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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Hands-On History: Applying A Strong Like Two People Approach To Archaeology Education, Kaylee Woldum Feb 2024

Hands-On History: Applying A Strong Like Two People Approach To Archaeology Education, Kaylee Woldum

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis explores Indigenization in the context of archaeology and Western education at the Tundra Science and Culture Camp (TSCC), a government-run summer camp in the Northwest Territories, Canada. By collaborating with Indigenous knowledge holders, it begins the process of re-designing the Human History session—a program within the TSCC that focuses on archaeology and the cultural sites around the camp—to incorporate more Indigenous pedagogies and knowledge. Drawing on semi-structured interviews and participant observation, this thesis outlines an attempt to Indigenize the Human History session at the 2022 TSCC, its successes and challenges, and diverse conceptions of what it would mean …


Head Shapes And Toothaches: A Study Of Cranial Modification And Dental Pathology At Muna, A Late Pre-Hispanic Cemetery From The Archaeological Sanctuary Of Pachacamac (Lima, Perú)., T Naomi Nakahodo Moromizato Sep 2023

Head Shapes And Toothaches: A Study Of Cranial Modification And Dental Pathology At Muna, A Late Pre-Hispanic Cemetery From The Archaeological Sanctuary Of Pachacamac (Lima, Perú)., T Naomi Nakahodo Moromizato

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis is a bioarchaeological analysis of cranial modification and dental pathology in a sample of human remains excavated from the pre-Hispanic MUNA cemetery. This cemetery was on the outskirts of the Archaeological Sanctuary of Pachacamac in the Lurín Valley. The cemetery was comprised of disturbed skeletal remains and relatively well preserved fardos funerarios (funerary bundles) from the Late Intermediate Period (1100-1470 CE) and early Late Horizon (1470-1532 CE). The results of this thesis show that the skeletal remains and fardos likely belonged to a single community, and the analyzed sample showed intra-site variation of the fronto-occipital cranial modification. The …


Applying 3d Structured Light Scanning To Roman Leather Insoles From Vindolanda: A Novel Approach To Podiatric Data Collection, Maria Lorene Glanfield Aug 2023

Applying 3d Structured Light Scanning To Roman Leather Insoles From Vindolanda: A Novel Approach To Podiatric Data Collection, Maria Lorene Glanfield

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis research introduces a novel 3D structured light scanning and digital, post-processing enhancement methodology influenced by digital approaches used in anthropological archaeology, ichnology, and forensic podiatry to the analysis of Roman leather insoles from Vindolanda. The primary objective was to capture 2D and 3D footprint impression evidence on the surface of 81 insoles for enhanced visualization and analysis in order to refine the quality of podiatric data that can be extracted from Roman footwear. I conducted three case studies (pointed toe, sandal, and children’s insoles) based on a set of distinct, but related research questions concerning the refinement of …


Shoe Modifications And Foot Health: A Case Study From Roman Britain, Casey Elizabeth Kay Boettinger Aug 2023

Shoe Modifications And Foot Health: A Case Study From Roman Britain, Casey Elizabeth Kay Boettinger

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In this thesis, I undertake an examination of foot care practices in Antiquity. The majority of the discussion surrounding foot care comes from evidence of shoe modifications at Vindolanda, a Roman auxiliary fort located in northern Britain. I provide a general discussion about herbal and non-herbal remedies for foot conditions, as recorded by medical authors. This discussion precedes a case study of selected shoes from Vindolanda, where I write about five modification types that demonstrate the sort of knowledge that existed at Vindolanda. The findings from this thesis suggest that podiatric knowledge and foot care existed as early as the …


Exploring The Woodland Period Within The Lake Wawanosh Region Through Two Archaeological Sites: Aghn-12 And Aghn-14, Matthew Severn Jul 2023

Exploring The Woodland Period Within The Lake Wawanosh Region Through Two Archaeological Sites: Aghn-12 And Aghn-14, Matthew Severn

