The dermestid beetle (Dermestes maculatus) has become renowned in the laboratory as an aid to skeletonization of remains, both for the zoologist and the anthropologist. However, little attention has been paid to the potential effects these insects can have on hard tissues and whether their traces may be mistaken for trauma or the effects of taphonomic processes. The use of dermestid beetles in the anthropology laboratory was tested by a choice experiment based on ASTM D3345-17, examining the behavior of D. maculatus regarding Styrofoam, wood, and two types of bone. Specifically, this project tested 1.) whether the beetles showed preference for a particular material (of wood, Styrofoam, dry bone, or green bone), 2.) whether material(s) had an impact on survivorship from the larval to adult stages, and 3.) what traces dermestids leave on skeletal remains and the variation in form of those traces. Results suggest dermestid beetles will preferentially bore pupal chambers in softer materials (Styrofoam > wood > dry bone > green bone), but preference is not absolute, as pits appear in dry bone even when softer materials are present. Preference did not appear to impact survivorship. Information on the “typical” form of dermestid trace on materials is presented, as an aid to identifying these features as resulting from taphonomic processes, as opposed to ante- or perimortem processes/events.

Les campagnes de fouilles menées sur plusieurs sites antiques et islamiques en Arabie orientale ont livré des macrorestes botaniques et entomologiques. Les sites inclus dans le corpus sont Qal’at al-Bahreïn (Royaume de Bahreïn), Kush et Mleiha (E.A.U.) et Fulayj et Qalhât (Sultanat d’Oman). Ce travail se base sur des analyses carpologiques, anthracologiques, xylologiques et archéoentomologiques. Il s’attache à déterminer les stratégies d’approvisionnement et de gestion des ressources végétales mises en place par les sociétés des périodes historiques, de l’Antiquité à l’arrivée des Portugais dans l’océan Indien, au sein d’un environnement aride contraignant et d’un contexte de dynamiques commerciales. L’agriculture est reconnue sous la forme de palmeraies, un agrosystème oasien, polycultural et irrigué, au sein desquelles étaient cultivés des céréales, des légumineuses, des fruitiers et des condiments. Des informations concernant les modalités de stockage et des mesures de conservation et de protection des denrées alimentaires ont été mises en évidence dans le contexte incendié de Mleiha. Les ravageurs des produits stockés auxquels les sociétés devaient faire face ont été déterminés. L’acquisition du combustible se basait sur une optimisation des ressources disponibles issues des différentes formations végétales de la région, du système agricole et d’activités de rejets. Un grand nombre de taxons allochtones a été trouvé, correspondant à des plantes cultivées et du bois de plantes sauvages ligneuses, ainsi que des insectes. Les plantes cultivées correspondent surtout à des taxons d’origine tropicale et sub-tropicale pour lesquels il est généralement difficile de déterminer s’ils ont été importés ou s’ils ont pu être acclimatés localement. Le contexte de dynamiques commerciales au sein du golfe Persique et de l’océan Indien aux périodes antique et islamique semble avoir favorisé l’importation et l’acclimatation de plantes allochtones, voire d’insectes, en Arabie orientale. / Excavations conducted on several classical and Islamic period sites in eastern Arabia have provided botanical and insect macroremains. The sites included in our study are Qal’al al-Bahrain (Kingdom of Bahrain), Kush and Mleiha (U.A.E.) and Fulayj and Qalhât (Sultanate of Oman). This work is based on the analysis of seeds/fruits, charcoal (anthracology), wood (xylology) and insect remains (entomology). It aims at understanding the supplying strategies and the management of plant resources by the societies of historical periods, from Antiquity to the arrival of the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean, in an environment marked by aridity and a context of trade dynamics. Agriculture is recognised in the form of date palm gardens, an oasis agrosystem with multi-cropping and irrigation in which cereals, pulses, fruit trees and condiments were cultivated. Information concerning the storage as well as measures of conservation and protection of foodstuffs has been obtained from a burnt context at Mleiha. Parasites attacking storage of food that the past populations had to face have been determined. The procurement of fuel was based on the optimal use of resources present in the different local plant communities, in agricultural systems and the use of waste. A large number of allochtonous plant taxa have been identified, corresponding to cultivated plants and wood from wild-growing trees, as well as insects. The cultivated plants correspond mainly to taxa of tropical and subtropical origin for which it is generally difficult to determine if they were brought to the sites as importations or if they could have been acclimatised locally. The context of trade dynamics across the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean during the classical and Islamic periods seem to have favoured the importation and acclimatisation of allochtonous plants, or even insects, in eastern Arabia.