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Some aspects of the palaeoecology of commensals
Author(s) -
Somerville Elizabeth M.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
journal of quaternary science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.142
H-Index - 94
eISSN - 1099-1417
pISSN - 0267-8179
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1417(199910)14:6<605::aid-jqs494>3.0.co;2-b
Subject(s) - commensalism , paleoecology , context (archaeology) , ecology , human settlement , indigenous , taphonomy , habitat , biology , geography , zoology , archaeology , paleontology , bacteria
As well as the economically important mammals, many other vertebrate species live in and around human settlements. Some of these commensals (e.g. Mus domesticus , Passer domesticus ) have a long history of association with people. The zooarchaeological record is sparse because systematic sieving is required to retrieve the bones of such small species. However, it is also possible to investigate this aspect of the palaeoecology of human settlement by using studies of the behavioural ecology of modern species. The relationship between people and their commensals, both indigenous and invading, is places in the overall context of landscape change in Britain.