Stable carbon, nitrogen and sulphur isotope analysis of permafrost preserved human hair from rescue excavations (2009, 2010) at the precontact site of Nunalleq, Alaska

Abstract

Stable carbon, nitrogen and sulphur isotope analysis of permafrost preserved human hair from rescue excavations (

Thule whaling at Point Barrow, Alaska: The Nuvuk cemetery stable isotope and radiocarbon record

“…The technique was introduced by Tauber (1981) to demonstrate a reduction in dependency on marine resources in coastal Denmark at the Mesolithic to Neolithic transition (see also Chisholm et al, 1982). Since that time numerous studies have employed stable isotope analysis to reconstruct mixed marine/terrestrial diets (e.g., Britton et al, 2016Britton et al, , 2013Coltrain, 2011Coltrain, , 2010aColtrain, , 2010bColtrain, , 2009Coltrain et al, 2004;Guiry et al, 2015;Laffoon et al, 2016). The technique is also commonly used to estimate the role of marine resources in non-human food webs (e.g., Hobson and Welch, 1992;Hoekstra et al, 2002;Quinn et al, 2012) and as a device for tracking migration patterns among an array of Arctic taxa including bowhead whale, anadromous fish and migratory waterfowl (e.g., Blight et al, 2015;Hobson and Wassenaar, 2008;Kurle and Worthy, 2001;Schell, 1983;Schell et al, 1988).…”

Stable Isotope Studies of North American Arctic Populations: A Review

“…Marine mammals were valued as well for their secondary products, such as blubber for lamps or whale bone and baleen for tool manufacture and house construction, and pinnipeds in particular were valued for their skins, which were used in clothing, footwear, boats, house construction, and for lines (Taylor, 1974). Marine and anadromous fish species played significant roles in annual subsistence rounds in the Western Arctic, including the Aleutian Islands, coastal Western Alaska, and the Mackenzie River Delta (Betts & Friesen, 2004;Britton et al, 2018a;Coltrain, 2010;Masson-McLean et al, 2019). The presence of fish on archaeological sites in the Eastern Arctic is more sporadic due in part to taphonomic bias against delicate fish remains (Whitridge, 2001), but also due to the timing of fish runs conflicting with the availability of higher-ranked resources (Norman & Friesen, 2010).…”

“…The δ 15 N value of proteins can be offset from that of consumed dietary protein by +2 to +6‰ (Bocherens & Drucker, 2003;DeNiro & Epstein, 1981;Minagawa & Wada, 1984;O'Connell, Kneale, Tasevka, & Kuhnle, 2012), and an average offset of +3 to +4‰ is applied in many palaeodietary analyses, including those studies conducted on the collagen and hair of humans and fauna in the Arctic (e.g. Britton et al, 2018a;Coltrain et al, 2004;Coltrain, 2009;Coltrain et al, 2016;McManus-Fry et al, 2018).…”

“…Butchery practices may bias zooarchaeological assemblages (Betts & Friesen, 2013), while the contribution of taxa such as whales or shellfish to arctic diets can be difficult to estimate due to use and reuse of whale skeletal elements in dwellings and tool manufacture, and incomplete collection and quantification of shellfish remains, respectively (Claassen, 2000;Giovas, 2009;McCartney, 1980;McCartney & Savelle, 1993;Savelle, 1997). A number of stable isotope studies have been conducted on human biological tissues to address the importance of whaling to arctic peoples (Coltrain et al, 2004;Coltrain, 2009;Coltrain et al, 2016), to assess the impacts of past episodes of climate change on arctic subsistence practices (Britton et al, 2013), and to provide further information regarding the diets of individuals (Britton et al, 2018a). Britton et al (2018a) and Tackney et al (2016) reviewed a number of these studies and noted significant geographic patterning in the types of foods consumed by pre-and post-contact Arctic hunter gatherers.…”

“…A number of stable isotope studies have been conducted on human biological tissues to address the importance of whaling to arctic peoples (Coltrain et al, 2004;Coltrain, 2009;Coltrain et al, 2016), to assess the impacts of past episodes of climate change on arctic subsistence practices (Britton et al, 2013), and to provide further information regarding the diets of individuals (Britton et al, 2018a). Britton et al (2018a) and Tackney et al (2016) reviewed a number of these studies and noted significant geographic patterning in the types of foods consumed by pre-and post-contact Arctic hunter gatherers. Betts and Friesen (2004) emphasize the critical role that culture plays in fostering the diversity of dietary practices across the NAA.…”