Finger dermatoglyphics of the Peruvian Cashinahua

The Peruvian Cashinahua are an isolate of unmixed American Indians living in four villages in the Southeastern part of the country. Finger dermatoglyphic data were collected from the three most closely grouped villages in the summer of 1966. The relatively low proportion of whorls and high proportion of arches, and the low values of pattern intensity (10.75) and total ridge count (89.14) contrasts markedly with other American Indian groups in general, and with Amazon Basin groups in particular. The distinctive finger print patterns may be explained by factors such as genetic drift and inbreeding, which can alter gene and phenotype frequencies in small populations.