Amazonia was a major center of crop domestication before European arrival
In short: Researchers reviewing historical evidence found that Amazonia was not a pristine wilderness, but rather a highly managed landscape. Their review of the region's history shows that at least 83 native plant species had undergone some level of domestication, contributing to a highly modified environment.
By examining evidence of human influence over millennia, the study highlights how complex societies used land management and earthworks to expand food production. This research suggests that by 1492, the region's human-modified landscapes may have supported populations as large as eight million people, though the review relies on interpreting existing archaeological and ecological evidence.
Why it matters: The Amazon was a highly managed, populous landscape rather than an untouched wilderness.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Research: Clement et al. (2015). The domestication of Amazonia before European conquest. Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences.
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