The Calusa and their legacy : South Florida people and their environments / Darcie A. MacMahon and William A. Marquardt.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

MacMahon, Darcie A.

Contributor:

Marquardt, William H.

Series:

Native peoples, cultures, and places of the southeastern United States

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Calusa Indians--Ethnozoology.

Calusa Indians.

Calusa Indians--Ethnobotany.

Calusa Indians--Fishing.

Ethnoecology--Florida.

Ethnoecology.

Fishing.

Ethnobotany.

Ethnozoology.

Florida.

Florida--Social life and customs.

Manners and customs.

Physical Description:

xiv, 183 pages, 32 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 26 cm.

Place of Publication:

Gainesville : University Press of Florida, [2004]

Summary:

The Calusa were the most powerful native people on the Gulf coast, their influence spanning south Florida and lasting well into the European invasion. For the first time, The Calusa and Their Legacy tells the story of this little-known Native American people in relation to the unique environment that sustained them with such abundance that they never depended on a staple crop or large-scale agriculture. This fascinating history is enhanced with dramatic and authentic illustrations created by artists at the Florida Museum of Natural History's awardwinning Hall of South Florida People and Environments. After years of careful research in the Calusa heartland, archaeologists and ecologists have discovered the keys to Calusa prosperity in the mudflats, sea grass beds, and mangrove forests of Florida's Gulf coast estuaries. Noted archaeologists Darcie MacMahon and William Marquardt explore the world of the Calusa in vivid detail, from single-celled algae, oyster bars, and southern stingrays to remnant fishing nets, pottery, and woodcarvings. Linked closely to their extraordinary and plentiful ecosystem, the Calusa survived for centuries as an artistic and complex people defeated only by the ravages of disease, wars, slavery, and displacement. Calusa society fades from historical record in the eighteenth century, but as the authors explain, their traditions survive to the present day among the coastal fisherfolk and the vibrant cultures of Native Americans in south Florida-the Seminole and Miccosukee peoples. The Calusa and Their Legacy will encourage the appreciation and stewardship of south Florida's multicultural history and ecology. As Seminole Mary Frances Johns observes, "If we are still talking about [the Calusa], then they are not really gone."

Contents:

1 South Florida People and Their Environments 1

Who Were the Calusa? 1

How Do We Know about the Past? 5

2 The Estuary: Cradle of the Ocean 8

3 What's the Big Picture? 12

Abundant Plankton 12

Bacteria Rule 13

Algae: Salad of the Estuary 13

Diatoms: Algae That Live in Glass Houses 14

Small Things That Make a Difference 14

4 Mudflats: What You Don't See Is What You Get 15

Fiddler Crabs: A Mudflat Favorite 18

Horseshoe Crabs: An Ancient Parade 18

Tiny Crustaceans: Amphipods, Isopods, Copepods, and Ostracods 18

Worms That Live in Tubes: The Polychaetes 20

Mud Brittle Stars 20

Sturdy Clams: The Quahogs 21

Ever Dined at an Oyster Bar? 22

The Crown Conch: King of the Mud 22

A Study in Pink: The Roseate Spoonbill 24

5 Sea Grass Beds 25

Diners' Delights: Stone Crabs and Blue Crabs 28

Shrimp among the Sea Grasses 28

Lightning Whelks: Magnificent Snails 30

Old Blue Eyes: The Bay Scallop 32

Mollusks without Shells 32

Stars of the Sea Grass Beds 33

What Is a Sand Dollar, Really? 33

Cucumbers with Feet 33

At Home on a Sea Grass Blade 34

Sponges Alive! 35

Sea Whips: Animal Apartments That Look Like Plants 35

6 The Sea 37

Jellyfish: Really Big Plankton 37

Squid of Many Colors 38

A Horse Is a Horse, Unless It's a Seahorse 39

Flying through Water: The Rays and Skates 39

Tasty Fishes 40

Manatees: Elephants of the Sea 42

Sea Turtles: They Get Around 43

Bottlenose Dolphins: The Great Communicators 44

7 Mangrove Forests 48

Among the Roots 52

Tunicates: Strange Blobs or Highly Evolved Invertebrates? 52

Knock, Knock, Anybody Home? 53

Barnacles: Check Out Those Legs! 53

Anemones: Gardens on the Move 54

A Shy Crocodile 55

In the Tree Tops 56

Aerial Acrobat: The Mangrove Crab 56

The Mangrove Water Snake 56

The Mangrove Skipper: Iridescent Blue in a Sea of Green 57

Birds Galore: Mangrove Rookeries 57

Who Needs Glamour to Be Successful? 59

8 The Bottom Line 60

Protecting Florida's Estuaries 60

9 The Fishing Heritage of Gulf Coastal Florida 63

The First Coastal Dwellers 63

Fishing on the Gulf Coast of Florida 65

Foods from the Estuary 65

More Than Just Food 65

Nets of Plenty 69

Other Ways to Catch a Fish 71

The Mighty Canoe 73

10 The Calusa 75

Calusa Society 75

Where Did They Come From? 75

Leadership 78

The Calusa Name 79

The Calusa Capital 80

Calusa Connections: Trade, Exchange, and Tribute 80

Calusa Beliefs 82

Calusa Ceremonies 85

Calusa Hospitality 88

11 Calusa Architecture and Engineering 91

Calusa Canals 93

Calusa Earthworks 95

The Anatomy of Middens and Mounds 96

12 The Calusa Legacy 101

Master Woodworkers 102

Carved Bone and Shell 103

Florida Wet Sites 103

Conserving Wet-Site Objects 103

Key Marco 105

Woodpecker Plaque 107

Masks and Figureheads 107

Painted Box Sides 107

Other Items 109

Pineland 109

Waterbird Figure 109

Fort Center 113

Woodcarvings 113

New Materials, Ancient Designs 114

13 The Calusa and the Europeans 115

Early Encounters 115

Increased Contact 117

The Demise of Calusa Society 118

Are There Calusa Indian People in South Florida Today? 121

14 Fishing since the Calusa 122

Cuban and Indian Fishing in Southwest Florida 122

Technology Changes the Fishing Industry 126

Recent Indian Fishing in South Florida 130

The Future of Coastal Fishing in Florida 130

15 Indian People in South Florida Today 134

Origin 134

Wars and Removals 136

The Unconquered 137

The Archaeology and History of the Seminoles in North Florida 138

"Town of the White King" 138

Trading Posts 140

Cuscowilla and King Payne's Town 142

Clan Camps and War Camps 143

The "Black Seminoles": African Allies 144

16 Seminole and Miccosukee Culture and Arts 150

Clothing 152

Dolls 152

Basketry 152

Woodwork 153

Women's Dance Rattles 154

Silverwork 155

Beadwork 156

Fingerweaving 157

Kinship and Clans 158

Housing 158

Food 159

Language 161

Oral Traditions 161

Ceremonies 162

Medicine 162

17 The Future of South Florida 163.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 171-175) and index.

ISBN:

081302773X

OCLC:

56330171