Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Can Salmonids (Oncorhynchus Spp.) Be Identified To Species Using Vertebral Morphometrics?, Harriet R. Huber, Jeffery C. Jorgensen, Virginia L. Butler, Greg Baker, Rebecca Stevens

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Remains of anadromous Pacific salmon and trout (genus Oncorhynchus) are common in archaeological sites from California to Alaska; however, morphological similarity generally precludes species identification, limiting the range of questions that salmonid remains can address in relation to past human use and ongoing efforts in conservation biology. We developed a relatively simple, rapid, and non-destructive way to classify salmon and trout vertebrae from archaeological contexts to species using length, height and the ratio of length to height. Modern reference material was obtained from all seven anadromous Oncorhynchus species native to the west coast of North America. A minimum of ten …