Fluorescence Applied to Modern Carnivore Excrements. A Reference Collection for Archaeological Deposits

Summary

Traditionally, coprolite identification in archaeology has been limited to hyenids, the most well-preserved and recognizable fossilized faeces, although non-hyena carnivore coprolites are also present in some Pleistocene deposits displaying a wide range of morphological variation (e.g., elongate, spherical, globular, sub-cylindrical, oval, tubular). Common micromorphological characteristics of these different excrements are the appearance of an amorphous phosphatic, optically isotropic and, a highly autofluorescent matrix, all of them related with bone ingestion and its fossilization. Here we present preliminary results from an experimental application of fluorescence techniques to measure wavelength indexes in thin section samples from a variety of different modern carnivore family excrements – canis, felis, and ursids –. The aim of this experiment is to test discrimination of proper faecal features from phosphatic aggregates and, to a greater extent, to help for a better recognition and identification of archaeological carnivore coprolites, as identification of non-hyenid carnivore coprolites in the fossil register is vital for improving palaeoenvironmental and landscape reconstruction.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 21978