Isotopic reconstruction of Proboscidean habitats and diets on enigmatic island of Sulawesi

Sulawesi is known for its complex geological and biogeographic history, which is reflected in their extinct and extant faunal assemblage. Evidence of oldest terrestrial fauna in Sulawesi was found in the Early Pleistocene sediment and evolved since then. Despite being mostly isolated from the mainland Southeast Asia; four successive Proboscidean taxa have been found from the southern part of the island. The four taxa are: Stegoloxodon celebensis, Stegodon sompoensis, Stegodon sp. B, and cf. Palaeoloxodon namadicus, in which respective taxa are included in successive faunal stages. The aim of this research is to reconstruct the diet and palaeoenvironment of these Proboscidean taxa by incorporating stable isotope analysis with the fossil faunal record, geology, and stratigraphy. Stable carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) isotope analysis were especially used in this study. Our result suggests that Stegoloxodon celebensis and Stegodon sompoensis were flexible feeders and were able to adapt to different niches, from closed canopy forest to open vegetation, while the diets of Stegodon sp. B, Celebochoerus heekereni and cf. Palaeoloxodon namadicus suggest that they were more specialized.

Insect Marks on Bones from La Guillerma Archaeological Locality (Salado River Depression, Buenos Aires, Argentina)

The La Guillerma archaeological locality is located in the northeast sector of Buenos Aires province (Argentina). Two of its sites (LG1 and LG5), dated between ca. 1400- and 600-years BP, have a great amount of faunal remains including deer, rodents, fish and small birds that are subjected to taphonomic agents and processes (e.g., weathering, manganese, roots). Previous studies have shown osteophagic behaviour in different insects (e.g., Coleoptera, Blattodea). In this paper, we evaluate their incidence on La Guillerma faunal assemblage. We performed an analysis on marks that were identified in bone remains of various taxa and applied the criteria for identifying bone alteration by insects (i.e., by measuring each trace and comparing them with the types of insect marks described in the literature). Fifteen specimens (LG1 = 6 and LG5 = 9) exhibited different types of modifications (e.g., pits with striae in base, pits with emanating striae, striations) that are related to the action of insects. Although the proportion of affected bones is low in relation to the total sample, we highlight our study as the first detailed analysis of insect marks on archaeological bones from Argentina. We also emphasize the significance of addressing insect-produced modifications on Argentinean archaeological sites.

Chapter Two: Preliminary Findings from the Faunal Assemblage from Eleon

A relatively small, but well-preserved, assemblage of faunal remains centred on an apparent refuse heap in the southwest quadrant of Eleon has been analyzed to determine the relative representation of domesticated and wild taxa, as well as mortality profiles for sheep and goats. Although the total number of identified specimens is small, at 1059 fragments, several patterns that warrant further analysis have emerged in the data. The representation of deer among these remains is higher than at other sites on the Greek mainland. Lower-utility elements such as metapodials and tibiae are better represented than meatier portions of the skeleton, suggesting that entire carcasses were being processed on site. Mortality profiles developed from sheep and goat mandibles indicate a distinct management strategy for each species, with a large number of very young and juvenile goats, compared with many more mature sheep. Overall, the faunal remains from this deposit suggest a varied economy in the post-palatial period, exploiting a wide range of species for both primary and secondary animal products. Further faunal analysis at Eleon is warranted to allow comparisons across time periods and between locations at the site.

Animal consumption and social change: the vertebrates from Ditch 7 in the context of a diachronic approach to the faunal remains at Perdigões enclosure (3400-2000 BC)

The results from the study of the faunal assemblage from ditch 7 of the Perdigões enclosure (Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal) are presented. Dated to the Chalcolithic and the transition to the early Bronze Age it comprises a total of 3380 remains. Results show the rele- vance of swine, caprines, cervids, bovines and equids and their diachronic oscillation. Indicators of butchering and consumption were recorded, comprising cutmarks, anthropogenic breakage, thermo-alterations and tooth marks, the latter mainly of a carnivore origin. The spectra obtained were compared within the scope of the Perdigões chronology, from the late Middle Neolithic to the transition to the early Bronze Age (3400-2000 BC), thus representing a first approach to the diachronic behaviour of vertebrate consumption at the site. Domesticated species are prevalent but changes in the domesticated/wild ratio are evident with a wild input, mainly from red deer, of significance in the late Middle Neolithic and in the transition to the early Bronze Age, whereas the Late Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods have a growth in the domesticated component.

faunal assemblage from the manufacturing district at Spolverino: from the Roman Imperial period to Late Antiquity

This paper presents a zooarchaeological analysis from the site of Spolverino (southern Tuscany, Italy). Archaeological excavations have uncovered a complex stratigraphy dated from the Roman Imperial period to Late Antiquity (late 1st- early 6th centuries AD). The industrial function of the site in Imperial times is partially reflected in the nature of the faunal assemblage. In Late Antiquity, Spolverino lost its original manufacturing functions, as many of the workshops were abandoned; our evidence, however, suggests that some livestock was kept, probably managed by a restricted group of people still living in that area. Some hunting was practiced throughout the occupation but it increased in the later periods. Remarkable, in Late Antiquity, is the occurrence of the fallow deer, an introduced species, rare in Roman contexts.

