International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, Vol.

7: 287291 (1997)

A Humerus Story: Albatross Element

Distribution from Two Northwest Coast
Sites, North America
SUSAN CROCKFORD1,{, GAY FREDERICK2 AND REBECCA WIGEN1
1PacificIdentifications, University of Victoria, Victoria , BC, Canada; and 2Malaspina
University-College, Canada

ABSTRACT The distribution of the skeletal elements of albatross from the Maple Bank site is compared
with those for ducks and gulls at that site and others on the northwest coast of America. The
element distribution was very different between species and between sites. The proportions of
albatross bones found suggest that there was a cultural reason for the elements present,
probably the curation of wing bones for toolmaking and other uses. # 1997 by John Wiley &
Sons, Ltd.

Int. J. Osteoarchaeol., 7: 287291 (1997)

No. of Figures: 2. No. of Tables: 4. No. of References: 4.

Key words: bird bones; Albatross Diomedia albatrus; bone tools; America; Northwest Coast;
Ethnography.

Introduction trowels and from 1/4 in. dry screens.

Skeletal remains in archaeological sites along the
northwest coast of North America from the
Aleutian Islands to northern California demon-
strate the extent of early human predation on the
now rare short-tailed albatross (Diomeda albatrus).
This paper examines the distribution of albatross
elements at the Maple Bank site, with compar-
isons with the Yuquot and Hoko River
Rockshelter sites.
The 3000-year-old Maple Bank Site (DcRu 12)
in Victoria on the south end of Vancouver
Island, British Columbia, is a large shell midden,
with 2-m-deep cultural deposits stretching for
several hundred metres along the marine shore-
line of Esquimalt harbour. In the early 1970s an
excavated sample of cultural material (represent-
ing less than 1 per cent of the estimated
deposits) was recovered from the site. Faunal
materials were recovered both in situ using
{Correspondence to: S. Crockford, Pacic Identications, 6011
Oldeld Rd., Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8X 3X1.
Contract grant sponsor: Royal British Columbia Museum
CCC 1047482X/97/04028705$17.50
# 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Preservation of bone is excellent.
Two stratigraphic zones are present at the
Maple Bank site, marked by varying quantities of
broken marine mollusc shell. The earlier zone is
tenatively identied as Marpole Culture Type
(2800 years BP to 1500 BP), the later, more
shelly, zone as Developed Coast Salish (post-
1500 years BP) with a period of site abandon-
ment between the two. The site was not
occupied at European contact.
A sample of over 7000 bird bones was
recovered. Although interpretations are preli-
minary, some interesting patterns are apparent in
the bird assemblage. At least 60 species of birds
are represented, indicating extensive use of a rich
avian fauna avilable to the site inhabitants.
Comparison of skeletal elements
Among the less common species represented is
the short-tailed albatross. This taxa forms a
distinctive portion of the sample, being repre-
sented by an array of skeletal elements different
Received 1 October 1995
Accepted 31 January 1997
288
from that of more common taxa. To explore
these differences we compared the skeletal
element distribution pattern of albatross with a
probable food resource, the ducks (Anatinae)
and a probable source of food and feathers, the
gulls (Laridae). Based on ethnographic informa-
tion regarding use, we expected the albatross
pattern of skeletal element distribution to more
closely approximate to that of gull than to that
of duck. The sample of gull, duck and albatross
totals 3179 elements.
The skeletal element distribution patterns