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis focuses on two archaeological sites from the Woodland Period, Blackwell One (AgHn-12) and Blackwell Two (AgHn-14), which lie roughly 8 km northeast of Sarnia, Ontario. Specifically, the sites are situated near the historic Lake Wawanosh, which was drained in the late 1800s, and roughly 400 m south of the Lake Huron shore. Blackwell One has evidence of an Early Woodland Meadowood occupation in its West Locus and Late Woodland, Younge to Springwells phase occupations, within its East Locus. Blackwell Two falls within the Middle Woodland period and is a component of the archaeologically defined Saugeen cultural complex. The …


Surveying The Industry: A Professional Profile Of Cultural Resource Management In Canada, Sydney Rowinski Feb 2023

Surveying The Industry: A Professional Profile Of Cultural Resource Management In Canada, Sydney Rowinski

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Cultural Resource Management (CRM) has transformed the practice of archaeology; however, little is known regarding general make-up and demographics for this dominant form of archaeological practice. Even less is understood concerning the views and sentiments of its practitioners. In Canada, no jurisdiction maintains practitioner profiles; subsequently, their training or understanding of the roles they play in mediating heritage resource compliance requirements for clients, Descendant communities, or heritage stakeholders like the wider archaeological community, is relatively unknown. Despite recent discourse focused on the operational side of CRM (e.g., nature, output, and consequences) insight on the values, ideals, and level expertise of …


From Micro To Macro: Examining Potential Microbiome Mediated Influences On Human Growth And Health Outcomes Through Breastfeeding And Antibiotic Exposures, Nicole K. Phillips Jan 2023

From Micro To Macro: Examining Potential Microbiome Mediated Influences On Human Growth And Health Outcomes Through Breastfeeding And Antibiotic Exposures, Nicole K. Phillips

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Human microbiome research has rapidly developed over the past two decades yet absent from most research is the composition and dynamics of microbiomes within human populations. Given the limitations in longitudinal studies which requires decades of repeated microbe taxonomic testing of a population sample, an alternative option is to examine microbiomes and their influences via proxies using pre-existing health datasets. This research demonstrates preliminary associations between presumed disrupted and supportive microbiomes dynamics proxied by antibiotic and breastmilk exposure respectively. Using health record data across the life span from approximately 500,000 U.K. participants, this research demonstrates variable altered growth and health …


Assessment Of Arm Position In Egyptian Mummies, Emily King Aug 2022

Assessment Of Arm Position In Egyptian Mummies, Emily King

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

The arm position of Egyptian mummies had not been studied in an in-depth manner. The goal of this research was to use the IMPACT Radiological Database (Nelson & Wade, 2015), a large sample size of CT scans and X-Ray images of mummies, to discuss the evolution of arm position of adult Egyptian mummies throughout time. The results from this research demonstrate that with an increase in sample size, an increase in variability also occurs. In addition, we were also able to conclude that arm position reflects long term societal trends as opposed to short/frequently changing trends. Finally, what our research …


The Iroquoian Sweat Lodges Of Dorchester Village, Dana V. González Zavala Aug 2022

The Iroquoian Sweat Lodges Of Dorchester Village, Dana V. González Zavala

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

During the Middle Iroquoian period (1300-1400 A.D.), semi-subterranean sweat lodges were structures commonly built on the inside of longhouses in Southern Ontario (Parks, 2018). These structures are known to have been used for health, social, and spiritual purposes (P. Timmins: personal communication, 2022). Stratigraphically, the basal layers of sweat lodges can yield artifacts that were used during shamanistic rituals and social ceremonies that took place within the structures (Parks, 2018). The lack of research on sweat lodges simply highlights the broader need to learn more about indigenous cultures across Ontario, both in prehistoric and modern contexts. In this report, the …


Nevis’ Archives: Learning About The Bath House Hotel, Loren Gordon Aug 2022

Nevis’ Archives: Learning About The Bath House Hotel, Loren Gordon

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

The Bath House Hotel in Nevis is said to be the first hotel which welcomed tourists in the Caribbean. However, much of its origin is not known. Through reading archives and other extensive research, more information relating to the hotel was compiled in an effort to discover the history of this important building. The building, which once housed guests who ventured to the Bath Spring - which was reported to have healing properties- is one of historic value and significance. The archives provided a glimpse into the past of Nevis, the people who may have been connected to the hotel, …


Transforming The Dead: The Taphonomy And Ritual Economy Of Funerary Bundles On The Pre-Hispanic Central Coast Of Peru (1000-1532 Ce), Joanna Motley Jul 2022

