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2016
Journal article
Rodents: food or pests in Neolithic Orkney
Rodents have important effects on contemporary human societies, sometimes providing a source of food but more often as agricultural pests, or as vectors and reservoirs of disease. Skeletal remains of rodents are commonly found in archaeological assemblages from around the world, highlighting their potential importance to ancient human populations. However,...Romaniuk, Andrzej A ; Shepherd, Alexandra N ; Clarke, David V ; Sheridan, J A ; Fraser, Sheena …
Rodentia, Microtus arvalis, human subsistence, archaeology, and animal osteology
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2020
Journal article
Combined visual and biochemical analyses confirm depositor and diet for Neolithic coprolites from Skara Brae
Coprolites (fossilized faeces) can provide valuable insights into species’ diet and related habits. In archaeozoological contexts, they are a potential source of information on human-animal interactions as well as human and animal subsistence. However, despite a broad discussion on coprolites in archaeology, such finds are rarely subject to detailed examination... -
2023
Journal article
Pests or prey? Micromammal species within an ancient anthropic environment at the Norse settlement site of Tuquoy (Westray, Orkney)
Micromammals, like rodents and shrews, adapt rapidly to take advantage of new food sources, habitats and ecological niches, frequently thriving in anthropogenic environments. Their remains, often retrieved during archaeological investigations, can be a valuable source of information about the past environmental conditions as well as interspecies interactions and human activity....Romaniuk, Andrzej A ; Troalen, Lore G ; Bendrey, Robin ; Herman, Jeremy S ; Owen, Olwyn …
commensalism, introductions, Orkney, micromammal, archaeology, and predation
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2024
Journal article
Insular evolution from an archaeological perspective: a case study of Orkney house mouse
Archaeological material adds a temporal dimension to evolutionary studies that is valuable for elucidating long-term population stability and evolutionary shifts for species closely associated with humans. Here, a two-dimensional geometric morphometrics approach on first upper molars was applied to modern and archaeological samples to assess the evolution of house mice...