Crime scenes involving human skeletal remains in obstructed wooded environments are challenging to document. One potential option to include with the crime scene processing protocol is 3D documentation utilizing close-range photogrammetry (CRP). This method results in the generation of realistic 3D models and accurate plan-view maps of the crime scene. The purpose of this research was to explore the use of CRP to preserve contextual information of simulated scenes involving scattered human remains in obstructed wooded environments. The main goal was to improve CRP methodology as well as demonstrate how to incorporate this method into the forensic archaeology documentation protocol. Photographs were collected freehand and models were processed using Agisoft Metashape Professional. The first phase of the research included recording one skeletal scatter four times with varying amounts of individual coded targets in addition to photogrammetric scale bars to test whether using additional coded targets improved 3D model accuracy. Accuracy was assessed through visual analysis, root-mean square (RMS) reprojection errors and total scale bar errors. The results indicated that including extra coded targets did not improve the accuracy of models significantly enough to warrant using the extra targets in conjunction with photogrammetric scale bars. For the second phase of the research, two larger skeletal scatters were documented to test the capabilities of CRP in an obstructed environment. While visual errors were present when zoomed in, the RMS reprojection and scale bar errors still indicated highly accurate models. However, the wooded environment presented numerous challenges that made utilizing CRP more difficult. Therefore, guidelines were outlined for documenting skeletal scatters in wooded environments using CRP, with a focus on addressing variables that can affect image quality. Overall, CRP is a viable method for documenting complex scenes in wooded environments which should be incorporated into forensic archaeological protocols.

The documentation of outdoor forensic crime scenes involving human remains poses multiple challenges to law enforcement officials documenting the context of the scene. More rigorous protocols for the documentation of these scenes are needed, and recent advances in technology open up the possibility of three-dimensional (3D) documentation of the scene. More commonly used in archaeological contexts, close-range photogrammetry (CRP) creates reliable 3D models through triangulation of overlapping points between multiple photographs. This documentation technique allows for the preservation of the entire 3D context and the virtual manipulation without evidence destruction. However, CRP has only been preliminarily used in the field of forensic archaeology. To further refine data collection and processing protocols for the use of CRP on forensic scenes, four mock crime scenes on different complex ground surfaces involving a surface scatter of human remains were created. Photographs were collected using a Nikon D7200 camera and processed using Agisoft Metashape Professional. The first scene, a mixed surface dominated by leaves, was used to test the number of images that should be incorporated into a 3D scene. The second (mixed surface dominated by grass), third (mixed surface dominated by pine needles), and fourth (ground surface of mixed leaves and dirt) scenes were used to test data collection techniques, the capability of documenting a scene using CRP on different complex surfaces, as well as to illustrate complex variables that may affect the final model. Accuracy was determined through an estimation of the final root mean square error (RMSE) and visual analysis of qualitative errors. Results show that CRP can be used to accurately and reliably document the 3D context of real-life scenes in a time-efficient and cost-effective manner. This new methodology should be integrated into current forensic crime scene documentation and may eventually replace current methods of mapping the scene context.

This research involves the examination of the contribution of stable isotope analysis to the forensic anthropological objective of human identification. Oxygen isotopes, which vary in water in a predictable manner according to climatological and geographical factors, can be used to determine the region of origin of an unidentified individual following isotopic analysis of human skeletal remains. However, stable oxygen isotopes from human remains recovered from various aqueous environments may be altered by diagenetic processes that occur following deposition. The focus of this research is to determine potential diagenetic changes in the oxygen isotopic value (d18O) of Sus scrofa (domestic pig) ribs, used as a proxy for human remains. Bone samples (n=50) were exposed to different aqueous environments, including distilled water, fresh water, and brackish water, for a period of one, three, and six months, simulating distinct aqueous conditions that may be encountered by forensic anthropologists working in Florida. Results of this study suggest that submersion in fresh, brackish, and distilled can significantly alter the isotopic composition of bone over a period of six months. However, the observed significant shifts in isotopic composition occur over only a 1‰ range, suggesting that oxygen isotopic data derived from bone that was previously submerged in low salinity water for six months or less may be cautiously used to narrow the geographic origin of unidentified individuals in forensic investigations. This study provides a meaningful contribution to forensic research regarding stable isotope analysis as well as the body of literature regarding early diagenetic changes in aqueous contexts.