Transforming The Dead: The Taphonomy And Ritual Economy Of Funerary Bundles On The Pre-Hispanic Central Coast Of Peru (1000-1532 Ce), Joanna Motley

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Death is not only the cessation of life; it is a social transformation. This dissertation investigates funerary practices that facilitated that transformation on the pre-Hispanic central coast of Peru from ca. 1000 - 1532 CE, a time of local consolidation of power after the dissolution of the Wari Empire (600-1100 CE), through to the expansion of the Inca Empire (1450 – 1532 CE). This work focuses on the practices of two archaeological cultures on the central coast of Peru: the Ychsma and the Chancay. Ritual economy, with its integration of agency and political economy, is used as a theoretical framework …


Inuvialuit Living Art: Co-Creating Local Community Archaeology And Cultural Heritage Research, Jason Yf Lau Jun 2022

Inuvialuit Living Art: Co-Creating Local Community Archaeology And Cultural Heritage Research, Jason Yf Lau

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis explores Inuvialuit cultural heritage through the lens of Inuvialuit Pitqusiat Inuusimitkun or living art, a term coined by Iñupiaq/Inuvialuk Elder Pauline Saturgina Tardiff and translated to Sallirmiutun by Inuvialuit Elders Albert and Shirley Elias. Using semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and ethnography, it brings together the knowledge of 11 Inuvialuit artists to discuss Inuvialuit living art through: its ability to tell stories through time and space; its role in surviving and thriving on the land; and its connection to inner “heartwork”. Using a community-based participatory research (CBPR) framework, it outlines the 2019 Inuvialuit Living History Culture Camp at Ivvavik …


3d Morphometric Analysis Of Late Paleoindigenous Projectile Points From The Mackenzie I Site, Northwestern Ontario, And Surrounding Regions, Dave Norris Apr 2022

3d Morphometric Analysis Of Late Paleoindigenous Projectile Points From The Mackenzie I Site, Northwestern Ontario, And Surrounding Regions, Dave Norris

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Despite decades of archaeological investigations into the presence of people in northwestern Ontario during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene there is still a tenuous understanding of the timing and origins of those past groups that moved across the region. This is mainly a result of small sample sizes, acidic soils (that degrade organic materials) and low recoveries of diagnostic tools such as projectile points. The discovery of an uncharacteristically large Paleoindigenous site, the Mackenzie I site, east of Thunder Bay, yielded recoveries of artifacts in numbers never seen in the region. The exceptionally large number of projectile points recovered …


The Impact Of Energetic Trade-Offs On The Developmental Trajectory And Life History Strategy Of Homo Sapiens: The Modern Human Female Phenotype, Laura Ann Hope Atkinson Feb 2022

The Impact Of Energetic Trade-Offs On The Developmental Trajectory And Life History Strategy Of Homo Sapiens: The Modern Human Female Phenotype, Laura Ann Hope Atkinson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This study interrogates the relationship between early life environmental variability (measured through birth weight and age at menarche), and adult phenotypic outcomes in female athletes and non-athletes from the United Kingdom. Using anthropometric, and 3D body surface scan analysis, patterns of phenotypic variation were interpreted in a life history context. Significant correlations between birth weight, stature, and bi-iliac breadth were observed. Age at menarche had significant correlations with linear growth and body composition measures in both Pearson and Canonical Correlation analyses. Crural index was found to be negatively correlated with limb segment SA:Vol in opposition to the expectations of Allen’s …


Living Connections With The Dead: An Anthropological Exploration Of Relics Cared For By The Roman Catholic Diocese, London, Ontario., Sydney Durham, Naomi Nakahodo, Natalie Stephens, Ashley Ward, Kaylee Woldum Jan 2022

Living Connections With The Dead: An Anthropological Exploration Of Relics Cared For By The Roman Catholic Diocese, London, Ontario., Sydney Durham, Naomi Nakahodo, Natalie Stephens, Ashley Ward, Kaylee Woldum

Archaeology eBook Collection

This monograph is the class project for a course entitled “Mortuary Archaeology”. The goal of the course is to engage students with the cross-cultural and deep temporal examination of how different societies deal with death.

