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Nootka indian tribe facts8/31/2023 Ĭommunal hunts involved a large group of men with a leader occasionally aided by women and children all working together to funnel the animals into a desired location. Lillooet trained a puppy to be a good hunting dog by placing a fresh deer stomach over its head. Dogs were frequently used to run animals down, keep them at bay until men arrived, and herd them into designated areas where hunters waited with arrows and spears. Hunters drove deer into nets that entangled deer antlers, trapping them long enough for the men to club or spear the animals. ĭeer were herded in communal drives into enclosures, fences, water, nets, canyons or off cliffs and between mountains into ambushes of men waiting with weapons. Ī wide range of hunting strategies were used to hunt deer, including communal drives, spring traps, blinds, deadfalls, snares, nooses, animal calls, decoys, tracking and stalking. The People of Port Simpson (Tsimshian) attribute the decline of deer populations to an augmentation of logging practices and an increase in the wolf population. In the past there was an abundance of deer in the Sioux territory. Deer numbers declined in the Thompson (N'laka'pamux) area at the turn of the nineteenth century, encouraging the increase in North American elk however when North American elk herds dwindled, deer made a reappearance in the region. Some cultures were reported to have experienced changes in deer populations. The Thompson, who relied on deer for sustenance, followed the grazing patterns of the herds each season: the deer moved north in spring and south in fall crossing the same valleys, mountains and rivers. The Mi’kmaq, Middle Columbia Salish, Eastern Abenaki, Maliseet, Southern Chippewa (Anishinabek), People of Port Simpson and Nootka mostly hunted deer in winter on snowshoes. The Nuxalk, Lower Kutenai, Kyuquot and Huron hunted deer in fall and winter when the snow made tracking easier. Some seasons were easier to hunt than others. Kwakiutl (Kwakwaka'wakw) are reported to have caught deer anytime of the year although deer hunting permits were required, few villagers obtained them. The Katzie actively hunted deer in summer to accumulate winter stores of dried meat. The Iroquois, Shawnee and Southern Okanagan hunted mainly in fall. The People of Port Simpson avoided hunting deer in May because they found the venison had a bitter taste during mating season. The Tlingit preferred to hunt in winter for the thick quality of the hide. The time of year determined the quality and fatness of the animals: the doe was fattest in spring near calving time and the buck was fattest in fall after the summer feeding season. For example, the Flathead and Plains Cree hunted deer when bison season ended, the Kutenai (Kootenai) hunted when bison and antelope were scarce, and the Shuswap hunted after the salmon run had ended in fall. ĭeer was available throughout the year however cultures tended to hunt during seasons when other food sources were no longer available or when the quality of the deer meat and hide was at its best. The Coeur d’Alene hunted deer to a large extent however when horses became available their focus changed to bison. Other cultures were less keen to seek deer: Nootka (Nuu-chah-nulth) preferred marine food sources and the Stalo favored mountain goat and black bear despite availability of deer. Deer was a common traditional food of the Nuxalk, known as scwpanilh. On Vancouver and the Charlotte Islands, deer was only available on the southern points while cultures of the British Columbia interior had ample access to deer. Cultures that lived inland such as the Dene relied more on deer than their coastal neighbors who often depended on fish. The Western Abenaki, Anishinabeg (Anishinabek), Sanpoil, Coast Salish and Similkameen had access to ample deer in their territories. In the boreal forest, deer were vital for the Chipewyan. Deer was one of the principal animals consumed by prehistoric West Coast Peoples. Access to guns increased the West Coast cultures’ interest in hunting land animals like deer. Some Mackenzie cultures regarded deer and salmon as equally important. Some cultures took full advantage of the availability of deer: the Kyuquot were traditional marine mammal hunters, but they also hunted deer. Thus some of the ethnographic literature reviewed here may extend beyond white-tailed deer and mule deer to other deer relatives. For example, the Chipewyan and Kutchin (Gwich’in) used the words “deer and/or caribou”. Here, by deer, we mean primarily white-tailed deer and/or mule but the ethnographic literature does not always clearly distinguish between these two species and other deer relatives, such as North American elk, caribou and occasionally moose. For some cultures, deer meat was a central component of the diet for others it supplemented the diet. Deer was an important source of food and raw materials for many Indigenous Peoples.
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