5.6. SR 06-07-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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rivers and lakes, many of which have been modified by. humans in the past 100 years. For example, in the northwestern portion of the township, the very large Rice Lake seems to have appeared after 1888 and then disappeared in the 1930'S.46 To construct the model the dataset has been modified as follows: 1) Lake Orono was removed, as it is completely artificial, 2) lakes less than 1 hectare in area have been removed, as many are man-made, and lakes of this small size are of minimal importance in modeling. The existing streams have been used for modeling but it should be noted that these seem to have been heavily affected by drainage ditches in the northern half, and especially the northwestern quarter, of the township. Topography: The issue of topography does not need much explanation, While the Elk River area is mosdy flat, there are areas of high relief. The model weights areas with gende slope (OOto 50) as having the highest probability, moderate slope (50to 15~ as having moderate probability, Areas of higher slope are not excluded from the model, but receive no weighting in the model on the basis of topography. Additionally, hill and ridge tops are weighted in the model. Any area that stands out in relief (at a higher elevation) than its surroundings has long been favored as a habitation or use area, and such areas are an important component of the model. Vegetation: A major component of archaeological modeling is consideration of vegetation coverage. The prehistoric and early historic peoples of Minnesota depended direcdy on the land to provide them with all of their needs: food, fibers, shelter, and fuel. Archaeological and ethnographic studies have indicated that these resources were to be found in a variety of ecological settings. While some settings contain more resources than others, access to the whole variety is desirable. For example, the deciduous forest provides the most consistendy and readily available food sources, but it is within the prairie that the highly desirable bison and elk were to be found. The key to modeling vegetation coverage is an understanding of the ecotone. The ecotone is the boundary area- between two or more ecological systems, and humans tend to gravitate to these ecotones. For example, prehistoric and historic peoples have tended to live along the edge of the forest, not in the depths of the forest; the ecotone joining lake and forest has long been prime habitat, and continues in its popularity today. For the Elk River area, which has been so heavily modified in the last 100 years, mapping of vegetation suffers from similar limitations, and the model relies on vegetation as recorded 22