This coastal route, if it occurred, would have passed directly through the territory that Shuká Káa’s community occupied.

The evidence for coastal route settlement comes from multiple directions.

The early dates of sites in the southern parts of the Americas — Monte Verde in Chile, dated to approximately 14,500 years ago — are earlier than would be expected if the first Americans had to travel through the interior after the ice-free corridor opened.

Getting from Beringia to southern Chile through the interior in the time available requires either a very early entry (before the corridor was available) or a coastal route that allowed faster southward movement.

The ancient-DNA evidence has added a genetic dimension to the coastal route discussion.