More than 10,000 pre-Columbian earthworks are still hidden throughout Amazonia.
Vinicius PeripatoCarolina LevisGuido A MoreiraDani GamermanHans Ter SteegeNigel C A PitmanJonas Gregorio de SouzaJose IriarteMark RobinsonAndré Braga JunqueiraThiago B TrindadeFernando Ozorio de AlmeidaClaide de Paula MoraesUmberto LombardoEduardo K TamanahaShira Yoshi MaezumiJean Pierre H B OmettoJosé R G BragaWesley Augusto CampanharoHenrique L G CassolPhilipe Riskalla LealMauro L R de AssisAdriana M da SilvaOliver L PhillipsFlavia R C CostaBernardo Monteiro FloresBruce HoffmanTerry W HenkelMaría Natalia UmañaWilliam E MagnussonElvis H Valderrama SandovalJos BarlowWilliam MillikenMaria Aparecida LopesMarcelo Fragomeni SimonTinde R van AndelSusan G W LauranceWilliam F LauranceArmando Torres-LezamaRafael L AssisJean-François MolinoMickaël MestreMichelle HamblinLuiz de Souza CoelhoDiogenes de Andrade Lima FilhoFlorian WittmannRafael P SalomãoIêda Leão AmaralJuan Ernesto Guevara AndinoFrancisca Dionízia de Almeida MatosCarolina Volkmer de CastilhoMarcelo de Jesus Veiga CarimDairon Cárdenas LópezDaniel SabatierMariana Victória IrumeMaria Pires MartinsJosé Renan da Silva GuimarãesOlaf S BánkiMaria Teresa Fernandez PiedadeJosé Ferreira RamosBruno Garcia LuizeEvlyn Márcia Moraes de Leão NovoPercy Núñez VargasThiago Sanna Freire SilvaEduardo Martins VenticinqueÂngelo Gilberto ManzattoNeidiane Farias Costa ReisJohn TerborghKatia Regina CasulaLayon O DemarchiEuridice N Honorio CoronadoAbel Monteagudo MendozaJuan Carlos MonteroJochen SchöngartTed R FeldpauschAdriano Costa QuaresmaGerardo A Aymard CorredorChristopher BaralotoNicolás Castaño ArboledaJulien EngelPascal PetronelliCharles Eugene ZartmanTimothy J KilleenBeatriz Schwantes MarimonBen Hur Marimon-JuniorJuliana SchiettiThaiane Rodrigues de SousaRodolfo Vasquez MartinezLorena M RincónErika BerenguerJoice FerreiraBonifacio MostacedoDario Dantas AmaralHernán CastellanosMarcelo Brilhante de MedeirosAna C AndradeJosé Luís Campana CamargoEmanuelle de Sousa FariasJosé Leonardo Lima MagalhãesHenrique Eduardo Mendonça NascimentoHelder Lima de QueirozRoel J W BrienenJuan David Cardenas RevillaPablo R StevensonAlejandro Araujo-MurakamiBruno Barçante Ladvocat CintraYuri Oliveira FeitosaFlávia Rodrigues BarbosaRainiellen de Sá CarpanedoJoost F DuivenvoordenJanaína da Costa de NoronhaDomingos de Jesus RodriguesHugo F MogollónLeandro Valle FerreiraJohn Ethan HouseholderJosé Rafael LozadaJames A ComiskeyFrederick C DraperJosé Julio DE ToledoGabriel DamascoNallaret Davila CardozoRoosevelt García-VillacortaAline LopesFernando Cornejo ValverdeAlfonso AlonsoFrancisco DallmeierVitor Hugo Freitas GomesEliana M JimenezDavid A NeillMaria Cristina Peñuela MoraDaniel P P de AguiarLuzmila ArroyoFernanda Antunes CarvalhoFernanda Coelho de SouzaKenneth J FeeleyRogerio GribelMarcelo Petratti PansonatoMarcos A Rios ParedesIzaias Brasil da SilvaMaria Julia FerreiraPaul V A FineÉmile FontyMarcelino Carneiro GuedesJuan Carlos LiconaR Toby PenningtonCarlos Augusto PeresBoris Eduardo Villa ZegarraGermaine Alexander ParadaGuido Pardo MolinaVincent Antoine VosCarlos CerónPaul MaasMarcos SilveiraJuliana StroppRaquel ThomasTimothy R BakerDoug DalyIsau Huamantupa-ChuquimacoIma Célia Guimarães VieiraBianca Weiss AlbuquerqueAlfredo F FuentesBente KlitgaardJosé Luis Marcelo-PeñaMiles R SilmanJ Sebastián TelloCorine F VriesendorpJerome ChaveAnthony Di FioreRenato Richard HilárioJuan Fernando PhillipsGonzalo Rivas TorresPatricio von HildebrandLuciana de Oliveira PereiraEdelcilio Marques BarbosaLuiz Carlos de Matos BonatesHilda Paulette Dávila DozaRicardo Zarate GomezGeorge Pepe Gallardo GonzalesTherany GonzalesYadvinder MalhiIres Paula de Andrade MirandaLinder Felipe Mozombite PintoAdriana PrietoAgustín RudasAdemir R RuschelNatalino SilvaCésar I A VelaEgleé L ZentStanford ZentÁngela CanoYrma Andreina Carrero MárquezDiego F CorreaJanaina Barbosa Pedrosa CostaDavid R GalbraithMilena HolmgrenMichelle KalamandeenGuilherme de S LoboMarcelo Trindade NascimentoAlexandre A de OliveiraHirma Ramirez-AnguloMaira RochaVeridiana Vizoni ScudellerRodrigo SierraMilton TiradoGeertje M F van der HeijdenEsteban Alvarez DávilaManuel Augusto Ahuite ReateguiClaudia BaiderHenrik BalslevSasha CárdenasLuisa Fernanda CasasWilliam Farfan-RiosCid FerreiraReynaldo Linares-PalominoCasimiro MendozaItalo MesonesLigia Estela Urrego GiraldoDaniel VillarroelRoderick ZagtMiguel N AlexiadesEdmar Almeida de OliveiraKarina Garcia-CabreraLionel HernandezWalter Palacios CuencaSusamar PansiniDaniela PaulettoFreddy Ramirez ArevaloAdeilza Felipe SampaioLuis Valenzuela GamarraLuiz Eduardo Oliveira E Cruz de AragãoPublished in: Science (New York, N.Y.) (2023)
Indigenous societies are known to have occupied the Amazon basin for more than 12,000 years, but the scale of their influence on Amazonian forests remains uncertain. We report the discovery, using LIDAR (light detection and ranging) information from across the basin, of 24 previously undetected pre-Columbian earthworks beneath the forest canopy. Modeled distribution and abundance of large-scale archaeological sites across Amazonia suggest that between 10,272 and 23,648 sites remain to be discovered and that most will be found in the southwest. We also identified 53 domesticated tree species significantly associated with earthwork occurrence probability, likely suggesting past management practices. Closed-canopy forests across Amazonia are likely to contain thousands of undiscovered archaeological sites around which pre-Columbian societies actively modified forests, a discovery that opens opportunities for better understanding the magnitude of ancient human influence on Amazonia and its current state.