This document summarizes subsistence strategies at an archaeological site from plant and animal remains. It finds evidence that the inhabitants hunted white-tailed deer, elk, black bear, and other game. They also gathered maize, beans, squash, berries and nuts. Bone tools and ornaments were manufactured, including fish hooks, awls, beads and pendants. Butchery marks on bones indicate meat and hide removal. Plant and animal proportions provide insights into the inhabitants' diet.

1. Subsistence Strategies at
36CU194
Brenda L. Weller, M.A.
McCormick, Taylor Inc.
Harrisburg, PA

2. Lemoyne Borough Memorial Park Site, 36CU194

5. Eastern Elliptio sp. Shell With Attached
Periostracum (not excavated specimen)

6. Meat Sources
White-tail Deer Elk Black Bear Gray Fox Dog/Canid sp. Rabbit Beaver
Muskrat Raccoon Squirrel Bald Eagle Corvus sp. Ring-necked Duck Ruffed Grouse
Turkey Box Turtle Snapping Turtle Eastern Elliptio Long-nose Gar White Catfish
American Shad Brown Bullhead American Eel Short-head Redhorse Redbreast Sunfish
Walleye Pumpkinseed Sunfish White Sucker Northern Hogsucker Shiner Chain Pickerel
Central Stoneroller Fallfish Northern Kingfish Margined Madtom River Chub

7. Plant Sources
Maize Beans Gourds Sunflower Grapes
Strawberries Elderberries Raspberries Hawthorn Berries Goosefoot Knotweed
Pigweed Walnuts Butternuts Acorns Hickory Nuts

8. Proportion of Maize and Other Botanicals in Assemblage
Bean
Gourd
Maize
Sunflower
Acorn
Black Walnut
Butternut
Hickory
Walnut sp.
Oak
Walnut
Pigweed
Goosefoot
Knotweed
Sumac
Brambles
Raspberry
Elderberry
Grape

9. Identified Species and MNI
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
White-Tailed Deer
Elk
Black Bear
Domestic Dog
Beaver
Gray Fox
Rabbit
Raccoon
Gray Squirrel
Muskrat
Bald Eagle
Raven
Ring-necked Duck
Ruffed Grouse
Turkey
Falconiformes sp.
Passeriformes sp.
Box Turtle
Snapping Turtle
Eastern Painted Turtle
Black Racer
Rattlesnake
Water Snake

10. Disarticulation Cuts Upper-Lower Forelimb Joint
Deer Deer Radii
Humerus Proximal
Distal End Ends
Deer Elk
Ulna Radius
Proximal Proximal
End End

11. Skinning Cuts Lower Hindlimb-Foot Joint
Deer Deer
Tibia Tarsals
Distal
End
Elk
Elk Astragalus
Tibiae
Distal
Ends

12. Tendon Removal Cuts
Left: Elk Metatarsal (showing cut on
lateral surface adjacent to tendinal
groove near proximal end)
Below: Deer Metatarsal (showing
cuts across tendinal groove near
distal end)

13. Meat Removal Cuts
Left: Deer Humerus (showing cut
on shaft)
Below: Deer Tibia (showing cut on
shaft)

14. Deer Cranial Cut Marks
Left: Mandible (showing
cuts on lingual surface)
Below: Crania (showing
cut across parietal-
temporal suture)

15. Vertebral Cut Marks
Deer Cervical Vertebra Deer Thoracic
(dorsal [top] surface) Vertebra (spinous
process)
Deer Lumbar Vertebra Elk Thoracic Vertebra
(lateral [side] surface) (spinous process)

16. Cut Marks Related to Gutting
Deer
Pelvis
(cut on
medial
surface)
Elk
Pelvis
(cuts on
ventral
surface)
Deer Sacrum (showing cut on ventral
[bottom] surface)

17. Bear Elements with Butchery Marks
Canine Tooth (showing parallel Radius (showing cut marks
cuts on root) near distal end)
Femur
(showing
Humerus multiple
(showing cut marks
cut marks near
near distal proximal
end) end)

18. Butchered Dog Femur

19. Left: Bald Eagle Humerus (showing
cut marks on shaft)
Below: Snapping Turtle Humerus
(showing cut marks at proximal
end)

20. Skeletal Representation by Minimum Number of Elements (MNE)
and %Expected Number of Elements
Species Crania Vertebra Shoulder Upper Lower Carpal Pelvis Upper Lower Tarsal/ Phalanges
Forelimb Forelimb / Meta- Hindlimb Hindlimb Meta- (toes)
carpal tarsal
Deer 13 26 12 14 20 34 7 5 6 29 80
(jaw 5% 54% 63% 45% 22% 31% 23% 27% 22% 30%
bone)
59%
Elk 2 17 5 6 8 8 3 3 6 21 14
50% 9% 62% 75% 50% 14% 37% 37% 75% 24% 14%
Bear 1 2 - 2 1 - 1 2 1 6 10
50% 2% 50% 12.5% 16% 50% 12.5% 10% 16%
Canis - - - - 1 2 - 1 - 1 7
sp. 25% 8% 50% 4% 11%
(incl.
dog and
indet.
Canid)

21. % Minimum Animal Units (MAU) compared to Food Utility Indices (FUI)
%MAU
1.2
1
0.8
%MAU
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
FUI

22. Bone Ornaments
Burned Bead (med. or large Bead Flake (med. or large bird
mammal limb-bone) limb-bone
Unfinished Bead Flake
Elk Maxillary Canine Pendants (indeterminate taxon)

23. Bead and Production Waste
(Bear Metapodial)

24. Bone Tools
Fish Hook Blanks and Awls
Finished Hook
Awl or Needle made from Left: Possible Antler Flaking Tool
Raccoon Fibula Right: Unmodified Tine

25. Illustration of Hook Manufacture (Parker
1975)

28. Antler Flaking Tools
Left: Flaking Tool; Right: Unmodified Tine
Antler Flaking Tools (grouped in lower left
of image) from Kent 1993:Fig. 33

29. Examples of Carnivore Gnawed Elements
Deer Humerus (tooth pitting evident
at right)
Deer
Humerus
(pitting
and some
scooping
at distal
end)
Elk Radius and Ulna (intensive scooping
and polished crenulated edges at fused
distal ends)

30. Age Calculations for Represented Deer
(based on tooth eruption and wear)
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
MNI
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1 year 1.5 years 2 to 2.5 2 years 2.5 to 3 5 to 5.5 5.5 to 6 6 to 6.5
years years years years years
Age Range

31. Shell Concentrations in Feature 152 and Feature 3

32. Shell Ornaments
Discoidal Shell Beads
Shell Pendant Fragment
Tubular Shell Beads

33. Shell Tools

34. Shell Tool from Sheep Rock Shelter (36HU1)

37. Re-Created Iroquois Village Scene (source: www.shenet.org)