508
BERNARD L. FONTANA
/. Summary. In summary, central Pimeria Alta witnesses a continuation
of climatic and topographic trends already described for the arid west. It
has a greater variety of vegetation and there is more of it. Water is more
readily available both in springs and as a result of rainfall and lower
evaporation rates, and the fauna, except for that characteristic of ocean
and seashore, is more abundant. Even so, there are no perennial streams,
and running water, except in the immediate vicinity of springs, is wholly
dependent on the biseasonal rains.
3. The Riverine Perimeters
The southern, eastern, and northern boundaries of Pimeria Alta are
marked by perennial streams. About 1700, these were the Middle and
Lower Gila River on the north, the parallel-running San Pedro and Santa
Cruz rivers on the east in Arizona, the Rio San Miguel on the east in
Sonora, and the Rio Magdalena and Rio Concepcion—which would be
regarded as a single stream in the United States—on the south in Sonora.
There may have been a few Upper Piman settlements between the Rio
Magdalena-Concepcion and Rio Sonora, but these are not well documented
for this early, "aboriginal" period. A fifth river of considerable importance,
and one which marks the approximate western limit of riverine-dwelling
Pimans, should the Rio Sonoyta be momentarily excluded from consideration, is the Rio Altar in northern Sonora.
Of these rivers, the Middle and Lower Gila, the Altar, the Magdalena-Concepcion, the San Miguel, and more than two-thirds the length
of the Santa Cruz lie within the Sonoran Desert. All are in Arizona Upland
except the Middle and Lower Gila and the Concepcion, which are in the
Lower Colorado Valley vegetation province. The only part of the San
Pedro inhabited by Pimans, the middle portion, lies wholly within
desert-grassland habitat beyond the Sonoran Desert. A small part of the
Santa Cruz is in oak woodland in the vicinity of the international
boundary.
According to Shreve, "The alluvial flood plains of the Arizona Upland
are one of the most favorable desert environments with respect to water
supply and depth and texture of soil" (Shreve and Wiggens, 1964, p. 79).
This remark may be extended to include parts of the Middle Gila as well.
The water in these rivers comes largely from drainage off the surrounding mountains through which they pass. This is particularly the case with
the Gila, which is ultimately the drainage for much of central and southern
Arizona. Both the San Pedro and Santa Cruz empty into it, while the Altar
runs into the Gulf of California-bound Rio Concepcion. The San Miguel,
on the other hand, empties into the Rio Sonora, even as the Gila empties
BERNARD L. FONTANA
/. Summary. In summary, central Pimeria Alta witnesses a continuation
of climatic and topographic trends already described for the arid west. It
has a greater variety of vegetation and there is more of it. Water is more
readily available both in springs and as a result of rainfall and lower
evaporation rates, and the fauna, except for that characteristic of ocean
and seashore, is more abundant. Even so, there are no perennial streams,
and running water, except in the immediate vicinity of springs, is wholly
dependent on the biseasonal rains.
3. The Riverine Perimeters
The southern, eastern, and northern boundaries of Pimeria Alta are
marked by perennial streams. About 1700, these were the Middle and
Lower Gila River on the north, the parallel-running San Pedro and Santa
Cruz rivers on the east in Arizona, the Rio San Miguel on the east in
Sonora, and the Rio Magdalena and Rio Concepcion—which would be
regarded as a single stream in the United States—on the south in Sonora.
There may have been a few Upper Piman settlements between the Rio
Magdalena-Concepcion and Rio Sonora, but these are not well documented
for this early, "aboriginal" period. A fifth river of considerable importance,
and one which marks the approximate western limit of riverine-dwelling
Pimans, should the Rio Sonoyta be momentarily excluded from consideration, is the Rio Altar in northern Sonora.
Of these rivers, the Middle and Lower Gila, the Altar, the Magdalena-Concepcion, the San Miguel, and more than two-thirds the length
of the Santa Cruz lie within the Sonoran Desert. All are in Arizona Upland
except the Middle and Lower Gila and the Concepcion, which are in the
Lower Colorado Valley vegetation province. The only part of the San
Pedro inhabited by Pimans, the middle portion, lies wholly within
desert-grassland habitat beyond the Sonoran Desert. A small part of the
Santa Cruz is in oak woodland in the vicinity of the international
boundary.
According to Shreve, "The alluvial flood plains of the Arizona Upland
are one of the most favorable desert environments with respect to water
supply and depth and texture of soil" (Shreve and Wiggens, 1964, p. 79).
This remark may be extended to include parts of the Middle Gila as well.
The water in these rivers comes largely from drainage off the surrounding mountains through which they pass. This is particularly the case with
the Gila, which is ultimately the drainage for much of central and southern
Arizona. Both the San Pedro and Santa Cruz empty into it, while the Altar
runs into the Gulf of California-bound Rio Concepcion. The San Miguel,
on the other hand, empties into the Rio Sonora, even as the Gila empties