The riverine environment attracted many game animals. The people took advantage of the annual migrations of ducks and geese. Snares were used to trap and kill the waterfowl. Fish were caught mainly by using a lure of sharpened bone at the end of a piece of twine. Nets were also used for fishing.
The inhabitants hunted mostly small game, like rabbits, kangaroo rats, gophers and mice. Rabbits were especially important because their skins were used to make warm clothing. These small mammals were usually trapped with snares, clubbed or speared.
Seeds were an important part of the diet and were collected and stored in baskets made of grass or tule (bulrushes).
Tools were made from rocks, wood and animal bones. Points for spears were knapped from pieces of obsidian, churt and agate, among other rocks. Spear shafts and fire drills were made from wood. Pieces of bone were used for scraping skins, as eating utensils and as knives.
Petroglyphs can be found throughout the canyon. The symbols used vary from dot, circle and line patterns to figures that appear to be representative of animals and people.
For the 2,000 years prior to invasion by whites the canyon was utilized mainly by members of the Northern Paiute, a cultural and language group that occupied much of the Great Basin region. Like the earlier inhabitants, the Northern Paiute traveled in an annual cyclic pattern, exploiting food sources as they became available. However, there are marked differences between the two groups. The advent of the bow and arrow allowed the Northern Paiute to hunt more effectively. They relied on larger game, like deer and antelope, more heavily than the earlier group. They often congregated in large groups for communal hunts. Fishing was important, and by using more effective fishing techniques than their predecessors they could create a surplus of fish.
For both cultures the immediate family had important functions. Children helped their parents obtain food as soon as they were able. Males and females usually hunted in separate groups but occasionally worked together in communal rabbit drives. Grandparents watched the younger children when the parents were busy. Grandparents were instrumental in educating their families through the telling of myths containing lessons and morals. Their history was also related orally since they did not have a written language.
The introduction of the horse by the Spaniards drastically changed the lifestyles of many groups of Native Americans. A portion of the Northern Paiute population adopted the use of the horse. They came to be known as the Bannock, part of the Shoshone group to the east of the Owhyee. The horse was an impractical asset for the desert dwellers due to the harsh environment in which they lived and so it was not important in the Northern Paiute culture.
Silver and land for the taking drew whites to the region in the early 19th century. Traditionally the Northern Paiute were not a warring group, but the invading whites left then with no choice. To save their land and way of life they fought mainly in small bands against the whites. Today, many of the descendants of these people live on one of two reservations: Fort McDermitt, Nevada, or Duck Valley, Nevada, through which the Owyhee flows.