Papers by Virginia Butler
This study reports ancient DNA (aDNA) and stable isotope analyses of eight dog skeletal elements ... more This study reports ancient DNA (aDNA) and stable isotope analyses of eight dog skeletal elements from
the Cathlapotle site on the Lower Columbia River of the western United States. The aDNA analysis
confirmed the elements as dogs (Canis lupus familiaris). Two haplotypes were found, both of which group
within dog Clade A, and have patchy distributions to the north in British Columbia and as far south as
Teotihuacan (Mexico). The isotopic analysis showed that the dogs' dietary protein was derived almost
exclusively from marine sources. Lower Columbia River ethnohistoric accounts and Cathlapotle
zooarchaeological records indicate that while marine fish were dietary keystones, the local diet was more
diverse, and included terrestrial organisms and freshwater fishes. This apparent discrepancy raises the
possibility the dogs were selectively fed. Thus their diet may not be a close proxy for human diet in this
context.
Within the Upper Klamath Basin, Oregon, the native status of anadromous salmonids (Oncorhynchus s... more Within the Upper Klamath Basin, Oregon, the native status of anadromous salmonids (Oncorhynchus spp.) has been a long standing question. Ongoing efforts to establish if these fish were native to the region prior to the construction of the Copco I Dam on the Klamath River (c.1917) have relied on sparse, contradictory and sometimes unreliable historic documentation and informant testimony. Current restoration projects with very high financial and social costs necessitate accurate and reliable data on salmonid species which once called the region home. Often, archaeolofaunal remains present a novel way to determine species present in an area prior to major habitat losses. This project analyzed fish remains from five previously excavated archaeological sites within the Upper Klamath Basin to determine which salmonid species were present prior to dam construction.
Prehistory and human ecology in eastern Polynesia: excavations at Tangatatau Rockshelter, Mangaia, Cook Islands
Archaeology in Oceania, Jan 1, 1995
Page 1. Archaeol. Oceania 30 (1995) 47-65 Prehistory and human ecology in Eastern Polynesia: Exca... more Page 1. Archaeol. Oceania 30 (1995) 47-65 Prehistory and human ecology in Eastern Polynesia: Excavations at Tangatatau Rocksheiter, Mangaia, Cook Islands PATRICK V KIRCH, DAVID W. STEADMAN, VIRGINIA L BUTLER, JON HATHER, and MARSHALL I. WEISLER ...
In North America's Pacific Northwest, archaeologists have extensively researched coastal fish wei... more In North America's Pacific Northwest, archaeologists have extensively researched coastal fish weirs-one of several types of mass fish capture technologies used by precontact peoples-and their role in the development of delayed return economies and implications for social organization. Fish weirs, however, are typically situated in areas that are susceptible to a range of geomorphic and anthropogenic factors that affect their preservation and visibility. Given the importance of these capture facilities to understanding the histories of coastal peoples, a better understanding of these factors, and how they affect the archaeological record, is needed. Using the recently augmented coastal fish weir record in Washington State as a case study, we explore these factors by compiling an expanded database of 22 sites and 36 radiocarbon dates and systematically consider how coastal geomorphological processes operating along the Northwest Coast affect the age and distribution of fish weirs. Through this analysis, we argue that regional patterns in
Journal of Archaeological Science, 1993
Journal of Archaeological Science, 1994
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2011
Seeking Balance in “Human Impacts” Research. Comment on Julio Baisre's “Setting a Baseline for Caribbean Fisheries”
The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2010
... “Long-term effects of human predation on marine ecosystems in Guerrero, Mexico”. In Human Imp... more ... “Long-term effects of human predation on marine ecosystems in Guerrero, Mexico”. In Human Impacts on Ancient Marine Ecosystems: A Global Perspective, Edited by: Rick, TC and Erlandson, J. M. 103–124. Berkeley: University of California Press. 9. Lyman, RL 1996. ...
