48
Chapter 5
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Temporally discrete assemblages from six archaeological collections were selected for analysis.
These included assemblages from Middle and Late Period contexts; no Early Period assemblages met the
required research criteria. This chapter presents the methods used for faunal assemblage selection, provides
site descriptions, and introduces the quantitative analyses used in this thesis. Disparities between the faunal
assemblages and an explanation of how site catchments were determined are also included. The chapter
closes with a discussion of limitations associated with zooarchaeological research methods.
Faunal Assemblage Selection
Potential collections were first identified through background research. This included a series of
interviews with archaeologists familiar with the study area and a thorough literature review. Most of the
collections identified during background research represented legacy collections stored at CSUS and other
nearby institutions. However, because recovery, cataloguing, and storage conditions varied, the following
criteria were developed for faunal assemblage selection:

The faunal assemblage was part of a catalogued collection

Provenience and descriptive information had been recorded

Faunal remains had been recovered using ⅛ inch screens

Dated components or temporally sensitive artifacts were associated with the faunal
materials

The faunal assemblage derived from a context which did not contain human burials

Published faunal data were available either as raw counts or as numbers of identified
specimens (NISP)
49
Application of this criteria resulted in the identification of faunal assemblages from six sites in the lower
Sacramento Valley: SAC-67, SAC-133, SAC-42, SAC-267, SAC-329, and SAC-29. Previously published
data were available for five of the sites.
Even though six assemblages met selection criteria, there are minor disparities in analytical
methodology between each collection. One disparity is the treatment of freshwater mussel shell. Freshwater
Table 1. Spatio-Temporal Associations and Faunal Analysts by Site.
Site
Time
Habitat
Recovery
SAC67
Middle
Period
Freshwater
Marsh
CSUS
SAC133
Middle
Period
Grasslands
FWARG
SAC42
Middle
Period
Riparian
FWARG
SAC329
Late
Period
Freshwater
Marsh
CSUS
SAC267
Late
Period
Grasslands
CSUS
Faunal
Analysts
Emilie
Zelazo,
Deborah
Ward;
Tim
Carpenter
(fish)
Dwight
Simons;
Peter Schulz
(fish)
Dwight
Simons;
Kenneth
Gobalet
(fish)
Peter Schulz
et al.
Faunal
Data
NISP
Reference
(this thesis)
NISP
Bouey and
Waechter
1992
NISP
Milliken et
al. 1995
NISP;
MNI for
fish
NISP
Soule 1976
Stanley
Johnson
Olsen;
1976
Peter Schulz
(fish)
SACLate
Riparian
CSUS
Maggie
NISP
Craw 2002
29
Period
Craw
CSUS= California State University Sacramento (formerly Sacramento State College)
FWARG= Far Western Anthropological Group, Inc.
NISP= Number of identified specimens; MNI= minimum number of inidividuals
mussel shell from SAC-267 and SAC-329 was quantified simply as “fresh water mussel,” while that from
SAC-29 and SAC 42 was separated into species (Craw 2002:78, 87; Johnson 1976:72; Jones 1995:12.2-
50
12.4; Soule 1976: 59, 86). At SAC-133, freshwater mussel shell was considered to be exclusively from
Margaritifera falcata (Bouey and Waechter 1992:156) and no freshwater shellfish data was available for
SAC-67. Specimen attributes were also not equally recorded. Data for thermal alteration, butchering marks,
root etching, and animal gnawing were not available for all specimens. As such, freshwater mussel remains
and specimen attributes are not considered in this thesis. Other discrepancies relate to analyst expertise and
sample sizes. On the other hand, preservation was assumed to be similar between the sites given the
edaphic and environmental conformity of the study area.
Even though six assemblages met selection criteria, there are minor disparities in analytical
methodology between each collection. One disparity is the treatment of freshwater mussel shell. Freshwater
mussel shell from SAC-267 and SAC-329 was quantified simply as “fresh water mussel,” while that from
SAC-29 and SAC 42 was separated into species (Craw 2002:78, 87; Johnson 1976:72; Jones 1995:12.212.4; Soule 1976: 59, 86). At SAC-133, freshwater mussel shell was considered to be exclusively from
