Environmental Adaptations: Blog Post

The Zulus live in a subtropical region of lush valleys, between the mountains and the humid, subtropical coastline is savannah grassland, but there are also areas of indigenous forest along the coast. It is a summer rainfall area, with a climate that ranges from extremely hot along the coast in summer, to heavy snow on the mountains in winter. The Midlands are drier than the coast and can be very cold in winter. The average temperature in December is 91 degrees Fahrenheit.

The Zulu people are dark-skinned. There have been several theories as to why the Zulus have the physical characteristic of being dark skinned. The most current theory is that dark skin protects foliate in blood vessels from uv radiation. Foliate has a direct impact on both male and female fertility rates; this physical adaptation has evolved over a long period of time. People who live in high temperature regions have adapted their skin color to avoid uv stressors. The theories of why this has occurred vary from protection against the toxicity of too much vitamin D to protecting the skin from cancer.

One culture adaption I have found to be interesting is the Reed Dance. The Reed Dance is an old Zulu tradition to affirm the virginity in young girls. Human rights and current ideologies made the testing of virginity in girls almost disappear; however with the onslaught of the aids virus in the Zulu Population, the leaders brought back the tradition of testing virginity in girls. Young girls who protect their virginity cannot spread aids. So the result of establishing the virginity testing as a celebration of an old tradition and helping to stop the spread of aids had been reestablished and celebrated by the reed dance .This cultural adaptation has been brought back because of the cultural stressor of aids.

The Andean Indians

The Andean Indian’s climate is cold at night the year around. While during the winter the snow is deep in the high mountains. The weather is mostly dry and quite cold all year round due to its geographical location in the interior of the country, and its high altitude, ranging from 3,827ft. Up to 6,000 ft., in some parts of the mountains. The average temperature is around 8ºC, with a maximum of 15º and a minimum of 1º in winter. One of the traditions of the Andean Indians is the chewing of the coca leaves. The chewing of the leaves act as a pick me up( much like our tradition of drinking coffee in the morning) The coca leaves are used in many of the religious ceremonies, such as naming ceremonies etc. The coca leaves are used to foretell the future by the shamans and also to confer status and wealth. There are some people, due to ethnocentrism, who wish to eradicate the time-honored tradition of the chewing of the leaves. Many of these groups mistake the use of the coca leaves for cocaine abuse. The eradication of this tradition would be like taking away the heart of the Andean Indians.

Physical Adaptation

One area of focus for study has been finding and understanding the cause of lung capacity differences, and physiological differences between Andean highlanders and lowlanders. Multiple researches have indicated that there are physical differences in the size and volume of lungs in Andean highlanders when compared to the people who live in the low lands.   The basis behind these differences was thought to be genetic adaptations from living in high altitudes. One set of research indicates that these differences may occur simply from living with  the stress of hypobaric apraxia, however, other research strongly supports that growing up in these conditions (high altitude) during specific developmental phases in life may be the cause of the physical adaptations.  Studies using genetic markers (skin reflectors) have demonstrated a genetic component to lung size and capacity. Males have been shown to have larger lungs and more lung capacity in comparison to females. Also, darker skinned highlanders had greater lung capacity then lighter skinned individuals.  This physiological adaptation seems to occur as a mixed result of growing up as a highlander in high altitude and a genetic predisposition to have larger lungs and more air capacity.  

 I would compare the Zulu populations with the African Race and the Andean culture with the Native American race.  I think that the approach of looking at a culture through the culture adaptations is a better way to categorize a population

Citation

Greksa, Lawrence. "Evidence for a Genetic Basis to the Enhanced Total Lung Capacity of Andean Highlanders."Human Biology, 68.1 (1996): 119-129.