Integrative analysis of DNA, macroscopic remains and stable isotopes of dog coprolites to reconstruct community diet.

Paleofeces or coprolites are often used to reconstruct diet at archaeological sites, usually using macroscopic analyses or targeted DNA amplification and sequencing. Here we present an integrative analysis of dog coprolites, combining macroscopic analyses, stable isotope measurements, and DNA shotgun sequencing to examine diet and health status. Dog coprolites used in this study were recovered from the Janey B. Goode and East Saint Louis archaeological sites, both of which are located in the American Bottom, an extensive Mississippi River floodplain in Southwestern Illinois. Based on the context of recovery, coprolites are assigned to the Late Woodland and Terminal Late Woodland periods (ca. 600-1050 AD). Given the scarcity of human remains from this time period, these dog coprolites can be useful as a proxy for understanding human diet during the Late Woodland period. We find that the Late Woodland dogs consumed a variety of fish as well as bird and plant taxa, possibly including maize, and also harbored intestinal parasites and pathogenic bacteria. By sequencing the fecal microbiome of the coprolites, we find some similarities to modern dog microbiomes, as well as specific taxa that can be used to discriminate between modern and ancient microbiomes, excluding soil contaminants. As dogs are often used as a surrogate to assess human diet, humans living with these dogs likely had a similar diet and were affected by similar parasites. These analyses, when integrated, show a more comprehensive view of ancient dog and human diet and health in the region during the initial expansion of maize agriculture than any individual method could alone.

New dental and isotope evidence of biological distance and place of origin for mass burial groups at Cahokia's mound 72.

OBJECTIVES: Mound 72 at Cahokia figures prominently into interpretations of early Mississippian sociopolitical development. A previous study utilizing dental morphology concluded that the groups of mostly young adult females interred in four mass graves in Mound 72 were likely not from Cahokia and possibly reflect sacrificial offerings from outside communities. The purpose of this study is to reevaluate these findings using multiple indicators of biological relatedness and place of origin/migration. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Biological relatedness in Mound 72 was examined using dental metrics and morphology. Four additional archaeological samples from nearby sites were included to better assess biological variation within Mound 72. Strontium isotope analysis (87 Sr/86 Sr) was also conducted on individuals from several burial features in Mound 72 to determine heterogeneity in place of origin. RESULTS: Biodistance studies indicate that individuals in the four mass graves are phenotypically similar to other groups in the region, whereas F229-lower, a burial group with an aberrant mortuary context, is phenotypically distinct. Strontium isotope analyses show that mean Sr signatures for each feature investigated fall within the established local range for Cahokia. However, the range of Sr ratios for individuals in F229-lower is very narrow, suggesting they reflect a single population from a limited geologic region. DISCUSSION: Collectively, these results question the long-standing idea that individuals in the four mass graves were non-local to Cahokia and suggest that F229-lower contained a biologically dissimilar group that either came from an outside region with a similar Sr signature to Cahokia, or represent a distinct and restricted group from the region. Am J Phys Anthropol 158:341-357, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.