Faunal Analysis of the Umtanum Creek Site
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Campus where you would like to present
SURC Ballroom A
Start Date
17-5-2012
End Date
17-5-2012
Abstract
Abstract The Umptanum Creek site was excavated multiple times in the 1960s and 1990s, but the fauna was never analyzed. Our project involved analyzing a sample of fauna recovered from the 1969 William Smith excavation at the site. For this project, we selected 151 bags of faunal remains, containing 865 faunal specimens. This sample consists of all faunal remains found in unit N37, quadrants 5 through 16. In this analysis each specimen was examined for the following characteristics: side, element, portion, class, taxon and indentifying landmarks and the kind of breakage, burning, degree of root-etching, weathering, length, modification. This analysis showed that the majority of the specimens in this collection derive from mammals that fall into size classes 4, 5, and 6 (dog to deer-size), and that the majority of the identifiable specimens come from deer (Odocoileus sp.). There were also a few fragments of cattle or bison, sheep, pocket gopher, and other unidentified rodents and bird. A significant proportion of the remains were burned (42%) and broken to a high degree. Some of the remains are clearly historic in age (cattle and saw-cut bones). The results of this sample analysis project clearly indicate that the subsequent analysis of the complete collection will have excellent potential to yield results that will tell us about the lifeways of the people that once lived along the Yakima River.
Recommended Citation
Keller, Alfred, "Faunal Analysis of the Umtanum Creek Site" (2012). Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE). 72.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2012/posters/72
Poster Number
34
Additional Mentoring Department
Anthropology
Faunal Analysis of the Umtanum Creek Site
SURC Ballroom A
Abstract The Umptanum Creek site was excavated multiple times in the 1960s and 1990s, but the fauna was never analyzed. Our project involved analyzing a sample of fauna recovered from the 1969 William Smith excavation at the site. For this project, we selected 151 bags of faunal remains, containing 865 faunal specimens. This sample consists of all faunal remains found in unit N37, quadrants 5 through 16. In this analysis each specimen was examined for the following characteristics: side, element, portion, class, taxon and indentifying landmarks and the kind of breakage, burning, degree of root-etching, weathering, length, modification. This analysis showed that the majority of the specimens in this collection derive from mammals that fall into size classes 4, 5, and 6 (dog to deer-size), and that the majority of the identifiable specimens come from deer (Odocoileus sp.). There were also a few fragments of cattle or bison, sheep, pocket gopher, and other unidentified rodents and bird. A significant proportion of the remains were burned (42%) and broken to a high degree. Some of the remains are clearly historic in age (cattle and saw-cut bones). The results of this sample analysis project clearly indicate that the subsequent analysis of the complete collection will have excellent potential to yield results that will tell us about the lifeways of the people that once lived along the Yakima River.
Faculty Mentor(s)
Patrick Lubinski