The Inuit practice what might seem to be a curious ritual in order to conduct their hunting: the scapula, or shoulder blade, of a previous kill, a deer or caribou, is burned, and, before it is consumed entirely, the bone is withdrawn from the fire. The surface of the bone is crazed with a fine pattern of cracks and fissures. The Inuit use this as a map to indicate the direction and extent of the coming hunt.

What is truly remarkable in this practice is that, while the Inuit know very well the territories indicated, and the signs and habits of the game they pursue, when the pattern indicates that they should travel in a direction different from where they know the game will be, they undertake that task nonetheless. One cannot help but to wonder why.

Various answers have been proposed, and the most convincing - if unlikely -is that in this way the Inuit are able to secure enough food to survive without entirely consuming all available sources in a particular region.

In other words, it is an ecological constraint. But several questions remain: do the Inuit know what they are doing ? (yes and no); who has instituted and maintains this practice ? (individuals or community) and does it work ? (are enough people fed, and do enough caribou survive), and how and where did such a practice originate (under what conditions)……