A lost Amazon world just reappeared in Bolivia

Summary

In September 2021, a team of specialists traveled to one of the least-documented areas of the Bolivian Amazon: the Great Tectonic Lakes of Exaltación in the department of Beni. The expedition, organized by the Grupo de Trabajo para los Llanos de Moxos (GTLM), brought together experts from the Wildlife Conservation Society, the National Museum of Natural History, the Institute of Ecology, the Biodiversity and Environment Research Center, the Aquatic Resources Research Center, and the Department of Anthropology of the Americas at the University of Bonn. In the southwestern Amazon, the tectonic Lakes Rogaguado and Ginebra reveal a landscape shaped by generations of human innovation. Beneath the open grasslands and shallow waters lie the remains of extensive earthworks, raised agricultural fields, and interconnected canals that reflect a long history of people adapting to a dynamic environment. These lakes sit within the Municipal Protected Area of Grandes Lagos Tectónicos de Exaltación and form part of the Río Yata Ramsar wetland complex, which is recognized by UNESCO for both its ecological and cultural value. Set in the Llanos de Moxos, a vast network of savannas, gallery forests, and floodplains that make up the largest wetland system in the Amazon basin, this area has inspired curiosity for centuries. Ethnohistorical accounts even linked it to the legendary 'Land of Paititi.' Only recently has its deep human past begun to come into clearer view. Mapping a Long History of Settlement Using a combination of surveys, excavations, and LiDAR imaging, the research team documented several archaeological sites: Paquío, Coquinal, Isla del Tesoro, and Jasschaja. Each site represents a different stage in the long sequence of habitation across this region. Radiocarbon dates reveal repeated occupations from roughly 600 to 1400 CE. Findings at Paquío show an early settlement beginning around 600 CE, followed by a more intensive occupation between 1000 and 1200 CE. This later phas...