Zooarchaeology

This is an introductory text for students interested in identification and analysis of animal remains from archaeological sites. The emphasis is on animals whose remains inform us about the relationship between humans and their natural and social environments, especially site formation processes, subsistence strategies, the processes of domestication, and paleoenvironments. Examining examples from all over the world, from the Pleistocene period up to the present, this volume is organized in a way that is parallel to faunal study, beginning with background information, bias in a faunal assemblage, and basic zooarchaeological methods. This revised edition reflects developments in zooarchaeology during the past decade. It includes new sections on enamel ultrastructure and incremental analysis, stable isotyopes and trace elements, ancient genetics and enzymes, environmental reconstruction, people as agents of environmental change, applications of zooarchaeology in animal conservation and heritage management, and a discussion of issues pertaining to the curation of archaeofaunal materials.

1. Zooarchaeology; 2. Zooarchaeological history and theory; 3. Basic biology; 4. Ecology; 5. Disposal of faunal remains and sample recovery; 6. Gathering primary data; 7. Secondary data; 8. Humans as predators: subsistence strategies and other uses of animals; 9. Control of animals through domestication; 10. Evidences for past environmental conditions; 11. Conclusions.

An expanded 2008 edition of an established text for students as well as field archaeologists, reflecting current developments and advances in zooarchaeology. Revised topics include: enamel ultrastructure and incremental analysis, ancient genetics and enzymes, environmental reconstruction, people as agents of environmental change, applications of zooarchaeology in animal conservation and heritage management.

Elizabeth J. Reitz is professor of anthropology at the Georgia Museum of Natural History, University of Georgia. Her work is based on the identification and interpretation of animal remains from coastal archaeological sites, particularly in South America, the Caribbean, and the southeastern United States. She is the co-author and co-editor of several volumes, as well as the author of over 150 articles and chapters in books.
Elizabeth S. Wing is Curator Emeritus at the Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida. Co-author of two books and author of many scholarly articles, she received the Fryxell Award from the Society for American Archaeology in 1996 for distinguished contributions to archaeology through interdisciplinary research. In 2006, Dr Wing was elected to the National Academy of Sciences and received the President's Medal from the University of Florida.