The project arose from conversations between the course instructor, Andrew Nelson, and the archivist for the Roman Catholic Diocese of London, Debra Majer, in August of 2021. After an initial meeting with Debra on February 9th, the students began the process of building project proposals surrounding the theme of sacred relics. After approval by Nelson and Majer, the five students from Western University started their …


Life In Between: Prehispanic Settlement Patterns Of The Carabamba Valley, Northern Peru, Amedeo Sghinolfi Dec 2021

Life In Between: Prehispanic Settlement Patterns Of The Carabamba Valley, Northern Peru, Amedeo Sghinolfi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation is an archaeological study of the Carabamba Valley (ca. 150 - 3,500 m.a.s.l.) in Northern Peru, which aims to reconstruct settlement patterns through the longue durée (ca. 1800 B.C. - A.D. 1532). This study also documents the relations occupants of this frontier zone maintained with neighboring polities on the Peruvian North Coast (Virú Valley) and in the Northern Highlands. The valley features the resource-rich ecological niche called chaupiyunga, fed by rainwater that flows towards the Pacific Ocean and by a number of springs, where crops like coca, fruits, and vegetables can be easily grown. The Carabamba Valley also …


Ridge Pine 3: A Late Archaic Site In The Southern Lake Huron Basin, Jessica Russell Nov 2021

Ridge Pine 3: A Late Archaic Site In The Southern Lake Huron Basin, Jessica Russell

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Ridge Pine 3 site is about 1.3 km inland from Lake Huron on the eastern edge of the Grand Bend community in the Ausable Valley. The site was originally dated to the Late Archaic Small Point complex (ca. 4100 cal BP [3800 RCYBP] to 3200 cal BP [3000 RCYBP]), but a reassessment of the projectile point typology and radiocarbon dating have led to a different conclusion. The primary occupation of Ridge Pine 3 occurred during the Late Archaic Narrow Point complex (ca. 5000 cal BP [4500 RCYBP] to 4100 cal BP [3800 RCYBP]), but there is evidence of multiple …


Visualizing Anishinaabe Ceramics: A Collaborative Approach To Digital Archaeology, Hillary V. Kiazyk Feb 2021

Visualizing Anishinaabe Ceramics: A Collaborative Approach To Digital Archaeology, Hillary V. Kiazyk

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis explores how collaboration can enrich and inform a digital-archaeological project and the process of braiding interests of archaeologists and Indigenous community partners. Research was conducted in partnership with the staff from the Ojibwe Cultural Foundation (OCF) on Manitoulin Island. We focused on the production of a digital model and 3D print of Anishinaabe ceramics from the Providence Bay archaeological site. The OCF wanted the material culture from Providence Bay accessible to community members as the ceramics themselves were too fragile for display or teaching without risking further damage. A 3D print of a Providence Bay vessel was produced …


Seeing The Invisible: An Integrated Remote Sensing Approach To Mapping Buried Architecture At Las Colmenas, Virú Valley, Peru, Kayla C. Golay Lausanne Jul 2020

Seeing The Invisible: An Integrated Remote Sensing Approach To Mapping Buried Architecture At Las Colmenas, Virú Valley, Peru, Kayla C. Golay Lausanne

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis reports on the results of a survey project conducted in 2018 and 2019, intending to address two main research questions: (1) What remote sensing technique(s) worked best to identify buried features at Las Colmenas? (2) What combinations of techniques proved to be optimal for identifying buried features, and what are the benefits and limitations of the use of an integrated approach? This project incorporated two scales of analysis: macroscale optical and thermal Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) surveys and microscale Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR), magnetic susceptibility, and magnetometry surveys. A side-by-side comparison proved the thermal UAV, GPR, and magnetic susceptibility …


Finding Those Once Lost: The Analysis Of The Potter's Field At Woodland Cemetery, London, On Jan 2020

Finding Those Once Lost: The Analysis Of The Potter's Field At Woodland Cemetery, London, On

