Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xiv, 167 p.; also includes graphics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-143).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Montana State University--Bozeman, 2007. / Typescript. Chairperson, Graduate Committee: David J. Varricchio. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 148-166).

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF LINDSEY G. ROBERTS, for the Master of Arts degree in Anthropology, presented May 10, 2013, at Southern Illinois University TITLE: A TAPHONOMIC STUDY EXPLORING THE DIFFERENCES IN DECOMPOSITION RATE AND MANNER BETWEEN FROZEN AND NEVER FROZEN DOMESTIC PIGS (Sus scrofa) MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. GRETCHEN R. DABBS This research examined differences in decomposition rate and manner of domestic pig subjects (Sus scrofa) in never frozen and previously frozen research conditions. Never frozen subjects and previously frozen subjects were paired and placed in an identical outdoor research environment at the Complex for Forensic Anthropology Research (CFAR) at Southern Illinois University. Extensive quantitative measurements were collected daily: abdominal circumference, total body score, and temperature. Qualitative observations were also taken daily: photographs of subjects, descriptive decomposition stages, and general visual observations concerning insect activity and subject appearance. Necropsies were performed at varying accumulated degree days between 50 and 300 (Celsius). Statistical comparison (paired samples t-tests) of accumulated degree days to three total body scores (TBS) (early decomposition TBS, 9.5 TBS, and advanced decomposition TBS) indicated the rate of decomposition of previously frozen subjects was significantly different than never frozen subjects at both early decomposition TBS and 9.5 TBS (p=0.003 & p=0.002, respectively). Internally, previously frozen subjects displayed less internal putrefaction, less internal color change, less organ distention, and a more dehydrated appearing heart. Externally, previously frozen subjects exhibited overall gray discoloration, increased desiccation, increased oviposition by insects, and nearly non-existent bloat. Internally, never frozen subjects displayed increased putrefaction, more internal color change, increased organ distention, and pleural bubbling around the lungs. Externally, never frozen subjects exhibited normal color change during decomposition, with purple and green discoloration being much more common in these subjects. Bloat was extensive in never frozen subjects. Due to these differences in rate and manner between never frozen and previously frozen subjects, previously frozen subjects should not be used in taphonomic research, as results may not accurately reflect the normal taphonomic condition. In cases of forensic significance, the possibility of freezing should be investigated if the victim displays external gray discoloration, significant external desiccation, decreased internal putrefaction, lack of bloat, and a dehydrated appearing heart.

No description available.

Tooth mark and gnaw damage modifications on bone from African carnivores have been extensively examined; however, there are little data on North American carnivores, especially on ursids. Tooth mark modifications include pits, punctures, scores, and furrows, while gnaw damage modifications include crenellated margins, edge polish, scalloping, scooping, and crushed margins. Forensically, tooth mark identification and measurements allow for easier identification of species involved in cases containing predator or scavenger alteration. The present study hypothesized that black bear (Ursus americanus) and grizzly bear (U. arctos) tooth marks will be able to be distinguished from one another and the two bear species will have different gnawing patterns. Further, the study hypothesized that ursid tooth marks and gnaw damage will be distinguishable from other documented carnivore alterations. In the present study, black bears and grizzly bears from the Oakland Zoo were fed 56 proximal and distal femoral epiphyses from cattle (Bos taurus). The skeletal remains were cleaned and analyzed at Boston University, School of Medicine for pits, punctures, scores, and furrows. Each tooth mark was photographed and then processed through the open-source software ImageJ (National Institutes of Health) in order to obtain the area, perimeter, length, and width of each tooth mark. The presence of certain gnaw damage characteristics were also recorded for each bone, such as crenellated margins, edge polish, scalloping, scooping, and deep furrows. Statistical analyses were used to distinguish if the epiphysis type (proximal or distal) or bear species were statistically significant factors in the type of tooth mark and gnaw damage. The results indicate a pattern distinctive to ursid scavenging with pits with an average length of 3.53 mm and width of 2.19 mm, an average score width of 1.47 mm, scalloping on the distal epiphysis especially on the patellar surface of the femur, scooping on the proximal epiphysis especially on the greater trochanter of the femur, and deep furrows primarily on the distal epiphysis along the patellar region and condyles of the femur. When comparing the present study to previous ursid studies (Arilla et al. 2014; Domínguez-Rodrigo and Piqueras 2003; Sala and Arsuaga 2013; Saladié et al. 2011) and previous other carnivore studies (Andrés et al. 2012; Delaney-Rivera et al. 2009; Pobiner 2007), there was a statistical significance between ursid pits and fox (Vulpes vulpes), skunk (Mephitis mephitis), and the combination of hyena (Crocuta crocuta) and lion (Panthera leo) pits. Scooping occurred in 35.2% of the entire sample, while scalloping occurred in 29.6% of the entire sample. Scooping has been observed in previous research but not as high of a percentage as the present study, and scalloping has been noted in a black bear study (Carson et al. 2000) and a wolf/dog study (Milner and Smith 1989), but with no numerical data for comparison. The high percentage of scooping and scalloping on long bones could be distinctive characteristics of ursid gnaw damage and could distinguish ursid scavenging from other carnivores.

