Landscapes and Hydrology of the Predrainage Everglades

Although this publication does not address human pre-history in the region, it is absolutely critical to understanding the archaeology of southeast Florida. McVoy et al., by dividing the "Everglades" into distinct ecological zones, and by describing the natural seasonal hydraulic fluctuations, provide a framework for thinking about pre-historic settlement and subsistence activity in the region. Prior to this work, many archaeologists tended to think about the region as being constituted by the coast and the little used interior. That view is anything but accurate. Of greatest importance is the development of the concept of the ecological zone called the "ridge and slough"; the broad and ecologically diverse central portion of the Everglades that was most extensively exploited by native populations. I predict that this publication, when read in the context of the fairly scant archeological publications that consider region wide pre-history, will be the source of of numerous research hypotheses in the years to come.