Margaritifera falcata (Bouey and Waechter 1992:156) and no freshwater shellfish data was available for
SAC-67. Specimen attributes were also not equally recorded. Data for thermal alteration, butchering marks,
root etching, and animal gnawing were not available for all specimens. As such, freshwater mussel remains
and specimen attributes are not considered in this thesis. Other discrepancies relate to analyst expertise and
sample sizes. On the other hand, preservation was assumed to be similar between the sites given the
edaphic and environmental conformity of the study area.
Site Descriptions
SAC-67
The Denier site, SAC-67, was a large mound located on a low knoll at the confluence of Laguna
Creek, Deadman Gulch, and the Cosumnes River near Elk Grove (Figure 5). In 1949, the mound measured
2.4 meters (8 feet) high, 15.2 meters (50 feet) in diameter, and had an elevation of 3 meters (10 feet) above
sea level (UCD 1949). Based on the paleoenvironmental recreations, at the time of indigenous occupation,
51
SAC-67 was located in a freshwater marsh habitat with easy access to the grasslands and riparian woodland
(see Figure 2).
Floral and faunal remains from SAC-67 indicate year-round occupation (Jerald Johnson, personal
communication 2006), and the burial patterns indicate an age range from the Early through the Late Period
(i.e., 3,950 to 160 B.P.). Review of the artifact catalogue reveals a prevalence of Middle and Late Period
markers, including convex-base basalt and Stockton serrated projectile points, type A, C, F, G, and M
series Olivella beads, and clamshell disk forms. The site was excavated by CSUS field schools between
Laguna Creek
SAC-67
Cosumnes
River
Deadman Gulch
Figure 5. SAC-67 Site Overview. View to northeast. (Photo on file at CSUS Curation Facility Archives).
the years of 1968 and 1982. No comprehensive analysis has yet been completed for the site and much of
the collection remains uncatalogued.
Two levels from two unit blocks were selected for faunal analysis. These were 35N/2E (50 -60
cm), 58N/28W NW quadrant (40 to 50 cm), and 58N/28W SE quadrant (40 to 50 cm). All contained
Middle Period markers, including C1 (beveled); C3 (split oval), F2b (round saddle), F3a (square saddle),
52
F3b (small saddle), G2a (small saucer), G2b (large saucer), and G4 (ground saucer) Olivella beads and a
basalt concave base projectile point (Bennyhoff and Hughes 1987:118-133; Bouey and Waechter 1992:72).
Thus, the faunal material selected for analysis from SAC-67 is believed to represent a
Figure 6. SAC-67 Site Map (adapted from map in CSUS curation facility archives).
Middle Period sample from a freshwater marsh habitat.
SAC-67 was the only sample for which primary data were collected by the author (see Appendix
B). Analysis began with the separation of the remains into identifiable and indeterminate specimens. All
specimens were identified to the lowest taxonomic level possible. Element, side, and completeness were
noted and all specimens were quantified and weighed. Anatomical age characteristics, the presence of
butchering marks, modification, and degrees of thermal alteration were also documented if present.
Specimen fragments that conjoined were counted as a single specimen. Identifications were aided by the
use of the comparative faunal collection housed at the Archaeological Research Center, CSUS, and
reference texts (e.g., Cannon 1987, Gilbert 1980; Gilbert et al. 1985; Hilson 1982). Analysis of fish remains
53
was conducted by Tim Carpenter of ArchaeoMetrics using comparative collections in his laboratory.
Specimens that could not be identified to a taxonomic level lower than class were separated by size and
placed into mammal, bird, and fish categories. Indeterminate specimens were grouped by size as
vertebrates. NISP counts were recorded for each vertebrate taxon based on totals computed for each unit
level. The results presented in this thesis constitute the first published faunal data from SAC-67.
SAC-133
SAC-133, or Aufdermaur #1, has been interpreted to be a year-round occupation site located on a
long, low knoll overlooking the floodplain between the Cosumnes River and its tributary, Deer Creek, near
the community of Sloughhouse. It is the northernmost of the study sites and has an elevation of 38 meters
