Human Ecology, Vol. 27, No. 3, 1999 Food Consumption and Subsistence in Three Caboclo Populations on Marajo Island, Amazonia, Brazil Rui SeÂrgio S. Murrieta, 1 Darna L. Dufour, 1 and Andrea D. Siqueira 2 In this article data on household food consumption is used to further under- standing of subsistence strategies in three Caboclo populations on Marajo Is- land,Amazonia, Brazil. Data were collected using participantobservatio n and 24-hour food recalls in 16 households for 7 consecutive days during the rainy (March)and dry (July)seasons. MarajoÂ-Ac Ëu households (n 5 6)had the high- est levels of energy and protein intake relati ve to recommendations. This was probably related to their successful integration into the prosperous ac Ë ai (a p alm fruit) market of the riverine area. Praia Grande households (n 5 6) had the lowest values for energy intake (rainy season), which supports the authors’ eth- nographic observations of some instability in the subsistence system of this pop- ulation.Paricatuba households (n 5 4)exhibited intermediate values of energy and protein intakes, but less seasonal variation in consumption than the other two populations. Despite the differences observed,food consumption does not appear to be a major limitation for any of the three population s. The data sup- port recenthypotheses concerning the concomitant and multiple use of vaÂrz ea (¯oodplain) and terra ®rme (upland) en vironments by the Caboclos and inte- gration into the local market economy as the central strategies in dealing with the so-called socioen vironmental constraints of the Amazonian ¯oodplain. KEY WORDS: food consumption; Amazonia; Caboclo; ac Ëai; seasonality. INTRODUCTION Food production and acquisition have been the cornerstone for various theories of the human occupation of Amazonia. Since Julian Steward 1 Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0233. 2 Department of Anthropology, Indiana University, IN 47405. 455 0300-7839/99/0900-0455$1 6.00/0 Ó 1999 Plenum Publishing Corporation