The Role of Avifauna in Paleodiet Reconstruction : An Arctic Case Study ...

• Main Author: Edwards, Tu-Kim
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Arts 2018
• Subjects: avifauna; Archaeology; stable isotope analysis; paleodiet; biological anthropology; Paleo-Inuit; Arctic; Ellesmere Island; inuit; Knud Peninsula
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/prism/33052; https://prism.ucalgary.ca/handle/1880/108699

This thesis explores the importance of birds in paleodietary reconstruction based on stable isotope analysis, using faunal remains from Arctic contexts as a case study. In the Arctic, migratory birds and their eggs have been important seasonal resources for hunter-gatherer populations, and while evidence of their utilization in the faunal record is apparent, their use is less clear from the isotopic record. Zooarchaeological analysis was carried out on a large sample of bird remains from Pre-Dorset and Dorset sites located on the Knud Peninsula of Ellesmere Island to assess bird hunting and processing amongst Paleo-Inuit groups. A subset of these archaeological bird remains were analyzed to determine the variation in avian isotopic signatures which was expected to differ from terrestrial and sea mammal isotopic signatures. An experimental study was carried out to test the assumption that the spacing between avian tissues (bone collagen, muscle, fat, and feathers) differs from tissue spacings in mammals. ...