Bowhunting with Poisoned Arrows in the Afrotropics from Recent Times to the Pleistocene

During historical times, Europeans noted the ubiquitous use of poisoned arrows throughout the Afrotropics. Today, we know that this is one of the regions where Homo sapiens evolved. We also know that the archaeological records of some Afrotropic bioregions show rapid, cumulative innovation and cognitively modern behaviours since ~ 100 ka. We may therefore ask when bowhunting with poisoned arrows became part of the Afrotropic arsenal, and where we should look for early evidence of this techno-behaviour. This contribution provides an introduction to the Afrotropics and its 269 historically known bowhunting groups, 168 of whom are also known to use poisoned arrows. The article is meant as a starting point for contemplating the origins and/or radiation of this hunting strategy in each of the six sub-realms in a co-evolutionary context. I also provide a database for known Afrotropic arrow-poison plant species as a resource for future chemical testing of residues obtained from archaeological artefacts. It is widely accepted that bone points and microlithic insets were used for tipping poisoned arrows throughout the Afrotropic Holocene, but providing evidence of the techno-behaviour for the Pleistocene remains difficult and contested. There is, however, an increasing body of work that points to bowhunting — perhaps also with poisoned arrows — in the Southern Afrotropic during MIS 4 (71–57 ka). The broader context for the MIS 4 bowhunting hypothesis shows how it fits with a climate-mtDNA (mitochondrial DNA) framework for its northward dispersal after ~ 70 ka. Lastly, I predict that when it is found, bio-chemical traces of arrow poisons on artefacts ballistically suited for such use have the potential to provide decisive confirmation of the MIS 4 bowhunting hypothesis.