A Taxonomic Analysis of Avian Faunal Remains from Three Sites in Marina Del Rey. Los Angeles County, California Joan C. Brown. Coyote Press Archives of California Prehistory No. 30, vii + 71 pp., 8 tables, appendix, 1989, $6.20 (paper).

The Santa Rita Village Mortuary Complex (CA-ALA- 413): Evidence and Implications of a Meganos Intrusion. Randy S. Wiberg. Coyote Press Archives of California Prehistory, No. 18, 1988, vi + 99 pp., 8 tables, 35 figures, appendix, $5.95 (paper).

In September, 1884, William Greenwood Wright published an article entitled "A Naturalist in the Desert" in the popular serial Overland Monthly (Wright 1884:279-284). This short paper contains a number of observations which substantiate existing ethnographic data regarding Cahuilla Indian village locations, agricultural methods, ethnobotanical practices, and social customs. Specifically, however, it contains a detailed graphic description of Cahuilla caterpillar exploitation. This particular paragraph of Wright's article is worth reprinting here for several reasons: (1) identification of the insect and its host plant are included; (2) the use of this insect, the White-lined Sphinx Moth, Hyles lineata (Fabricius), has seldom been recorded previously in an ethnographic context in California or elsewhere; and (3) Wright's description has not received attention and might be of interest to Cahuilla scholars.

The discovery of the Plantation Cache has called attention to an unusual assemblage of archaeological remains. We have presented evidence that supports the hypothesis that they comprise the cached paraphernailia of a shaman. Ethnographic data from a variety of tribes indicate that the caching of ritual items was common, so it is not surprising that archaeologists might occasionally come across such a feature. The Plantation Cache contributes to the small sample of known caches of charmstones in northern California. We have also demonstrated—in light of the discovery of six nearly identical artifacts from northern California—that the Plantation Cache "football" variety of charmstone constitutes a distinctive type. We believe that the football-shaped charmstone represents a legitimate formal artifact type that has heuristic value for California archaeology. Criteria have been presented that identify the proposed football type of charmstone and discriminate the type from similar forms. We predict that additional examples will be identified, and hope that this paper contributes to that outcome.