No description available.

Exceptionally preserved fossils—or fossils preserved with remains of originally non-biomineralized (i.e. soft) tissues—constitute a key resource for investigating the history of the biosphere. In comparison to fossils of biomineralized skeletal elements, which represent the majority of the fossil record but only a fraction of the total diversity that existed in the past, exceptionally preserved fossils are comparatively rare because soft tissues are rapidly destroyed in typical depositional environments. Assemblages of such fossils, nonetheless, have received special attention among scientists in multiple fields of Earth and life sciences because they represent relatively 'complete' windows to past life. Through such windows, researchers are able to reconstruct original biological features (e.g. soft tissue anatomies) of extinct organisms and to describe the structures and compositions of ancient soft-bodied paleocommunities. To accomplish these goals, however, researchers must incorporate background information regarding the pre- and post-burial histories of exceptionally preserved fossils. In this context, my dissertation focuses on the environmental settings, diagenetic conditions, geomicrobiological activities, and weathering processes, which influence the conservation of original biological features within exceptionally preserved fossils and control their occurrences in time and space. An improved understanding of these critical factors involved in exceptional fossil preservation will ultimately our advance our knowledge regarding the history of the biosphere and the Earth system as a whole. Each chapter of original research in this dissertation includes an innovative and distinct approach for studying exceptional fossil preservation. The second chapter describes environmental and geologic overprints in the exceptional fossil record, as revealed by a comprehensive statistical meta-analysis of a global dataset of exceptionally preserved fossil assemblages. Moving from global to specimen-based perspectives, the second and third chapters focus on minerals (products of geomicrobioloigcal, diagenetic, and weathering processes) and carbonaceous materials replicating exceptionally preserved fossils. The third chapter examines the causes of preservational variations observed among organophosphatic tubular shelly Sphenothallus fossils in the lower Cambrian of South China using an experimental approach. (Although Sphenothallus is not an exceptionally preserved fossil sensu stricto, its conservation of original organic matrix tissues in South China provides key insights into the preservation of carbonaceous material within fossils.) Lastly, the fourth chapter presents data acquired using various in situ nanoscale analytical techniques to test the hypothesis that microstructures within exceptionally preserved microfossils of the Ediacaran Doushantuo Formation of South China are some of the oldest putative cylindrical siliceous demosponge spicules in the fossil record. Collectively, these chapters describe environmental, authigenic, diagenetic, and weathering processes that affect exceptional fossil preservation, and highlight innovative methods and approaches for testing major paleobiologic and geobiologic hypotheses regarding exceptionally preserved fossils. / Ph. D.

