Ohio History Journal

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AN ILLUSTRATED FIELD KEY FOR THE IDENTIFICATION

AN ILLUSTRATED FIELD KEY FOR THE IDENTIFICATION

OF MAMMAL BONES

 

By GEORGE W. BRAINERD

 

The key given here is designed for the identification of mammal

bones in the field by persons who have not had specialized train-

ing in the subject. Identifications made under such conditions are,

of course, not always accurate, and of necessity often cannot be

specific. When accurate identifications to species or subspecies

are required, the material should be checked by a specialist who

has a large series of skeletons at his disposal. It is hoped that if

field workers in archaeology and the natural sciences have at their

disposal a means for the ready identification of animal bones, they

will be prompted to collect such material carefully. Documented

collections of skeletal material can add considerably to our knowl-

edge of the diet habits of man and of the carnivores, and to the

understanding of animal distribution and ecology.

A word may here be added, specifically to archaeological field

workers, who in the process of their work usually unearth consider-

able quantities of mammal remains. The excavator is faced with

two questions: What kinds of bone fragments can be identified

and what bone fragments should he save? Almost all bone frag-

ments can be identified if the worker is sufficiently skilled and has

enough comparative material. The ideal arrangement is to save

all bone fragments. If such a procedure is impossible, a random

sample of from 100 to 200 lbs. of fragments will give a good list

of the species present. In Ohio archaeological sites the major bulk

of a random collection is composed of deer bones. If there is in

the field a man able to sort out the more easily identifiable deer-

bone fragments, he may be able to discard or, better still, cache

a measured quantity of them, thus decreasing the bulk of the sample

to be used in museum classification. It must be emphasized, how-

ever, that every fragment, even after identification as to species, is of

potential interest to the zoologist for study of intra-species varia-

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