The good earthworm: How natural processes preserve upland Archaic archaeological sites of western Illinois, U.S.A.

This study explores the stratigraphic evolution of archaeological assemblages in faunalturbated sites. These sites are sometimes described as having limited archaeological value because of varying degrees of occupation mixing. It is argued here that the vertical distribution of assemblages is predictable in faunalturbated contexts. Understanding this vertical evolution may lead to a better assessment of the archaeological potential of a cultural sequence.In faunalturbated soils, the stratigraphic evolution of the assemblages is largely dictated by faunal activity. Tunneling by small animals tend to "sink" cultural remains through the deposits. Although objects sink at a relatively fast pace near the surface, the process slows down as the objects reach the bottom of the biomantle where the sediments are more compact. This process affects the shape of the artifact vertical distribution. The analysis of a multicomponent site from southern Québec is used to model how assemblages may evolve temporally in faunalturbated settings. At Station 3-avant, the stratigraphic distribution of the cultural remains appears to evolve from an upward-skewed distribution to a bottom-skewed distribution through time. This evolution is interpreted to result from the fact that objects are often too large and/or heavy to be moved upward by the pedofauna. In situations in which this stage of stratigraphic evolution is not yet reached, enough information about temporal successions may be retained for the site to be useful for investigating diachronic change. This may prove invaluable in regions in which faunalturbated sequences are common.

Section: How Does Faunalturbation Affect the Integrity Of Archaeologimentioning

confidence: 90%

“…This density is moderate compared to sites located farther south or in Europe (Stein, 1983;Van Nest, 2002). At Pointe-du-Buisson, earthworms and other animals are very rare in the compact clays found below the topsoil.…”

Section: Agents Of Faunalturbation At Pointe-du-buissonmentioning

confidence: 91%

Beyond stratigraphic noise: Unraveling the evolution of stratified assemblages in faunalturbated sites

Morin

2006

“…For example, Van Nest (2002) reports that Archaic-aged FCR occurred in abundance some 35 cm below surface at a silty sediment case study site in Illinois, but intact features more than 2,500 years old were apparently lacking altogether. She attributed these patterns to biomantle and stone-zone formation.…”

Section: Fire-cracked Rock Features On Sandy Landformsmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…Implementation of such studies, however, is a scientific challenge in that upland settings tend to undergo net erosion and, other things being equal, sites there are likely to be poorly preserved compared to those in alluvial bottomlands. A substantial body of geoarchaeological data has been compiled and synthesized about impacts to archaeological sites from pedoturbation, but considerable epistemological debate remains about site integrity issues at upland sites (e.g., Wood and Johnson, 1978;Burtchard, 1987;Schiffer, 1987;Johnson and Watson-Stegner, 1990;Bocek, 1992;Leigh, 2001;Balek, 2002;Frederick et al, 2002;Johnson, 2002;Peacock and Fant, 2002;Van Nest, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fire‐cracked rock features on sandy landforms in the Northern Rocky Mountains: Toward establishing reliable frames of reference for assessing site integrity

Thoms

2007

In cool coniferous forest settings of the Northern Rocky Mountains, well-preserved fire-cracked rock (FCR) features within 30 cm of the surface on ostensibly stable, sandy upland landforms date to the last six millennia. Isolated FCR and artifacts sometimes extend a meter or more below surface, which is suggestive of in situ burial. A paucity of intact features in the lower solum, however, is consistent with the downward migration of deeply buried artifacts by biomechanical processes, especially floralturbation. Moreover, an absence of credible sediment source areas usually precludes colluvial deposition, and results of grain-size analysis reported herein are inconsistent with eolian deposition. Site disarticulation rates tend to be faster on landforms in warmer forested regions of south-central North America, given that most intact FCR features there date only to the last two millennia. The very presence of millennia-old FCR features in these diverse settings, however, is a testament to their durability and utility as measures of site integrity.

“…However, research on the topic by many authors has shown that more often than expected, archaeological materials have the tendency of not staying where they were deposited (e.g., Bordes, 1972;Cahen and Moeyersons, 1977;Siiriä inen, 1977;Moeyersons, 1978;Rolfsen, 1980;Villa, 1982aVilla, , 1982b. Among the many variables responsible for displacement of artifacts is the action of burrowing animals such as ants, termites, earthworms, and rodents (Stein, 1983;Bocek, 1986;Johnson, 1990Johnson, , 1993Johnson, , 2002Pierce, 1992;Araujo, 1995;Balek, 2002;Van Nest, 2002). There is, however, one animal that despite its regional VOL.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of armadillos in the movement of archaeological materials: An experimental approach

Araujo

Marcelino²

2003

Armadillos are medium-sized animals whose burrowing behavior can be significant in archaeological settings ranging from South America to the central United States. Although archaeologists are well aware that these animals can move archaeological materials across stratigraphic layers, few data are available about the magnitude of mixing, number of burrows per individual, dimension of burrows, and their impact on archaeological sites. This paper addresses the problem from an experimental perspective. Specifically, we monitored the action of the yellow armadillo (Euphractus sexcintus) in translocating cultural materials. Our results suggest that: (1) the vertical movement of artifacts has no preferential direction; (2) cultural horizons at least 20 cm apart can be mixed; (3) the animal's activity leaves some distinct traces that can be recognized during an excavation; and (4) there is no significant correlation between size, shape, or weight of artifacts and amount of displacement. ᭧