The dietary behavior of past communities is influenced by several factors such as environmental sources, social and economic organization, individual preferences, and physiological needs. Every society has its characteristics and understanding the dietary choices of its individuals expands the knowledge about its lifestyle. Applying biochemical tracers, we can explore the food choices of an Early Medieval Avar community. The Jagodnjak cemetery (n=35) in Croatia is dated to the 7–8th century. Historical and archaeological records are currently limited for Avar populations. Jagodnjak is a transitory community from a period where different historical events shaped the community's way of life. The research focus of this thesis is the evaluation of the dietary variation of the stable isotope of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) on bone collagen, considering differences among adult males and females, as well as juveniles. Results indicate average δ13C of –16.28 ± 1.72‰ and average δ15N of +10.94 ± 1.5‰. The stable isotope analyses suggest that the adult males and females had similar food choices for plants and different for terrestrial animals or possibly freshwater fish, and the adults and juveniles had similar choices for dietary protein. However, the adults' and juveniles' dietary behavior indicates different C3 food resources. Stable isotopic comparisons suggest that Jagodnjak and some contemporaneous communities in Croatia and surrounding areas did not have similar dietary behaviors. The Jagodnjak cemetery expands the knowledge about bioarchaeology in Croatia and surrounding areas for the Early Medieval period and for this Avar community during this time of residential and lifestyle transition.

This investigation represents the first extensive application of Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry to ancient dental analysis and paleodietary reconstruction. Enamel strontium composition is examined because it is a reliable hard tissue indicator of diet during enamel formation in childhood. Here, infant diet and weaning behavior of pre-contact and colonial period Maya from Lamanai, Belize are reconstructed. Weaning is a critical dietary transition that has adaptive significance for later life. Since the strontium-calcium (Sr/Ca) ratio of solid food is high compared to that of breast milk, strontium composition of hard tissues developing before, and after, food supplementation can infer the timing of food introduction and weaning. Known timing of permanent enamel development allows correlation of canine enamel Sr/Ca values with age in childhood, which is facilitated by continuous laser microsampling. The results indicate that enamel Sr/Ca faithfully records a biogenic signal associated with childhood dietary intake. The total Sr/Ca pattern generally follows the projected model of strontium change, with food supplementation starting at around nine months of age, which increases gradually until there is a substantial surge in food intake at approximately two years of age. Lamanai children continue to nurse afterward, possibly up to five years of age, but it comprises a minor nutritional component. Significantly, the disadvantaged colonial Maya cohort has a reduced Sr/Ca pattern compared to elite Postclassic Maya, suggesting that colonial children may have exclusively breastfed for longer, delaying the age of food supplementation and weaning. Colonial Maya also exhibit greater Sr/Ca variation, reflecting dietary shifts that can be attributed to poorer nutrition and health. Female economic responsibilities partially account for the differences in colonial childcare practices. Additionally, enamel variation may reflect the different childhood origins (and weaning patterns) of possible migrants at Lamanai. Ultimately, the nature of infant diet and enamel Sr/Ca can be linked to interrelated ecological, political and economic factors. LA-ICP-MS analysis reveals enamel Sr/Ca to be a sensitive gauge of the prolonged and complex process of weaning and it proves to be an ideal method of capturing the richness of early life history documented in sequentially-formed enamel.

Activity stresses are an important factor in the development, patterning, and severity of osteoarthritis. This bioarchaeological thesis explores the prevalence and patterning of osteoarthritis between individuals buried at a Late Medieval Necropolis and a church Crypt built in the 19th century at the Mistihalj site in Bosnia and Herzegovina to understand the physiological effects of their peasant agro-pastoralist lifestyle. Composite scores of osteoarthritis were generated for visual observations of upper limb joints (shoulder, elbow, and wrist) and lower limb joints (hip, knee, and ankle) of 37 female and 39 male adult (between 20 and 50 or more years of age) skeletons. These were analyzed and compared by limb, age, sex, and time period. Low ranking peasant status for individuals was inferred by the location and type of burial. Odds ratio analyses show a positive correlation between the prevalence of osteoarthritis and age among Necropolis individuals. Correlation by age is expected, as the prevalence of osteoarthritis increases due to senescence and longer exposure to activities. A positive correlation between the severity of osteoarthritis and burial location between male skeletons overall and among older adults suggests that distinctive factors, perhaps differential workloads, played a role in the effects of this condition among these individuals. The reasons for the lack of any other significant differences in the osteoarthritic effects within and between the individuals from the two burial locations are discussed, including systemic factors that might lead to generalized osteoarthritis. However, overall these data suggest that the individuals within and between these time periods were generally involved in similar activities reflecting long term traditional lifestyles that continued over centuries. This thesis adds to the nascent bioarchaeological knowledge about past populations from Bosnia and Herzegovina and contributes to an anthropological understanding of lifestyles and their effect on physiological health.

