What Invasive Species Are Trying to Tell Us

Walking snakeheads, carnivorous snails, and the superpredator from the reef: The invasion has begun.
—By Julia Whitty

January/February 2009

Les Gibson takes me out to teach me how to hunt, which is what he calls fishing. Despite the fact that every public beach in Queensland, Australia, has been periodically closed this season due to blooms of box jellyfish, and despite the fearsome saltwater crocodiles living here, Les strides confidently into the bay with a pair of 10-foot-long bamboo spears and his wooden woomera, the multipurpose Aboriginal atlatl, or spear-thrower.

Read the rest of the story on the Mother Jones website here.

© Justin Smith / Wikimedia Commons, CC-By-SA-3.0

Giant Bison Vertebra with Atlatl Point. Cherokee, Oklahoma 4,000 - 3,500 B.C.
Donated by James M. Royer of Roseville, CA

View in large format at WikiCommons here.

Phil and Diane presented the program, "Primitive
Tools and the Early Americans" for the Crossroads
Group of the Sierra Club at the Brighton District
Library last month.

Click on the article in the photo section to the
right to see a larger format copy.

Photo courtesy of WikiCommons.

Note throwing board and compound dart lashed to kayak.

Here's an email I received from Jack Rowe. You may be familiar with his nicely made river cane atlatls.

Hello Everyone,

I would like to introduce you to my new web site. www.customatlatlsanddarts.com

I have had this in the works for a couple years now. I've done so much talking about building a web site I decided I better get-r-done. I decided to build the site myself since I couldn't afford some of the quotes I was getting to have someone else do it. So I'm still working to get it right. I have more ideas and as I play here at the computer you'll notice them. Also I plan to build another web site that will deal with hunting with atlatls. Watch for it.

Thank you for looking.

Jack Rowe
www.customatlatlsanddarts.com

I'm sure some of you are familiar with Etsy. Our old friend Ray Strichek, founder of the Ohio Atlatl Association has a store on Etsy selling his atlatls and darts. View his online Etsy store here.

Here is a sample of his shop on the site:

Atlatl Ray's Atlatls and Darts AtlatlRay's Shop Announcement An atlatl is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in throwing darts, and includes a bearing surface which allows the user to transfer energy derived from muscular energy during the throw. It consists of a shaft with a handle on one end and a spur or cup on the other, against which the butt of the dart rests. The dart is thrown by the action of the upper arm and wrist in conjunction with a shift of balance of the body. An atlatl can readily cast a well made dart to ranges greater than 100 meters.

In the course of 10 years, I started out with a rigid, hammer grip atlatl but within two years, switched to a flexible, weighted, hammer grip atlatl (which provides greater throwing control and a smoother throwing motion). However, a foolish mistake experimenting with heavier weights gave me a very painful dose of "atlatl elbow" for nine months. Desperate, I switched to a basketmaker grip, flexible, weighted atlatl, and the pain was gone in three days.

The difference between hammer grip and basketmaker grip. Hammer grip provides greater control of elevation, but less control of direction. Basketmaker grip provides greater control of direction, but less control of elevation.

Three years ago, I switched to a single hole, flexible, weighted atlatl. The single hole splits the difference between pure hammer grip and basketmaker, giving me all around better control of elevation and direction. Now when I miss, its pure pilot error.

Dart Rest: A dart rest allows you to use all your fingers and thumb to control the atlatl handle. No need to hold the dart to the atlatl with some fingers before the throw, then have to reset the fingers on the atlatl handle during the throw. With the dart rest, you hold the atlatl, the atlatl holds the dart, and you don't get in each other's way.

Flexible Atlatl Shaft: Think shock absorber. During the throwing motion, the dart is flexing. The atlatl shaft flexes during the throwing motion, preventing an annoying, slightly painful strain that would normally run from your wrist to your elbow. Some people say the flexing atlatl shaft provides more power to the throw. I say the flexing atlatl shaft acts as a shock absorber, providing a smoother throwing motion.

Atlatl Weight: So many theories! Some say the weight provides more velocity, or a stealthy throw, or helps balance the weight of atlatl and dart together so a person can hold same in readiness to throw for long periods of time. I think it has more to do with the advantage of centrifugal force. During the throwing motion the dart is flexing and at the top of the throw, the spur of the atlatl is no longer inside the hole in the back of the dart. The dart is resting on the top side of the spur, connected to the spur only because the atlatl is moving faster than the dart. The atlatl weight, provides enough centrifugal force to counter the forces of the flexing dart, to provide a well controled, smoother throwing motion.

All of the atlatls and darts sold in this shop are handmade.

I recently got this email from Tom Mills, former President of the WAA and all around great guy. If you want to really learn about the atlatl, check out his PaleoAleo Channel on YouTube.

Here's Tom:

Howdy folks,
 
I've agreed to act as point person for the WAA for the 2009 atlatl event at the Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.  I've scoured my contact list for my atlatl friends far and wide and am sending this Email to you for two reasons.  First, it's my evil plan to convince each and every one of you to come attend the event.  Second, in the alternative, I'm hoping to enlist your aid in spreading word about the 2009 event in Nevada.  For those of you who have been to the Valley of Fire, you know the physical beauty fo the place, and you know how special it is to participate in a contest at the foot of "Atlatl Rock."
 
The dates of the event are Friday, March 27, 2009 through Sunday, March 29, 2009.
 
If any of you can help me with a mailing list of other WAA members and atlatl enthusiasts, I'd be in your debt.  I realize that my contact list here is only the tip of a much larger iceberg.  
 
Happy Holidays to all, Merry Christmas, happy New Year, etc.
 
Tom Mills
Pasadena, CA

paleoaleo@yahoo.com

 Imagine participating in an atlatl tournament in the shadow of Atlatl Rock at Valley of Fire State Park!

Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow at Phil and Diane's.

Here are some random images from previous Turkey Tosses: