Bone degradation, burial medium and species representation : Debunking the myths, an experiment-based approach
Bone degradation, burial medium and species representation : Debunking the myths, an experiment-based approach
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DOI：
10.1006/jasc.1996.0049
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发表时间：
1996-07
影响因子：
2.8
通讯作者：
R. Nicholson
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
R. Nicholson
本文研究了哺乳动物、鸟类和鱼骨标本在选定的土壤类型中埋藏7年后的成岩过程。几乎所有的软组织都消失了，但毛皮、羽毛和蹄在酸性土壤中幸存下来。检查发现，骨丢失和改建的速度不能简单地与土壤pH和/或推断的Eh有关；在地理上相邻、pH和排水相似的土壤中，骨保存存在非常不同的情况。在大小相似的动物之间，骨骼的修饰也有很大差异，鸟类的骨骼似乎特别有弹性。遗体在埋葬前的状态至关重要。虽然煮沸显然加速了成岩作用，但其他形式的烹饪似乎没有这种效果。讨论了微生物在降解过程中的作用。这表明，常规的骨定量方法可能不适合于这种成岩蚀变的组合。
Abstract This paper investigates the process of diagenesis in mammal, bird and fish bone after burial of fresh and freshly cooked specimens in selected soil types for 7 years. Almost all soft tissue had disappeared, but fur, feathers and hoof survived in acidic soil. Examination revealed that the rate of bone loss and modification could not be simply related to soil pH and/or inferred Eh; very different bone preservation occurred in geographically adjacent soils of similar pH and drainage. Bone modification also varied greatly between animals of similar size, with bird bone appearing to be particularly resilient. The state of the remains prior to burial was critically important. While boiling clearly accelerated diagenesis, other forms of cooking did not appear to have this effect. The role of micro-organisms in the degradation process is addressed. It is suggested that routine methods of bone quantification may be inappropriate for such diagenetically altered assemblages.