exhibited by these three taxa in the Maple
Bank site are shown in Table 1. Both axial and
leg elements are strongly underrepresented for
all, although gulls and ducks have slightly higher
percentages of leg elements than albatross. In
each, wing elements make up over 80 per cent of
the specimens identied, but for albatross fully
95 per cent of the sample is wing elements.
The composition of the wing element sample
for each taxa reveals some interesting differ-
ences. Although the relative proportions of distal
wing elements (carpometacarpus and phalanges)
to proximal wing elements (humerus, radius and
ulna) are very similar for ducks and gulls, the
albatross pattern is different. For albatross, distal
wing elements represent 74 per cent, with
carpometacarpi and phalanges each contributing
about half the sample.
To check if this pattern might be produced by
differential survivorship of albatross wing pha-
langes, we compared the Maple Bank sample
with the duck, gull and albatross sample from the
Yuquot site. Yuquot is a shell midden of
comparable age on the West coast of
Vancouver Island, British Columbia, with a large
Table 1. Frequency (per cent) of skeletal element groups for
Maple Bank ducks, gulls and albatrosses.
Body part Duck spp. Gull spp. Albatross
Skull 1 1
Wing (distal) 38 39
Wing 46 44
(proximal)
Axial 1 2
Sternal 7 5
Leg 7 9
NISP 1694 1349
INT. J. OSTEOARCHAEOL., Vol. 7: 287291 (1997)
S. Crockford, G. Frederick and R. Wigen
albatross sample.1 Recovery methods at Yuquot
were comparable with those at Maple Bank:
excavation by trowel and dry screening through
1/4 in. mesh. A completely different pattern of
skeletal element distribution is observed at this
site. In the Yuquot Zone III sample (1150150
years BP), the 823 albatross specimens make up
fully 40 per cent of the total bird faunal sample
by number of identied specimens (NISP) (Table
2). Thirty per cent of the albatross elements are
axial skeleton, 32 per cent leg, and only 16 per
cent wing, with 7 per cent distal wing. The
pattern of the 382 albatross elements from
Yuquot Zone II (29501150 years BP) is different
again. Yuquot ducks and gulls exhibit a pattern
similar to each other but distinct from that of
albatross (Table 2). They are represented by
only a few axial elements, 22 per cent and 13 per
cent leg elements respectively, 21 per cent and
36 per cent sternal elements and 50 per cent and
53 per cent wing elements, with 33 per cent and
36 per cent of those being proximal wing.
To further explore these patterns we looked at
what was not in the Maple Bank sample, rather
than what was there. Given the minimum
number of individuals (MNI) represented by
the wing skeletal elements (Table 3), we
compared the number of `expected' carpometa-
carpi, humeri, phalanges, radii and ulnae for
those numbers of individuals, with the actual
number of each element observed in the sample
(Figure 1). The patterns were revealing.
In all three taxa, but especially albatross, the
rst or second most frequently occurring ele-
ment is the carpometacarpus. The humerus is
well below expected frequency. Albatross humeri
and ulnae are the most underrepresented, but for
Table 2. Frequency (per cent) of skeletal element groups for
Yuquot ducks, gulls and albatrosses. Freqency for
albatrosses is shown separately for Yuquot II and III.
Albatross Albatross
Body part Duck spp. Gull spp. (III) (II)
2 Skull 1 1 4 0
74 Axial 6 2 30 3
22 Wing (distal) 17 17 7 32
Wing (proximal) 33 36 9 15
0 Sternal 21 30 16 3
3 Leg (distal) 2 6 22 36
0 Leg (proximal) 20 7 10 12
117 NISP 126 269 823 382
# 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Albatross Element Distribution 289
Table 3. Occurrence of wing elements for Maple Bank birds.
Albatross Duck Gull