Archaeology eBook Collection

Mortuary archaeology is the archaeological study of death and burial. In North America, the anthropological, cross-cultural, and deep temporal perspectives are employed (cf. Martin et al. 2013a). The myriad ways that societies deal with death are the product of complex and intertwined social, economic, and environmental factors such as class, gender, ethnicity, subsistence practice, and social complexity, to name a few. Therefore, the study of mortuary rituals sheds important light on social complexity and organization. This makes it an excellent topic for an advanced course in a Department of Anthropology. The research described in this report is the result of …


Exploring The Occupational History Of The Middle Ontario Iroquoian Dorchester Village Site, Johnathan Freeman Nov 2019

Exploring The Occupational History Of The Middle Ontario Iroquoian Dorchester Village Site, Johnathan Freeman

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Intrasite trends in superposition and spatial arrangements of longhouses, features and palisades, in conjunction with seriation of ceramic vessels, are used to explore the developmental history of the Dorchester Village site, a complex Late Woodland Middle Ontario Iroquoian archaeological village site, as a case study of intrasite seriation. Vessel attributes were coded and subject to correspondence analysis to seek plausible temporal sequences. The Brainerd Robinson coefficient of similarity was used to identify plausible temporal phase groups of longhouses by comparison of vessels attributed to specific houses. Multiple ceramic attributes were explored, and the attribute of upper rim motif generated the …


South Bend And Ridge Pine 2: Fraternal Twins, Gabryell Kurtzrock Belyea Oct 2019

South Bend And Ridge Pine 2: Fraternal Twins, Gabryell Kurtzrock Belyea

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Ridge Pine 2 and South Bend sites lie within four kilometres of each other, both date to the late Middle Archaic period (ca. 5500-4500 before present), and both contain significant amounts of nonlocal chert. This exploitation of nonlocal chert occurred despite the close proximity of the Kettle Point chert outcrop to both sites. Notwithstanding their similarities, the two sites differ dramatically. From the raw material breakdown to projectile point types the two assemblages are quite different. These differences raise questions surrounding the chert procurement strategy employed by the groups at Ridge Pine 2 and South Bend. In order to …


Childhood Stress At Rinconada Alta (Ad 1470-1532): An Examination Of Linear Hypoplastic Enamel Defects On The Central Coast Of Peru, Jessica Lacerte Aug 2019

Childhood Stress At Rinconada Alta (Ad 1470-1532): An Examination Of Linear Hypoplastic Enamel Defects On The Central Coast Of Peru, Jessica Lacerte

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This MA thesis investigates non-specific childhood stress at Rinconada Alta through the analysis of linear enamel hypoplastic defects (LEH). Dental casts were taken from a sample of teeth from predominantly Inca-period, Yschma remains (with some admixture of the Late Intermediate period burials). The sample consists of 10 adult females, 11 adult males, and 5 adolescents of indeterminate sex with fully occluded adult teeth (with the exception of the third molars). This thesis employs Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), which increases the visibility of linear defects, to determine the frequency, age, and duration at which metabolic disruption affected enamel growth of the …


Digital Representation Of Inuvialuit Traditional Knowledge: A Case Study In Community Engagement Using Google Earth, Jeffrey Grieve Aug 2019

Digital Representation Of Inuvialuit Traditional Knowledge: A Case Study In Community Engagement Using Google Earth, Jeffrey Grieve

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Many Indigenous communities are mobilizing to document and share their traditional knowledge and cultural heritage.  Information technology has created new opportunities for Indigenous communities, archaeologists, heritage groups, and technologists to collaborate on digital strategies to meet these objectives.  Every Indigenous community has a unique history and world view, so the use of these digital approaches must be tailored to the needs of each case.  The Inuvialuit are the Inuit of the Western Arctic, and their traditional knowledge is practiced through land-based activities such as hunting and fishing.   The spatial nature of these activities has good potential to be represented in …


Reconstructing The Social Landscape Of Cerro Arena, Peru, Felipe Gonzalez-Macqueen Nov 2018

Reconstructing The Social Landscape Of Cerro Arena, Peru, Felipe Gonzalez-Macqueen

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis deals with the 2017 archaeological survey of the site of Cerro Arena, in the Moche Valley, Peru. The site belongs to the Salinar phase (c.a 400–0 BCE), known to be a time of increased warfare and cultural fragmentation. During this time, Cerro Arena became the largest settlement in the valley, housing a large number of people in structures densely packed into the elevated terrain of the site. Yet, information on the spatial arrangement of civic and residential architecture was lacking. Using remote sensing techniques—primarily Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) —and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), we sought to create high-resolution …


