of can be taken in the bays year-round, there are Texas)

SAN ANTONIO BAY	CORPUS CHRISTI BAY
Fig. 3.2. Average number of fish harvested from San Antonio Bay. (Source: Ricklis: The Karankawa Indians)	Fig. 3.3. Pounds of fish harvested from Aransqas and Corpus Christi Bays. (Source: Ricklis: The Karankawa Indians)

ent kinds of plant resources were available at different seasons. Acorns and pecans were available in the fall. The acorns were found along the shorelines in the mottes of oaks. The pecans were found in the river floodplains. The river floodplains provided various edible “greens.” These were mainly marsh plants such as cattails. During the fall and winter the cattail roots are edible and were an excellent source of starchy carbohydrate. In the upland prairies, during the spring and summer, there were prickly pear cactus pads (spring) and the fruit or “tunas” in the summer. Berries were also available in the spring and mesquite beans were available in the summer.
     Using the information from Figures 3.1-3.3 and Table 1, how were the food resources that were available for the Karanakawas used during the different times of the year? Winter; Spring; Summer; Fall
7. Based on the times and locations where the food resources were most predictable and concentrated would the Indians have been able to live in one area or would they have moved? Explain.

Table 1. Availability of Food Resources in the Texas Coastal Environment

Resource Category	Spatial Occurrence	Occurrence During Year
Mollusks	Concentrated (bay/lagoon margins)	Predictable, year-round
Fish Mammals	Concentrated (bay shallows, inlet areas)	Predictable, peak in fall-winter
Deer Bison Plants	Dispersed (prairies, wooded areas)Concentrated but mobile (prairies)	Predictable, year-round Predictable, year-round
Greens Fruits, seeds	Variable Variable	Predictable, springPredictable, summer
Nuts	Concentrated (coastal fringe, wooded floodplains)	Predictable, fall
Roots	Variable	Predictable, fall-winter

Source: Ricklis, R. 1996. The Karanakawa Indians of Texas; An Ecological Study of Cultural Tradition and Change. The University of Texas Press.

8. Based on the availability of major relative importance categories of food resources, a hypothetical model of the inferred patterns of fishing, hunting, and gathering of the Karankawas by seasons is given in Figure 3.4. According to the model, what did the Karankawas probably use for food during each season? Winter— Spring— Summer— Fall—
	Fig. 3.4. Model of inferred pattern of fishing, hunting and gathering activities of the Karankawas. (Source: Ricklis: The Karankawa Indians)

9. Evaluate the model. Does the data from Figures 3.1-3.3 and Table 1 support the model in Figure 3.4? Explain.
10. The patterns of fishing, hunting and gathering in Figure 3.4 were inferred (concluded from evidence). What information would be needed to prove that the conclusions that were used to create the model in Figure 3.4 are correct?