Intrusive Taxa Identified in the Re-excavation of Room 28 in Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon

Summary

Archaeological sites are attractive places for burrowing rodents, but determining which specimens are intrusive can be a challenge. The fauna from the 2013 re-excavation of Room 28, due to its complex depositional history and rich rodent assemblage, provides an opportunity to explore different methods of identifying intrusive rodents in archaeological sites. In this paper, we use four lines of evidence to identify intrusive remains from human subsistence activity: 1) frequency of surface modifications suggesting human consumption or butchery; 2) frequency of cranial elements; 3) frequency of complete skeletal elements; and 4) distribution by depth. Taken together, these lines of evidence indicate a mix of intrusive and non-intrusive rodents the Room 28 faunal assemblage.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

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

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20434