POLLEN ANALYSIS IN DREWS VALLEY, SOUTHEAST OREGON

Pollen columns and cultural features were examined from five archaeological sites in Drews Valley, Oregon. Radiocarbon ages from these sites place their occupation between Middle Holocene and recent. The single exception is the presence of Mazama ash at the La Sere Site (35LK2101), which indicates that the lowest sediments predate 6000 BP. Drews Valley is situated at the western edge of Goose Lake Basin, an internally draining sub-basin of the northern Great Basin. Stratigraphic samples were examined for pollen to define prehistoric local vegetation and interpret paleoenvironmental conditions for this area. Pollen samples were examined from cultural features in an effort to identify human exploitation of local vegetal resources identified through either pollen or starch evidence.