Steele, T. E. (2005). Comparing methods for analysing mortality profiles in zooarchaeological and palaeontological samples. Internat J Osteoarchaeol 15 (6). Vol 15(6), pp. 404-420.
 Title The title of the publication or report |
Comparing methods for analysing mortality profiles in zooarchaeological and palaeontological samples | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Issue The name of the volume or issue |
Internat J Osteoarchaeol 15 (6) | ||
Series The series the publication or report is included in |
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology | ||
Volume Volume number and part |
15 (6) | ||
Page Start/End The start and end page numbers. |
404 - 420 | ||
Biblio Note This is a Bibliographic record only. |
The ADS have no files for download on this page but further information is available online, normally as an electronic version maintained by the Publisher, or held in a larger collection such as an ADS Archive. Please refer to the DOI or URI listed in the Relations section of this record to locate the information you require. In the case of non-ADS resources, please be aware that we cannot advise further on availability. | ||
Publication Type The type of publication - report, monograph, journal article or chapter from a book |
Journal | ||
Abstract The abstract describing the content of the publication or report |
The authors examine three methods that are currently used for comparing mortality profiles from zooarchaeological and palaeontological samples: histograms with 10% of life-span age classes; boxplots showing tooth crown height medians; and triangular plots of the proportions of young, prime and old animals. The advantages and disadvantages of each method are assessed using data collected on two samples of Northern Yellowstone elk (Cervus elaphus nelsoni) with known, or cementum annuli-determined, ages at death. One sample was hunted by wolves (n = 96), and the other was hunted by recent humans using rifles (n = 226). The author tested each method with the known or cementum annuli age distributions and with age estimation techniques appropriate for archaeological assemblages. It is concluded that histograms are best used when the relationship between dental eruption/attrition and age is well established so that individuals can be confidently assigned into 10% of life-span groups, and when more than 30 or 40 individuals are present in the assemblage. Boxplots employ raw crown heights, thus removing the error introduced by assigning specimens to age classes, and therefore they allow the analysis of species where the relationship between dental eruption/attrition and age is unknown. Confidence intervals around the medians allow samples to be statistically compared. Triangular plots are easy to use and allow multiple samples and species to be considered simultaneously, but samples cannot be statistically compared. Modified triangular plots bootstrap samples to provide 95% confidence ellipses, allowing for statistical comparisons between samples. When possible, samples should be examined using multiple methods to increase confidence in the results. | ||
Year of Publication The year the book, article or report was published |
2005 | ||
Source Where the record has come from or which dataset it was orginally included in. |
BIAB
(The British & Irish Archaeological Bibliography (BIAB))
|
||
Relations Other resources which are relevant to this publication or report |
|
||
Created Date The date the record of the pubication was first entered |
04 May 2007 |
