American Indian Culture and Research Journal

"On a global basis, human cultural diversity is associated with the remaining concentrations of biodiversity. Both cultural diversity and biological diversity are endangered. Modern cultures are undercutting traditional cultures, and modern knowledge is replacing traditional knowledge." - E.O. Wilson INTRODUCTION One of California's greatest assets is that it harbors the richest plant diversity of any state in the continental United States. There are about 6,300 species, subspecies, and varieties of native plants. Another great treasure is the cultural diversity of its Native American tribes. With over one hundred indigenous languages once spoken on California soils, the state can legitimately claim to be the most linguistically diverse place on the continent. California at the point of Euro-American contact was more densely populated than any area of equal size in North America. Despite these dense populations, early non-Indian settlers did not find a biologically impoverished land. On the contrary, they found a vast abundance and diversity of plants and animals. The immense herds of tule elk and prong-horn antelope in the Central Valley, for example, rivaled animal numbers in Africa’s Serengeti.