Petrographic Analysis Of Inuit Ceramics, John F. Moody Oct 2018

Petrographic Analysis Of Inuit Ceramics, John F. Moody

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation investigates the manufacture and use of Inuit ceramics through ceramic petrography. It uses an approach that expands traditional ceramic petrographic descriptive methodologies to more fully document characteristics related to organic inclusions. Changes focus on the description of voids, organic inclusions, and estimation of the amount of organic material in pastes. Organic inclusions were an important component of Inuit ceramic traditions. This methodology allows us to not only identify the types of organics used in archaeological specimens, but also quantitatively and qualitatively assess them alongside other components of the ceramic paste to build a more complete picture of ceramic …


Guided By Smoke: A Comparative Analysis Of Early Late Woodland Smoking Pipes From The Arkona Cluster, Shane Mccartney Sep 2018

Guided By Smoke: A Comparative Analysis Of Early Late Woodland Smoking Pipes From The Arkona Cluster, Shane Mccartney

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis undertakes a comparative analysis of ceramic and stone pipes recovered from eight archaeological sites located near present day Arkona, Ontario. Commonly known as the Arkona Cluster, these sites date to between 1000 and 1280 A.D. during the early Late Woodland Period and are thought to be part of a borderland region between distinct cultural groups known as the Western Basin Younge Phase and the Early Ontario Iroquoians. Using a combination of distribution and attribute data from each site’s pipe assemblage, I explore how the similarities and differences observed can be used to draw insights into the potential relations …


Pushing The Limits: Testing, Magnetometry And Ontario Lithic Scatters, John E. Dunlop Feb 2018

Pushing The Limits: Testing, Magnetometry And Ontario Lithic Scatters, John E. Dunlop

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Lithic scatters, small ephemeral clusters of stone artifacts on cultivated surfaces, lie on the periphery of archaeology. These sites are often too ephemeral to be fully understood through standardized fieldwork methodologies mandated in Ontario CRM archaeology and yet, they are widely regarded as worth documenting with hundreds now recorded. In this thesis, it is argued that what are small artifact scatters on the surface can belie more complex subsurface finds of significant cultural and historical value. As such, there is a need to reconsider the approaches made to the investigation of these sites. Geophysical techniques applied early in a scatter’s …


The Semi-Subterranean Sweat Lodges Of The Redeemer Site, Amanda Parks Feb 2018

The Semi-Subterranean Sweat Lodges Of The Redeemer Site, Amanda Parks

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Sweat bathing is a practice of great antiquity and is well documented throughout the world. In the archaeological record of southern Ontario, sweat bathing has been identified via a feature class referred to as semi-subterranean sweat lodges (SSLs). To add to our understanding of this feature class, this research examines the SSLs of the Redeemer site (AhGx-114), a fourteenth century Iroquoian village located in Hamilton, Ontario. Statistical analyses were applied to SSL data, aimed at identifying whether any significant patterns emerged regarding spatial and morphological attributes, and artifact distributions. Broader societal changes during the Middle Ontario Iroquoian period were also …


Rethinking Holocene Ecological Relationships Among Caribou, Muskoxen, And Human Hunters On Banks Island, Nwt, Canada: A Stable Isotope Approach, Jordon S. Munizzi Dec 2017

Rethinking Holocene Ecological Relationships Among Caribou, Muskoxen, And Human Hunters On Banks Island, Nwt, Canada: A Stable Isotope Approach, Jordon S. Munizzi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation explores the ecology of caribou (Rangifer tarandus spp.) and muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus), and its relevance to human hunters on Banks Island, NWT, Canada, over the last 4000 years, primarily through the isotopic analysis of modern and archaeological faunal remains.

First, we establish baseline carbon and nitrogen isotope relationships between modern vegetation and caribou and muskox bone collagen using Bayesian mixing models. The models indicate that dwarf shrub (Salix arctica) does not contribute significantly to bone collagen isotopic compositions in either species, while sedges and yellow lichen (Cetraria tilesii) do. These findings …