Archaeological geology of the Southern Plains

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Abstract
In the Southern Plains of the United States, researchers have conducted interdisciplinary studies of archaeological sites for more than 60 years. They have documented patterns of environmental and cultural change initiated at the close of the Pleistocene when Paleoindian populations first inhabited the region. My objectives in this review are (1) to illustrate the character of interdisciplinary archaeological research in the Southern Plains, that is, how multidisciplinary specialists have contributed to the study of archaeological records; and (2) to provide brief summaries of this research. The archaeological records of the Southern Plains are demonstrative of both diachronic and geographic variability, which is the focus of archaeological studies in the region. The following discussions, organized around geographic subregions of the Southern Plains, the Southern High Plains, and the Rolling Plains, should make clear that interdisciplinary methods of research have been essential to define and interpret that variability.