XXVI Congreso Internacional de Americanistas

- 32 5 ­
- 72°) are from 37° to 97° colder than the extremes of Fl1egia, anel the
extreme summer temperatures (Cape Adair, 49° ; Little America, 20.8°)
frol11 37° to 66" colder than the hot extremes of Fuegia .
'VVe thus find that if \Ve assume that the Fuegians would perish in a
clima te colder than that of modern Fuegia we would have to postulate
an increase of from 35° to 55° in the mean annual temperatu re of Antarctica
and of an increase of at least 66° in the winter extreme before
that continent could be inhabited by Fuegians. If we assume that the
Fuegians could withstancl greater cold than that experienced in Fuegia
(he amount of increase required to l11ilke Anta rctica inhabitable 'VVould be
correspondingly lessened. However it seems likely tbat people with the
material equipment of the Fuegians would require at least a m ean annual
temperature aboye freezing (32°) anel such would necessitate an increase
of not less than 45°, a majar climatic change. For such there seems to
be no substantiating evidence.
It cannot be presumed that any less change woulcl be sufficient for
there are other factors involved. Since Rivet aSSUl11es that the cultural
possessions of the hypothetlcal Australian wanderers inc1uded ~ ewn bark
canoes, and possibly other craft, ancl beehive huts, allowance must be
made for the building of huts, the construction of neVv: craft and the
repair of olel. Such activities prEsuppose the presence in A ntarctica oi
substantial trees, a flora lacking there at pre~ent and which apparently
has not existed tbere eluring Pleistocene times. If we may judge from
the mean annual temperatures in the barren lands in other colel regions
it would seem likely that a tree flora would require a mean annual temperature
at least between 30° and 40° F. or more, depending upon the
size of tree necessary. In other words to provide Antarctica with trees
capable of supplying the cultural needs attributed to the allegecl migrants
the mean annual tel1lperature of Antarctica would have to rise at least
30" to sa°, Furthermore it