Articles & Book Chapters by Irvy Quitmyer
Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2019
Multiple-proxy seasonality studies, in combination with stratigraphic
reconstructions, provide da... more Multiple-proxy seasonality studies, in combination with stratigraphic
reconstructions, provide data critical to understanding how Late
Archaic residents of the Georgia Bight created shell middens.
Deposited as large circular rings, these middens in part contain
fishes caught year-round, clams and oysters harvested seasonally,
and tree nuts gathered in the fall and potentially consumed during
other portions of the year. These findings highlight the benefit of
applying multiple-proxy seasonality indicators, in conjunction with
detailed stratigraphic analyses, to better understand formational histories
of shell middens not only in the Georgia Bight, but on coastlines
globally. Our multiple-proxy seasonality data also provides a
more refined view of Late Archaic occupations of the Georgia Bight
as it suggests communities adopted a complex settlement strategy in
which populations were dispersed for part of the year, including in
small villages, some of which were then used for large-scale gatherings
that aggregated populations during the winter and perhaps fall months
Papers by Irvy Quitmyer
The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2019
Abstract Multiple-proxy seasonality studies, in combination with stratigraphic reconstructions, p... more Abstract Multiple-proxy seasonality studies, in combination with stratigraphic reconstructions, provide data critical to understanding how Late Archaic residents of the Georgia Bight created shell middens. Deposited as large circular rings, these middens in part contain fishes caught year-round, clams and oysters harvested seasonally, and tree nuts gathered in the fall and potentially consumed during other portions of the year. These findings highlight the benefit of applying multiple-proxy seasonality indicators, in conjunction with detailed stratigraphic analyses, to better understand formational histories of shell middens not only in the Georgia Bight, but on coastlines globally. Our multiple-proxy seasonality data also provides a more refined view of Late Archaic occupations of the Georgia Bight as it suggests communities adopted a complex settlement strategy in which populations were dispersed for part of the year, including in small villages, some of which were then used for large-scale gatherings that aggregated populations during the winter and perhaps fall months.
Chapter 8. Validation of annual shell increments and shifting population dynamics in modern and z... more Chapter 8. Validation of annual shell increments and shifting population dynamics in modern and zooarchaeological hard clams (Mercenaria mercenaria)
Titanis walleri, one of the largest and possibly the last surviving member of the otherwise South... more Titanis walleri, one of the largest and possibly the last surviving member of the otherwise South American Phorusrhacidae is reconsidered in light of all available data. The only verified phorusrhacid recovered in North America, Titanis was believed to exhibit a forward-extending arm with a flexible claw instead of a traditional bird wing like the other members of this extinct group. Our review of the already described and undescribed Titanis material housed at the Florida Museum of Natural History suggest that Titanis: (1) was like other phorusrhacids in sporting small, ineffectual ratite-like wings; (2) was among the tallest of the known phorusrhacids; and (3) is the last known member of its lineage. Hypotheses of its range extending into the Pleistocene of Texa s are challenged, and herein Titanis is presumed to have suffered the same fate of many other Pliocene migrants of the Great American Interchange: extinction prior to the Pleistocene.
International Journal of Osteoarchaeology
Abstract In this contribution, we present a methodological approach to the identification of pre-... more Abstract In this contribution, we present a methodological approach to the identification of pre- Columbian Caribbean fisheries and examine the interrelationships of exploitation according to size for eight fish families, in a diachronic perspective for the Lesser Antilles. Based on the principles of size and growth allometries, biometric repositories have been reconstructed for modern families that represent different ecological environments: Holocentridae, Serranidae, Carangidae, Lutjanidae, Haemulidae, Scaridae, Acanthuridae, and Scombridae. The measured fish bone elements were selected based on their robustness and potential for recovery at archaeological sites. This resulted in a sample size totaling 563 modern osteological specimens, which provided reconstructed standard, fork, total lengths (SL, FL, TL), and body mass (BM) of fish. The calculations were based on 21,437 measurements and 5,889 log-linear and exponential equations. These formed the comparative baseline for the archaeoichthyofaunal bone samples. The zooarchaeological ichthyofauna studied by the authors derive from 142 assemblages and 11 major islands following the eastern and western arcs of the Lesser Antilles: Saint-Martin, Barbuda, Antigua (including Long Island), Guadeloupe (Grande-Terre, Basse- Terre, Les Saintes, Islets from Cul-de-Sac-Marin, la Désirade, Petite Terre, Marie-Galante), and Martinique. Previous zooarchaeological analyses by the same authors identified 1,050,649 specimens of which 397,803 were fish. Among them the skeletal remains of Holocentridae, Serranidae, Carangidae, Lutjanidae, Haemulidae, Scaridae, Acanthuridae, and Scombridae bones were measured, and biometric constants were applied. During the pre-Columbian period in the Caribbean, the length distribution curves possibly represent anthropogenic selections that follow statistical normal, Poisson or bimodal distributions. Coral reef fish became increasingly important in subsistence, but fish sizes from all ecosystems decreased over time. From the estimates of zooarchaeological fish size and the ethnoarchaeological, historical, ethnographical and biological sources, it was possible to infer the various strategies and equipment used by the Amerindian fishermen. It is likely that the same triad of practices (hooks/lines, nets, and traps) survived the passage of time and emerged to be among the most popular fishing techniques used by modern fishermen in the Lesser Antilles.
