“Pursuit hunting” was sometimes more efficient than stalking, survey of Indigenous hunting methods suggests
Prehistoric people may have successfully chased down their prey more often than researchers had thought, as suggested by this replica painting of an ancient hunt from the Cave of Altamira in Spain.Since the Stone Age, hunters have brought down big game with spears, atlatls, and bows and arrows. Now, a new study reveals traditional societies around the globe also relied on another deadly but often-overlooked weapon: our legs.
But a pack of skeptics has dogged the theory. Critics cited the higher energetic costs of running over walking and noted that accounts of persistence hunting among modern foragers are rare. The researchers found 391 historical reports of endurance pursuits around the world—an order of magnitude more than what was previously known.
Sometimes running was more efficient than quietly stalking prey, the study suggests. Running costs more energy than walking, but when it’s successful, it allows for a quicker kill—and a better return on time invested. Hunters also employed slow running if faster prey could be disadvantaged by snow, rocky terrain, soft sand, or soggy ground. Sudanese hunters slogged through daylong pursuits of giraffes when the animals were slowed by rain-softened ground. Ojibwe hunters wore snowshoes to chase down elk that became exhausted by sinking into deep drifts.
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