From Snails to Storms
Can this snail tell us about climate change? We think it can. We think studying Aniakchak Bay’s modern snails and those we recovered archaeologically will tell us something about the intensity of wave action (or storminess) 1500 years ago compared to today. Storminess and exposure to waves would have been an environmental condition important to the Aniakchak Bay villagers since their economy was so heavily focused on the harvest of maritime resources. We hope that our analysis of snail biomechanics will give us insight into the climatic conditions faced by the Aniakchak villagers during their occupation and especially during the abandonment of their home on the bay.
