bennett’s wallaby marrow quality vs...
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Bennett’s wallaby marrow quality vs quantity:Evaluating human decision-making and seasonal occupation in
late Pleistocene Tasmania
Jillian Garvey
Archaeology Program, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia
Archaeology of Late Pleistocene SW Tasmania
• First site identified during the late 1970s- KUTIKINA CAVE.
• Kutikina excavated by Rhys Jones and colleagues 1981 (Kiernan et al. Nature 1983:31).
• Followed by the Southern Forests Archaeological Project in 1990s by La Trobe University (Richard Cosgrove, Jim in 1990s by La Trobe University (Richard Cosgrove, Jim Allen and colleagues) excavated several more caves.
e.g. Nunamira, Bone Cave, Warreen, Pallawa Trounta
• In 2005 the Kutikina faunal assemblage was analysed.
• Recent Bennett’s wallaby teeth annuli studies indicate seasonal use of the landscape (Pike-Tay, Cosgrove & Garvey 2008 JAS).
Top left hand corner: map of
Australia with the southern island
state of Tasmania shaded.
Main figure: Tasmania with
southwest region indicated and
Kutikina Cave marked by the star. Kutikina
SW Settlement Pattern &
Chronology (Uncal 14C)
35,000-10,000BP
Warreen 34,780-18,630
Parmerpar Meethaner 34,000 - 750
ORS 7 30,840 - 2,500
Nunamira 30,420 - 11,630
Bone Cave 29,000 - 13,700
Pallawa Trounta 29,800 - 13,410
Parmerpar MeethanerParmerpar Meethaner
Pallawa Trounta 29,800 - 13,410
Kutikina Cave 19,770 - 14,840
Mackintosh 17,000
• >950,000 bones analysed
• Bennett’s wallabies dominate
• Preference for the larger hindlimbs
• Femora and tibiae always split open
Southwest Tasmania characterised by:
Kutikina Cave excavated 1981
Kutikina Cave:
•1m2 wide, 1.3m deep excavated
•Volume 0.583 cubic metres, wet sieved
(3mm)
•11 C14 dates- 22,000-15,000 (LGM)
Jones 1987
1981 Kutikina excavation
•11 C14 dates- 22,000-15,000 (LGM)
•Only published paper on Kutikina excavation
or analysis was preliminary report in 1983
Nature: approx 250,000 bones & 30,000 stone
tools.
• Unpublished preliminary report on faunal
sample by Geering 1983. Jones 1987
Jones 1987
Tasmania was joined to
mainland Australia during
the late Pleistocene
Inspecting Kutikina
Cave, 1981
Similar:
• Stone tools
• Hearths (fireplaces)
Parallels between Northern and Southern
Hemisphere’s during LGM
• Hunting patterns
• Butchering patterns
Bennett’s wallaby Macropus rufogriseus
“The specific targetting onto reindeer by the European hunters bears comparison
with the similar emphasis on wallabies by subsub-Antarctic palaeo-Tasmanians”
(Kiernan et al. Nature 1983:31).
Bennett’s wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus)
• Also known as the Red-necked wallaby
• Small wallaby weighing 10-15kg
• Found in SE mainland Australia & Tasmania
Male Red kangaroo (70kg) with
• In Tasmania:
– Seasonal breeders
– Widespread distribution
• Common in zoos and as pets in Europe & Nth America:
– quiet nature
– easy to breed
– excellent lawnmowers
Kangaroo skeleton
Male Red kangaroo (70kg) with
female grey (45kg) Female (10kg) Bennett’s wallaby
Tamar wallaby (8kg) with joey
Typical spit from Kutikina- Bennett’s wallaby dominates
• 269,459 bone fragments, weighing 46.11kg were analysed (Garvey 2006).
• 28,210 or 12% identified to taxon &/or element.
• 21 species identified, 13 of which are potential human prey taxa
(identified by Cosgrove & Allen 2001).
2005-2007 Kutikina results
(identified by Cosgrove & Allen 2001).
• Of the potential prey BW >92% (MNI 44), Wombats
<7% (MNI 10), minor medium elements.
• Emu and grey kangaroo identified.
Kutikina Cave
small mammals medium mammals
bones relatively complete
= owls -humans?
-devil, thylacine
or quolls?
-natural death ?
Taphonomic history
Kutikina Cave
Bennett’s wallaby
( >75%)
Wombat (7%)
kangaroo & emu
humans selected
whole animals
humans selected certain elements
such as the lower long bones
humans selected
entire wombats
Images from Van Dyck & Strahan 2008
Bennett’s wallaby represents
<92% of the identified fauna
MNI 44 (per Unit)
- Hindlimb dominates.
- Axial and manus under
Bennett’s wallaby
- Axial and manus under represented.
- Numerous cut marks on hindlimbs.
- Tibiae and femora always smashed open.
- 4th and 5th metatarsals, large phalanges, calcaneum often smashed open.
