Graduation Year
2021
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
M.A.
Degree Name
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Degree Granting Department
Anthropology
Major Professor
Thomas J. Pluckhahn, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Robert H. Tykot, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Diane Wallman, Ph.D.
Keywords
Archaeology, Florida Prehistory, GIS modeling, Site Patterns
Abstract
Central Florida’s Ocala National Forest is the largest remnant of the unique-to-the-region Sand Pine Scrub ecosystem. This ecosystem exhibits a surprising wealth of biodiversity despite what may be characterized as barren, difficult, dry, pyrogenic conditions. Significant prehistoric sites exist throughout the forest, even in the Sand Pine Scrub; however, most are on the margins and few systematic surveys penetrated this ecosystem, until now. I utilized GIS and these recently collected archaeological survey data, in conjunction with other environmental, geological, or historical data in GIS format, to model prehistoric settlement and land use patterns. This model attempts to address questions of prehistoric peoples’ interactions with environments that have long been considered marginal, ‘empty,’ or even ‘too difficult’ by modern assessments to have been utilized. The model I developed explored the geospatial relationships between GIS layers for soil types, elevation, water source types, historic trails, and prehistoric midden or mound site locations as potential variables for ‘predicting’ prehistoric site locations. Ultimately the layers that I found worked best in the predictive model were several specific soil types, a distance of less than 300 m from the lake/swamp waterbody layer, and a limited, lower elevation range. The model, when tested, proved quite effective at indicating areas of site suitability. While the model is reductive to only two or three environmental factors being important in predicting the majority of the locations suitable for archaeological sites in the Sand Pine Scrub, this is not unexpected since the Big Scrub of Ocala NF is in some ways a limited ecosystem.
Scholar Commons Citation
Wallace, Jelane M., "Site Suitability Modeling in the Sand Pine Scrub of the Ocala National Forest" (2021). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/9257