Tampa Bay and the broader Central Gulf Coast region of Florida bear evidence of site reduction and population decline during the onset of the Late Woodland period (AD 500-1000). Concomitantly, Weeden Island culture flourished to the north, while climatic instability loomed to the south. It is unclear if the site abandonments in the area between the two are related to social or cultural change, an unstable climate, or a combination thereof. Interdisciplinary research has provided evidence for climate change and sea level regression during the sixth and seventh centuries in Southwest Florida, but these variables have yet to be investigated in Tampa Bay. This study implements a multi-scalar sclerochronological analysis to better understand how the climate of Tampa Bay has changed through time. Analyses of low-resolution stable isotopes (13C and 18O) paired with high-resolution trace elements (Mg, Na, Li, Sr) from 50 eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) specimens supports climatic instability during the Late Woodland period in Tampa Bay.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common pathologies encountered in dry bone contexts. However, even with the wealth of publications on documenting the presence of OA from skeletons, these studies prove to be largely incomparable due to different scoring methodologies and procedures in calculating prevalence. The standardization of a new OA data collection procedure would mitigate variability in evaluating, scoring, and calculating the prevalence of OA, thus allowing accurate comparison between studies. However, this level of data collection has often been described as unwieldy and lacking concordance. This research outlines a new methodology that utilizes Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to record OA characteristics, levels of expression, and spatial arrangement on the articular surfaces of the arm. The data was then processed using the analysis and visual rendering capabilities of GIS providing examples of OA patterning on the articular surface, within the joint, and within the individual. Using this method, large standardized OA datasets can be stored and the patterns within them modeled through the use of digitization, composite raster overlays, and modified binning techniques. The patterns recorded by this analysis can offer a more robust dataset on OA occurring within the arm that can provide the ability to explore OA progression and its relationship with biomechanical factors in larger datasets.

Observations of nonhuman primate long bone microanatomy were undertaken with the explicit goal of recording intra- and interspecific variation in the percentage of osteonal bone. One-hundred and eight specimens with age, sex, body size, and positional behavior data representing 7 species (Galago senegalensis, Otolemur crassicaudatus, Macaca fascicularis, Macaca mulatta, Macaca arctoides, Erythrocebus patas, and Cercopithecus aethiops) were examined. Humeral and femoral shafts were examined histologically at the proximal, midshaft, and distal cross sections. Furthermore, the humeral and femoral midshaft sections were histologically examined at the anterior, posterior, medial, and lateral quadrants. Each cross section and quadrant were read specifically for percentages of osteonal bone. Data on cortical bone area and cortical thickness were also recorded for each section. Descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, and Model II regression (maximum likelihood estimation) were used to test for intra- and interspecific variation in osteonal bone for this population of primates. In general, several points concerning primate skeletal microanatomy have been revealed: (1) humeral and femoral microanatomy do not mirror each other in osteonal pattern, suggesting that different factors affect the bone microstructure of these limb bones, (2) primate species with different positional behavior express different distributions of osteonal bone and these differences reflect body size and mechanical usage, (3) after sexual maturation age does not affect intraspecific variations in the percentage of osteonal bone, (4) osteon area scales positively allometrically on body size (cortical area) suggesting that the rate of osteon area increases faster than the rate of increase in body size among primate species. Other conclusions have been drawn from this study, the most important point of which is that mechanical loading plays a large role in stimulating secondary osteon formation and that osteonal bone distribution reflects positional behavior and body size. This has profound implications for how future primate histological research can be conducted. Specific regions of nonhuman primate long bone appear to be particularly responsive to mechanical loading (i.e. the femoral midshaft posterior quadrant). These regions of bone therefore, may not be suited for aging techniques or for metabolic disorder analyses that are often applied in human research. The results of this study also have implications for the application of histological analysis to extinct primate specimens. Given the patterns of osteonal bone exhibited by extant primate species, it should be possible to determine positional behavior of extinct primate species from long bone microanatomy. This information will give primatologists one more important tool to be used in examining skeletal form as it relates to function in fossil primate species.

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