Journal of Ethnobiology, 2016
PALAIOS, 1996
ABSTRACT Most bivalve shells contain macroscopic growth-increment patterns which form with an ann... more ABSTRACT Most bivalve shells contain macroscopic growth-increment patterns which form with an annual periodicity. These are best observed in radial shell cross-sections and consist of alternating dark (translucent in transmitted light) and light (opaque in transmitted light) increments. A couplet of dark and light increments constitutes one year's shell growth and subdivides the continuous shell growth record into successive, annual components. Conventional wisdom suggests that dark increments represent slow shelf growth associated with cold winter temperatures. Such a pattern characterizes shells of the much-studied hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria, from coastal New England. Investigations of other species indicate, however, that not all dark increments form in response to cold temperatures. Yearly cycles in oxygen isotopic data from fossil and modern bivalves demonstrate considerable variability in the season of growth increment formation Isotopic data suggest Jurassic Gryphaea arcuata from Great Britain formed dark increments during the warmest season, as do many other bivalves. In fact, oxygen isotope profiles across the shells of modern and fossil Mercenaria spp. from the U.S. east coast and the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plains indicate that in northern latitudes the dark increment typically forms during the winter season whereas in lower latitudes it forms during the summer to early fall. A transition zone occurs in the Middle Atlantic region where aspects of both patterns are observed. Water temperature extremes (high or low) appear to be the primary factor controlling the timing of dark (translucent) increment formation. Because of this dichotomy in the season of growth-increment formation high-resolution, isotopic sampling is invaluable when interpreting shell records in sclerochronological contexts, particularly for fossil bivalves.
Anthropological papers of the American Museum of Natural History
Anthropological papers of the American Museum of Natural History
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Articles & Book Chapters by Irvy Quitmyer
reconstructions, provide data critical to understanding how Late
Archaic residents of the Georgia Bight created shell middens.
Deposited as large circular rings, these middens in part contain
fishes caught year-round, clams and oysters harvested seasonally,
and tree nuts gathered in the fall and potentially consumed during
other portions of the year. These findings highlight the benefit of
applying multiple-proxy seasonality indicators, in conjunction with
detailed stratigraphic analyses, to better understand formational histories
of shell middens not only in the Georgia Bight, but on coastlines
globally. Our multiple-proxy seasonality data also provides a
more refined view of Late Archaic occupations of the Georgia Bight
as it suggests communities adopted a complex settlement strategy in
which populations were dispersed for part of the year, including in
small villages, some of which were then used for large-scale gatherings
that aggregated populations during the winter and perhaps fall months
Papers by Irvy Quitmyer
reconstructions, provide data critical to understanding how Late
Archaic residents of the Georgia Bight created shell middens.
Deposited as large circular rings, these middens in part contain
fishes caught year-round, clams and oysters harvested seasonally,
and tree nuts gathered in the fall and potentially consumed during
other portions of the year. These findings highlight the benefit of
applying multiple-proxy seasonality indicators, in conjunction with
detailed stratigraphic analyses, to better understand formational histories
of shell middens not only in the Georgia Bight, but on coastlines
globally. Our multiple-proxy seasonality data also provides a
more refined view of Late Archaic occupations of the Georgia Bight
as it suggests communities adopted a complex settlement strategy in
which populations were dispersed for part of the year, including in
small villages, some of which were then used for large-scale gatherings
that aggregated populations during the winter and perhaps fall months