Garvey 2006
Percentage of Bennett’s wallaby body parts
represented at Kutikina Cave
Kutikina wallaby bones
cut marks
percussion
access marrow
bone
point
A
A
A
B
A- distal tibia
Garvey 200x
chop? marks
size range
cut mark
location
D
A
C
A- distal tibia
B- fibula
C- pes phalange
D- distal humerus
access marrow
Why the dominance of Bennett’s wallaby
split hindlimb longbones?
1. Marrow/meat quality?
and/orand/or
2. Marrow/meat quantity?
and/or
3. Processing time?
• Marrow and meat quantity was evaluated by Garvey 2010
Quaternary International 211(1-2):144-156.
• It seemed that humans were not under selective pressure
concerning which parts of the animals they transported.
Marrow and meat quantity: economic utility
concerning which parts of the animals they transported.
• Ignored some of the larger ‘meaty’ elements such as the
sacrum, preferring the hindlimbs which were found to not
only carry large amounts of flesh but also the greatest volume
of bone marrow.
40
50
60
70
80
90
100%MUI
BW1
BW2
BW3
BW4
Mean
Bennett’s wallaby economic utility:
Meat Utility Index (MUI)
The %MUI for the 4 wallabies and the mean.
indicates the highest body part.
0
10
20
30
Cranium
Mandible
Cervical
Thoracic
Rib
Sternum
Scapula
Clavicle
Humerus
Ulna & Radius
Manus
Lumbar
Pelvis
Femur
Tibia & Fibula
Pes
Sacral
Caudal
Mean
Garvey 2010, Quaternary International 211(1-2):144-156
WHERE: CAU- caudal, CER- cervical, CLA- clavicle, CRA- cranial, FEM- femur, HUM- humerus, LUM- lumbar, MAND-
mandible, MANU- manus, PEL- pelvis, PES- pes, RIB- rib, SAC- sacrum, SCA- scapula, STE- sternum, TIB- tibia, THO-
thoracic, ULN- ulna
CRA
TIB
CAUPES
ULN
CERSCA
CLA
PELHUM
FEM
8
10
12
14
16
18
20MAU
Accounts for the possibility of riders: other body parts selected
along with preferred elements (Binford 1978, pp. XX). Where
RED- high in meat/marrow & common in Kutikina; BLUE- those
high in meat/marrow & rare in Kutikina
Bennett’s wallaby economic utility:
Modified Meat Utility Index (MMUI)
PEL
LUM
RIB
SAC
THO
HUM
MAND
STE
MANU
0
2
4
6
8
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
%MUI
WHERE: CAU- caudal, CER- cervical, CLA- clavicle, CRA- cranial, FEM- femur, HUM- humerus, LUM- lumbar, MAND-
mandible, MANU- manus, PEL- pelvis, PES- pes, RIB- rib, SAC- sacrum, SCA- scapula, STE- sternum, TIB- tibia, THO- thoracic,
ULN- ulna
Garvey 2010, Quaternary International 211(1-2):144-156.
Marrow and meat quality: marrow composition
• Fatty acid analysis, in particular oleic acid (a monounsaturated omega-9 fatty acid), argued to be a good indicator of unsaturated fat quality (Binford 1978).
• It has been found that in caribou, and ungulates in general, unsaturated fats increase as you move away from the body core temperature or the heart(Meng et al. 1969; West and Shaw 1975).
• High % unsaturated fatty acids in the distal limbs causes lowering a of melting temperature and oiler marrow (Irving et al. 1957; Morin 2007).
• While extensive work has occurred on ungulates, there has been no analysis of marsupial bone marrow.
– Test to see if a similar pattern occurs in the Bennett’s wallaby.
– How does age, sex, altitude, and season effect bone marrow quality?
Marrow and tissue composition
• Total Fat (FOLCH) and Fatty Acid Profile (FAMES) determined.
• 14 fatty acids measured per sample.
• Fatty acid concentration of wallaby bone marrow decreased in saturated fats distally
• Largest fatty acid changes occurred in the monounsaturated Oleic acid (C 18=1) and Palmitoleic (C16:1) both increased distally
• Saturated Palmitic acid (C16:0) and Stearic acid (C18:0) both decreased accordingly
• These results are similar to that identified in caribou Rangifer tarandus (Meng et al. 1969), Dall sheep Ovis dalli (West and Shaw 1975), and in the desert bighorn sheep Ovis canadensis cremnobates (Turner 1979).
Distribution of unsaturated fatty acids in the
Bennett’s wallaby
After Hume et al. 1987
after Meng et al. 1969;
© 2010 Falling Pixel ltd
Morin 2007
Bennett’s Wallaby Hindlimb
Note: the dark red saturated fat in the femur marrow, with the unsaturated
marrow very pale in the distal tibia, i.e. increase in unsaturated fatty acids as
you move away from the body core temperature or the heart.
Wallaby Collection Areas
Buckland 90-150 m.a.s.l.
Western Tiers 900-1300 m.a.s.l.
-alpine grasslands & herbfields
Western Tiers
Buckland
Buckland 90-150 m.a.s.l.