Economy and subsistence in the Early Neolithic site of Carrascal (Oeiras, Portugal)

Early Neolithic settlements in southwestern Iberia are rare and, so far, only a few faunal assemblages, mostly from Portuguese Estremadura, have been analysed. The zooarchae- ological studies suggest that animal husbandry was introduced to the area by Neolithic marine settlers originating from the Mediterranean and that domesticated animal herding, particularly sheep, was of outmost importance to the human communities. Located in lower Estremadura, Carrascal is an open-air site, featuring several dwelling structures, a diversified set of artefacts, and a well-established chronology for its Early Neolithic occupation (cal BC). It also yielded a faunal assemblage of considerable size and variability, which includes vertebrates (mammals and fishes) and invertebrates (molluscs). The present study, which focuses on the vertebrate materials, shows that during Early Neolithic the community that inhabited Carrascal practiced a diversified set of subsistence activities in which animal husbandry was prevalent. There is an abundance of caprines (mainly sheep) and swine, followed by cattle. The age at death data suggests a mixed animal exploitation system, with swine being mostly killed at a younger age (presumably for meat), while cattle was slaughtered after reaching adulthood (perhaps for milk production) and caprines show a mixed pattern. This study also reinforces the idea that, for the Neolithic communities living in lower Estremadura, hunting was a less prevailing activity (au- rochs and, perhaps, wild boar were identified, but red deer is absent in Carrascal) when compared with the human groups that lived in the central Estremadura Limestone Massif, a situation that may be due to different ecosystems and human demography.

Zooarchaeology and Taphonomic Aspects of Later Stone Age Faunal Assemblage from Loiyangalani Site in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

The paper presents detailed zooarchaeological and taphonomic results on the Later Stone Age (LSA) faunal assemblage. The contributions of various taphonomic agents in the formation of the assemblage are accentuated. The assemblage is well-preserved and the majority of specimens are not highly weathered. Fluvial disturbance did not play a significant role and can be ruled out as a significant taphonomic agent in the formation. Results indicate that LSA humans exploited high-quality nutritional resources mainly of the large-sized animals and aquatic resources as extra sources of meat and fat. The assemblage preserves stone tools butchery marks (cut marks and percussion marks) and carnivore marks (tooth marks) albeit few. Overall, the faunal assemblage exhibits high anthropogenic inputs and marginal carnivore involvement. Keywords: Zooarchaeology; Taphonomy; Later Stone Age; Serengeti National Park; Loiyangalani; Tanzania

Adaptive function and phylogenetic significance of novel skeletal features of a new Devonian microconchid tubeworm (Tentaculita) from Wyoming, USA

A new genus and species of microconchid tubeworm, Aculeiconchus sandbergi n. gen. n. sp., is described from the Givetian (Devonian) Maywood Formation of Cottonwood Canyon, Wyoming, USA. It possesses unique hollow spines of various lengths on the tube underside, a position previously undocumented for these fossils. Like some cyclostome bryozoans possessing basal tubular extensions, the basal spines of Aculeiconchus n. gen. were presumably also used for fixation to flexible substrata, e.g., algal thalli, which is a previously undocumented adaptive strategy in microconchids. Together with other skeletal features, such basal spines could suggest that ‘lophophorate’ microconchids, unlike the other tentaculitoids, might be phylogenetically not as distant from bryozoans as previously thought. The Maywood Formation, which contains a few-millimeters thick, monospecific shell accumulation of the microconchids described herein, records deposition in an estuarine brackish setting within narrow channels that were cut into underlying strata. The microconchids were opportunistic taxa that repeatedly colonized these salinity-stressed estuarine channels, leading to a series of adaptive innovations, including colonization of plant stems during the Early Devonian (Beartooth Butte Formation) and possibly flexible, soft-algal substrata during the Middle Devonian (Maywood Formation, this study). Tectonic quiescence during the Early and Middle Devonian indicates that erosion and subsequent deposition of the Maywood and the underlying Beartooth Butte Formation channels were responses to major eustatic events. Over a span of nearly 30 Myr, channels were cut successively during lowstand conditions and a distinctive faunal assemblage with microconchids tracked marine transgressions into the channels. UUID: http://zoobank.org/394c8b32-d5e7-411e-8e56-6fb9f55bbb8a