Four species of seaweed discovered at Monte Verde--Durvillaea, Porphyra, Mazzaella, and Sarcothalia--are from rocky coastlines and intertidal pools west and south of Monte Verde. Three others--Gracilaria, Gigartina and Macrocystis--would have been collected from a sandy stretch of coast. Sargassum is a warm water species that probably reached Chile in a violent storm. Trentepohlia is a littoral species. The excellent preservation of these remnants allowed identification on the basis of cellular structure, plant morphology and color.
Prehistoric use of seaweed has been inferred from strontium levels in human skeletons from Archaic period coastal sites such as Paloma on the Pacific coast of Peru. Seaweed is a C4 plant: see the discussion of isotope analysis for more information.
Seaweed is an excellent source of iodine, iron, zinc, protein, and hormones, as well as a wide range of trace elements. Benefits of seaweed consumption include aiding cholesterol metabolism, increasing the calcium uptake of bones, antibiotic effects, and increasing the body's ability to fight infection.
In addition to the seaweed, 268 other edible seeds, fruits and other plant parts have been identified. Other food recovered from Monte Verde II include extinct llama, shellfish, a variety of vegetables and nuts, and most astoundingly, preserved chunks of mastodon meat.
Sources and Further Information
From Whence Came those Aboriginals of America?, the discovery of Monte Verde
Hunter-gatherers
Benfer Jr., Robert A. 1990 The Preceramic Period Site of Paloma, Peru: Bioindications of Improving Adaptation to Sedentism. Latin American Antiquity 1(4):284-318.
Dillehay, Tom D., et al. 2008 Monte Verde: Seaweed, Food, Medicine, and the Peopling of South America. Science 320:784-786.