-open dry sclerophyll
-variable climate
-warm to hot summers
-cool to cold winters
Maydena 190-240 m.a.s.l.
-wet sclerophyll
-high rainfall
-warm summers & cool
winters
-cool summers & cold winters
Tissue samples collected per wallaby
(where possible):
1) tibia marrow
2) brain tissue
3) femur tissue
Seasonal variation:
1) Summer collection- February 2008
2) Autumn collection- May 2008
3) Winter collection- July 2008
4) Spring collection- October 2008
Note: the same 3 control areas as wallaby seasonal teeth annuli study by
Pike-Tay, Cosgrove & Garvey 2008, JAS
Maydena
Collecting road kill
27 individual wallabies tested:
8 Buckland (4M & 4F)
9 Maydena (4M & 5F)
10 Western Lakes (5M & 5F)
Collecting marrow sample
Collecting muscle sample10 Western Lakes (5M & 5F)
3 samples per wallaby
(where possible)
-Brain tissue
-Hindlimb muscle
-Distal tibia marrow
Collecting brain sample
Fatty acid results for the
three collection areasmean max temperature (oC)
mean min temperature (oC)
mean rainfall (mm)
S- summer A- autumn
W- winter Sp- spring
Marrow
Meat
Brain
Numbers on graph bars refer to
individual wallabies
Preliminary conclusions
• Bennett’s wallaby remained stable and reliable resource
throughout the year irrespective of:
– Season
– Rainfall– Rainfall
– Temperature
– Sex
– Age
Future work
Then how do we explain hunting, butchery and seasonal patterns
observed in late Pleistocene SW Tasmania?
Future work:
• Processing time & butchery practices
– Ethnographic
– Experimental
• Other commodities
– Bone tools
– Fur
• Bone Density
– Scientific evaluation
– However tiny complete rodent bones indicates excellent preservation
• Human physiology & the role of fatty acids
– Environmental stress
– Sex, age, pregnancy, breastfeeding, etc
Photo: R. Cosgrove
Acknowledgements
• Tasmanian Aboriginal Land & Sea Council (TALSC) and Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery (TMAG), Hobart.
• Rudy Frank, Peter Saad & Wei Ming, LTU, for technical assistance.
• Tiffany Liew, Seema Siddiqui & Grammatis Tsintzoglou for dissecting the wallabies in 2007.
• Georgia Bennett, Tiffany Liew, Richard Cosgrove, Coral Montero Lopez & Anthony Dall’Oste for collecting roadkill in 2008/2009.
• Helpful discussions with Richard Cosgrove, Anne Warren, Mike Archer, Eugene Morin, Jim O’Connell and reviewers of JAS paper.
• 2008 La Trobe University Research Grant for the economic anatomy and fatty acid analysis.
• LTU Postdoctoral Fellowship 2006-2008
References
• Binford, L.R., 1978. Nunamiut Ethnoarchaeology. New York, Academic Press.
• Garvey, J., 2006. Preliminary zooarchaeological interpretations from Kutikina Cave, southwest Tasmania. Australian Aboriginal Studies 2006(1), 58-63.
• Garvey, J., 2007. Surviving an Ice Age: the zooarchaeology from southwest Tasmania. Palaios 22, 583-585.
• Garvey, J., 2010. Economic anatomy of the Bennett’s wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus): implications for understanding human hunting strategies in late Pleistocene Tasmania. QuaternaryInternational 211, 144-256.
• Hume, I.D., Jarman, P.J., Renfree, M.B., Temple-Smith, P.D., 1987. Chapter 29: Macropodidae, in: Walton, D.W., Richardson, B.J. (Eds.), Fauna of Australia, Volume 1B Mammalia. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, pp. 679-715.
• Jones, R., 1987 Ice-age hunters of the Tasmanian wilderness, Australian Geographic Oct/Dec 87:26-45.
• Jones, R., 1987 Ice-age hunters of the Tasmanian wilderness, Australian Geographic Oct/Dec 87:26-45.
• Kiernan, K., Jones, R., Ranson, D.. 1983 New evidence from Fraser Cave for glacial age man in south-west Tasmania, Nature 301:28-32.
• Meng, M.S., West, G.C., Irving, L., 1969. Fatty acid composition of caribou bone marrow. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 30, 187-191.,
• Morin, E., 2007. Fat composition and Nunamiut decision-making: a new look at the marrow and bone grease indices. Journal of Archaeological Science 34, 69-82.
• Pike-Tay, A., Cosgrove, R., Garvey, J. 2008. Systematic seasonal land use by late Pleistocene Tasmanian Aborigines. Journal of Archaeological Science. 35(9), 2532-2544.
• Van Dyck, S. Strahan, R., 2008. The mammals of Australia, 3rd Edition. Reed New Holland, Sydney .
• Turner, J.C., 1979. Adaptive strategies of selective fatty acid deposition in the bone marrow of desert bighorn sheep. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 62A, 599-604.
• West, G., Shaw, D., 1975. Fatty acid composition of Dall sheep bone marrow. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 50B, 599-601.