Quaternary Research, 2004
A large assemblage of salmon bones excavated 50 yr ago from an f10,000-yr-old archaeological site... more A large assemblage of salmon bones excavated 50 yr ago from an f10,000-yr-old archaeological site near The Dalles, Oregon, USA, has been the primary evidence that early native people along the Columbia River subsisted on salmon. Recent debate about the human role in creating the deposit prompted excavation of additional deposits and analysis of archaeologic, geologic, and hydrologic conditions at the site. Results indicate an anthropogenic source for most of the salmonid remains, which have associated radiocarbon dates indicating that the site was occupied as long ago as 9300 cal yr B.P. The abundance of salmon bone indicates that salmon was a major food item and suggests that migratory salmonids had well-established spawning populations in some parts of the Columbia Basin by 9300 -8200 yr ago.
Debates about the importance of marsh resources to prehistoric hwnan subsistence in the western G... more Debates about the importance of marsh resources to prehistoric hwnan subsistence in the western Great Basin are longstanding. Recent questions regarding the natural vs.cultural origin offISh remains in lakeside archaeological sitesjllrther impede understanding of ancient subsistence patterns. Taphonamic study of a huge assemblage of tui chub (Gila bicolor) remains from an archaeological site in Stillwater Marsh, western Nevada, was undertaken to identify agents of depasition in marsh settings. The Stillwater fISh remains showed limited surface modification-cut marks, burning, and digestive etching and staining-and thus these attributes were not usejill indicators of origin. Fish mortality profiles, reconstructed by regression analysis of body size, indicates cultural selection of young/small fish rather than natural catastrophic mass death. The low survivorship of vertebrae in the chub assemblage suggests differential treatment of cranial and postcranial body part' by cultural agents. The Stillwater site fish assemblage represents a vast number of small fISh; the presence of small tui chub from archoeological sites throughout the western Great Basin suggests that prehistoric fishers targeted relatively small chub in the subsistence quest.
The mammal and fish faunal record from eight sites on the Columbia River (Oregon, USA) dating to ... more The mammal and fish faunal record from eight sites on the Columbia River (Oregon, USA) dating to the last 2200 years is examined to study subsistence change before and after European contact. Results show an increased use of low-ronked resources before contact and increased use of high-ranked resources after contact, trends that are predicted from changing demography and human predation pressure.
Conservation Genetics, 2008
The sea otter has experienced a dramatic population decline caused by intense human harvesting, f... more The sea otter has experienced a dramatic population decline caused by intense human harvesting, followed by a century of recovery including relocation efforts to reestablish the species across its former range in the eastern Pacific. Although the otter was historically present along the coast in Oregon, there are currently no populations in this region and reintroduction efforts have failed. We examined the mtDNA genotypes of 16 pre-harvest otter samples from two Oregon locations in an attempt to determine the best genotypic match with extant populations. Our amplifications of a 222 base-pair portion of the control region from otters ranging in age from approximately 175-2000 years revealed four genotypes. The genotypic composition of pre-harvest otter populations appears to match best with those of contemporary populations from California and not from Alaska, where reintroduction stocks are typically derived.
Moore, M., D. Wolf, V.L. Butler (2012). Bones and zooarchaeology: students use inquiry science to help solve the mystery of the bones. Science and Children. April/May: 40-45.
Miller, J.A., V.L. Butler, C. A. Simenstad, D.H. Backus, A. Kent (2011). Comparison of life history variation in post- and pre-development populations of Columbia River Chinook Salmon and ~500-yr-old archaeological otoliths. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 68:603-617.
Campbell, S.K. and V.L. Butler (2010). Archaeological evidence for resilience of Pacific Northwest salmon populations and the socioecological system over the last ~7500 years. Ecology and Society 15(1):17.[online] URL: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol15/iss1/art/
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Papers by Virginia Butler
the Cathlapotle site on the Lower Columbia River of the western United States. The aDNA analysis
confirmed the elements as dogs (Canis lupus familiaris). Two haplotypes were found, both of which group
within dog Clade A, and have patchy distributions to the north in British Columbia and as far south as
Teotihuacan (Mexico). The isotopic analysis showed that the dogs' dietary protein was derived almost
exclusively from marine sources. Lower Columbia River ethnohistoric accounts and Cathlapotle
zooarchaeological records indicate that while marine fish were dietary keystones, the local diet was more
diverse, and included terrestrial organisms and freshwater fishes. This apparent discrepancy raises the
possibility the dogs were selectively fed. Thus their diet may not be a close proxy for human diet in this
context.