Carpometacarpus 32 425 318

Humerus 2 51 80
Phalanges 54 215 211
Radius 13 302 176
Ulna 11 426 338
Total 112 1419 1123

ducks and gulls, humeri and phalanges are the

most underrepresented. Despite the high relative
frequency of albatross wing phalanges in the
Maple Bank site, what is really happening is that
other elements, especially humeri, are under-
represented.
We also compared these expected patterns at
Maple Bank with similarly calculated expected
patterns for ducks, gulls and albatross at the
Yuquot Site, and for ducks at a third site, the
Hoko River Rock Shelter (800200 years BP) on
the Olympic Peninsula of the west coast of
North America2 (Table 4). Recovery methods at
this site were the same as at Maple Bank and
Yuquot. The comparisons are shown in Figure 2.
It is only at Maple Bank that humeri are so
dramatically under-represented with albatross
humeri less than 10% of the expected numbers.
It becomes necessary to consider the possible
explanations of these differing site patterns.

Discussion
Given the similar recovery techniques, environ-
mental settings, age and composition of the
midden deposits at both Maple Bank and
Yuquot, taphonomic factors affecting differential
bone survivorship are unlikely to be responsible Figure 1. Occurrence of wing elements of Maple Bank birds
for the differing skeletal element distribution relative to number expected. The expected count is the
patterns of albatross bones at the sites. The high number of elements predicted, assuming whole animals were
present, based on the frequency of the most commonly
proportion of wing bones at the Maple Bank site, occurring wing element.
especially phalanges, appears to be a cultural
pattern.
According to the summary of ethnographic
information by DePuydt3 birds were used on the drinking tubes, whistles, awls and small bone
northwest coast as food, feather and down points that armed composite sh hooks. The
sources, sources of bone for tool use and in long straight bones of gulls and albatross were
charms and medicines. Bird long bones, espe- favoured for these purposes. Birds were com-
cially those of the wing, were used to make monly eaten fresh, rather than processed and
# 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. INT. J. OSTEOARCHAEOL., Vol. 7: 287291 (1997)
290 S. Crockford, G. Frederick and R. Wigen
Table 4. Occurrence of wing elements for Yuquot and Hoko
birds.
Yuquot II Yuquot II Hoko Yuquot III
albatross duck duck gull

Carpometacarpus 17 19 37 26
Humerus 47 15 69 49
Phalanges 42 3 43 21
Radius 12 11 64 27
Ulna 13 15 39 21
Total 131 63 252 144

preserved for later use like sh and other food

resources.
Although there is little ethnographic informa-
tion specically relating to albatross, there is
some archaeological data available from the
Ozette site. This is a late prehistoric water-
logged village site located on the west coast of
Washington State with excellent preservation of
bone and other organic materials.4 At that site
some bird bone tools could be identied as to
their source; of these 68 per cent were from gull
and albatross.3 The albatross bones chosen were
the radius (seven examples), ulna (one example),
humerus (at least one example) and tibiotarsus
(one example). In addition, several complete
baskets of nished tools and manufacturing
materials, including wing bones and feathers
were found. In particular, one basket contained
79 gull wing bones and a second contained 13
gull and three albatross wing bones. This second
basket `appears to be an archaeological example
of gull and albatross bone curation for use as raw
material in sh-hook manufacture.'3
This pattern of selection of albatross wing
bones for tool manufacture may be conrmed at
Maple Bank. Albatross humeri may have been
selected for artefact manufacture at Maple Bank.
Such selective use might also account for the low
frequency of albatross ulnae, and gull and Figure 2. Occurrence of wing elements of Yuquot and Hoko
albatross radii. It does not account for the very birds relative to number expected.
low frequency of duck and gull phalanges, which
instead might result from differential recovery,
preservation and/or identication. proportions of duck, gull and, particularly,
In summary, these data suggest that the low albatross humeri at the Maple Bank site, how-
proportion of duck and gull phalanges in the ever, reect a more site-specic pattern of bird
Maple Bank site may reect a more widespread skeletal element distribution resulting from
pattern, possibly associated with element recov- cultural patterns of bone usage. The differences
ery, or general taphonomic factors common to between albatross element distributions at Maple
many sites on the northwest coast. The low Bank, Yuquot II and Yuquot III emphasize that
INT. J. OSTEOARCHAEOL., Vol. 7: 287291 (1997) # 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Albatross Element Distribution
there is not a single northwest coast pattern of
albatross use and therefore interpretations will
have to be site-based for albatross and probably
other bird species as well.
Acknowledgements
Funding for this analysis was provided by the Royal
British Columbia Museum, Canada. The Songhees
Band and the Royal British Columbia Museum jointly
carried out the excavation at Maple Bank in the
1970s.
References
1. McAllister, N.E. Avian fauna from the Yuquot
excavation. In: The Yuquot Project (Vol. 2) (edited by
W. Folan and J. Dewhirst). Parks Canada, Ottawa:
National Historic Parks and Sites Branch, History
and Archaeology, 43, 1980: 103174.
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2. Wigen, R. and Stucki, B. Taphonomy and
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Economies of the Pacic Northwest Coast (edited by B. L.
Isaac). Research in Economic Anthropology, Supplement
3, 1988: 87146.
3. DePuydt, R. T. Cultural implications of avifaunal
remains recovered from Ozette site. In: Ozette
Archaeological Project Research Reports, Vol. II: Fauna
(edited by S. R. Samuels). Reports of
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Anthropology, Washington State University,
Pullman and National Park Service, Pacic
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(edited by S. R. Samules). Reports of
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Anthropology, Washington State University,
Pullman and National Park Service, Pacic
Northwest Regional Ofce, 1994: 116.
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