Overview of Gallina Archaeology and Ceramic Resource Selection
— Connie Constan

The areas in northern New Mexico visited by the 2025 New Mexico Geological Society Fall Field Conference were home to what archaeologists call the Gallina culture. This culture is named after the Rio Gallina (seen at Stop 2 of Day 2), which is itself called by the colloquial Spanish for “wild turkey.” The Llaves Valley, visited throughout Day 2, is in the heartland of the Gallina culture area, which is bounded by the Chama River to the east and the upper San Juan River drainage on the west. The northern edge generally is seen as at El Vado dam, but some blurring of the line occurs to the far side of Heron Lake and possibly to the Colorado border. The San Pedro Mountains and the upper Rio Puerco bound the core area on the south, while there is overlap with other groups beyond Cuba toward Cabezon (Fig. 1). There appear to be seasonal use sites east of the Chama River into the Canjilon Mountain area.