68 



Limitations of the Data Sets 



There are several problems that must be considered in interpreting the data obtained during 

 this study. Perhaps the most serious problem was the procedure used to obtain game kill reports. This 

 study was based on voluntary reports of game kills provided by hunters. As might be expected, not all 

 hunters provided reports and not all cooperating hunters reported all of their kills. This problem was 

 addressed in many ways in order to improve the likelihood of receiving a report, including: employing 

 local residents as field assistants; living full-time in the village of X-Hazil Sur; maintaining good 

 relations with hunters and their families; and repeatedly conducting informal, follow-up interviews with 

 hunters to confirm or clarify information obtained from others. These practices greatly facilitated 

 obtaining timely and accurate reports of game kills. Based on my calculations, conversations with 

 hunters, and on information provided by village residents, the reported number of game animals taken 

 probably represents about two-thirds of the total game harvest, by number of individuals, at X-Hazil 

 Sur during the course of my data collection. 



A second problem was with the measurement of time and distance (e.g., duration of the 

 hunting outing or the location of the kill site). While in many cases the hunter knew the exact location 

 and distance to the kill site as well as the time of day when the animal was killed, in other cases these 

 measures were estimated. These estimates, however, were probably quite reliable as the Maya at X- 

 Hazil Sur were very familiar wiUi measuring time and distances while conducting other subsistence 

 activities, such as logging and working in gardens. Distance and time estimates recorded during this 

 study were constantly checked against maps, aerial photographs, knowledgeable local residents, and by 

 making site visits to many of the gardens, kill sites, and work areas in the forest. 



A third problem was the normality and independence of the data observations. It rapidly 

 became apparent during the study that the nature and extent of hunting depended greatly upon the biases 

 and preferences of the hunters. For example, some hunters went hunting on a relatively frequent basis, 

 while others went infrequently, and some hunters had several years of experience, while others were 

 just learning. In addition, some hunters were highly dependent upon the game they obtained as food. 