The Ediacaran Period (635 – 541 Ma) is a critical transition in the history of the Earth and life. It is marked by the appearance of enigmatic Ediacara-like fossils and macroalgae, which had existed since the early Proterozoic, but started to diversify morphologically and ecologically during this geological period. Nevertheless, paleontologists have been studying Ediacaran fossils for more than a century, the key questions about these fossils remain unanswered, including their phylogenetic affinities, taphonomic history, ecology, and paleoenvironmental distribution. Thus, new ways of investigation need to be employed to unveil enigmas of Ediacaran organisms. As well as, scientists need to engage other representatives of Ediacaran assemblages, such as macroalgae, to fully understand how those communities operated in the past. The chapters of this original research in this dissertation demonstrate innovative approaches and methods for studying the paleoecology and taphonomy of Ediacaran macrofossils. The second chapter presents the results of a geochemical analysis to resolve taphonomic and paleoecological questions about the Ediacara-like discoidal holdfast fossil Aspidella. Stable isotope data of organic carbon, carbonate carbon/oxygen, and pyrite sulfur were integrated with iron speciation data to reconstruct the taphonomy, paleoecology, and paleoenvironments of Aspidella fossils. The third chapter presents results from a comprehensive analysis of macroalgae from Proterozoic to early Paleozoic. In this study, a database of macroalgal fossil was updated and analyzed in order to gain insights into the big-picture evolutionary patterns of macroalgal morphology and ecology through time. These methods and approaches offer new opportunities to test major paleobiologic and geobiologic hypotheses, thus improving our understanding of the history of the biosphere and the Earth system. / Ph. D.

The primary goal of this project is to create a modern comparative collection of complete large bovid skeletons that record butchery marks made by stone tools. Four different raw materials commonly found in the southern African archaeological record (chert, quartzite, dolerite and hornfels) were selected for flake production. Butchery was conducted on three cows by modern Bushmen subsistence hunters skilled in the processing of animal carcasses. They form part of a relatively isolated group of !Xo-speaking Bushmen resident in the village of Kacgae in the Ghanzi district of western Botswana. The study focuses on characterising the type and conspicuousness of stone-generated butchering marks on bones under low magnification, and documenting patterning including anatomical location, number and orientation. Due to the fact that numerous natural events and human practices modify bones, unequivocal interpretation of bone modifications is sometimes difficult. Further to this, mimics, which are a result of non-human activity, produce the same or qualitatively similar patterns that complicate positive identification of butchery marks made by hominins. Reliable measures are required for interpretation of fossil bone modifications, and controlled actualistic observations provide a direct link between the process of modification (stone tool butchery aimed at complete flesh removal) and the traces produced. A number of taphonomic processes, including bone modification by various animals and geological processes are recorded in comparative collections housed at institutions in the province of Gauteng in the Republic of South Africa. These provide reference material for taphonomists attempting to identify agents responsible for the modification and accumulation of fossil bone assemblages, particularly from early hominin cave sites in the Sterkfontein Valley. However, no reference material exists for hominin modification of bone, and thus motivates for the collection of such traces. The modern comparative collection produced by this study shows butchery marks inflicted exclusively by habitual hunters who are also skilled butchers, and provides a resource for researchers to help accurately identify hominin-produced butchery marks on fossil bones. The accompanying catalogue records the type and conspicuousness, anatomical location and orientation of the butchery marks and provides a controlled sample against which a fossil assemblage can be compared. Results indicate no consistent patterning in the intensity of butchery marking with regard to the type of stone tool material that is utilised. However, a high number of butchery marks per surface area were recorded for most stone tool materials for certain skeletal elements including the mandible, ribs, scapula and humerus. Overall, there are indications that raw material influences butchery marking, however, the small sample size hinders the potential of an identifiable pattern with regard to the type of raw material from which the stone tools responsible for the butchery marks were produced. Furthermore, the vast range of variables that can exist during the butchery process contribute to the equivocal nature of the results. Additional research is required, some of it ongoing, which expands the sample of stone tool butchering, utilises iron tools and investigates ethnographic differences in butchering techniques.

Thesis (M.S.)--Auburn University, 2007. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (ℓ. 207-218)