(125 feet) above sea level (Noble and Offermann 1990). Construction of State Route 16 bisected the site.
The site was recorded in 1937 as a 1.2 meter (4 feet) high mound measuring 68.6 meters (225 feet) N/S by
45.7 meters (150 feet) E/W (UCD 1957); however, it is likely that the top of the mound was leveled prior to
recordation for the construction of a residence.
The SAC-133 location was surveyed several times over the years, but not excavated until 1991 when test
excavations were conducted for Caltrans by Far Western Anthropological Research Group (Hartman 2007).
A site map indicating the location of the units excavated is presented in Figure 7. Based on vegetation
reconstructions, SAC-133 would have originally been situated just outside the narrow riparian woodland
within the grasslands between the Cosumnes River and Deer Creek. Stratagraphic analysis of SAC-133
cultural remains indicated that the deposit in the southern part of the site could be separated into two
temporal components, with the lower 60 centimeters generally corresponding with the terminal Middle
Period to Middle/Late Period transition (Bouey and Waechter 1992:82-83). Radiocarbon data from this
component indicates it represents a brief occupation between 1,124 to 1,060 B.P. Obsidian hydration data
(85% Napa Valley glass) measured an average ≥ 2.1 microns, also supporting a Middle Period occupation,
as does the predominance of F3b, G1, G2b, and M1a Olivella beads (Bouey and Waechter 1992:76-77, 79,
123-127). Given these results, the fauna selected from SAC-133 were restricted to specimens recovered
from contexts below 60 centimeters in the southern component. Units represented by this assemblage
54
Figure 7. SAC-133 Site Map (adapted from Bouey and Waechter 1992:Map 4).
55
include S1/S16, S41/E19, S52/E25, S52/E26, S53/E26, S74/E19, S76/E19, and S82.5/E10.5. These data are
presented in Appendix B.
SAC-42
SAC-42, or the Souza Mound, is located on a natural levee along the eastern bank of the
Sacramento River, locally referred to as ‘the Pocket’ (Figure 8). In 1934, the mound measured 82.3 meters
(270 feet) in diameter and 4.6 meters (15 feet) in height (Peak and Associates 1984:9). The site was first
excavated by amateur collector Schultz Martine in the 1930s. Roughly 50 years later, SAC-42 was subject
to salvage excavations by Peak and Associates in 1984, with additional recovery and re-burial of human
remains in 1985. Further excavation was conducted by Far Western in 1994 (Milliken 1995). Examination
of historic vegetation maps (Figure 2) places SAC-42 in riparian woodland along the Sacramento River.
Figure 8. SAC-42 Site Map (adapted from Milliken 1995:Map 5.1).
56
Analysis of recovered artifacts and burial patterns from the 1984, 1985, and 1994 excavations indicate
SAC-42 was a large residential center and cemetery during the terminal Middle Period and a camp or
satellite habitation site during the Late Period (Milliken 1995:14.7). Radiocarbon dates obtained in 1994
from features located on the southeastern edge of the site indicate an occupation range of 2370 to 1070 B.P.
(Milliken 1995:14.1). Obsidian hydration measurements taken from the same location are from Napa
Valley glass and range from 2.4 to 2.6 microns, indicating midden formation during the terminal Middle
Period (Milliken 1995:14.5). The faunal assemblage assessed in this study derives from the 1994 data
recovery of the southeastern (Milliken 1995:12.2). However, the 1/16 inch data were excluded from the
study because comparable information was not collected for any of the other sites used in this thesis.
Figure 9. SAC-329 Site Map (adapted from Soule 1976:Map III).
57
SAC -329
SAC-329 is located on the southern bank of the Sacramento River at its junction with Georgiana
Slough near Walnut Grove (Figure 9) at an elevation of less than 1.5 meters (5 feet) (Johnson and Johnson
1974). Prior to modern alterations, SAC-329 was situated next to the confluence of the Cosumnes and
Mokelumne Rivers.
Based on its location, the site was probably occupied seasonally by the ancestors of the Junizumne Plains
Miwok; the ethnographic the east bank of the Sacramento River, less than one kilometer (1/2 mile)
northeast of SAC-329 (Bennyhoff 1977:73; Soule 1976:10). The historic vegetation map (Figure 2) places
SAC-329 within a largely freshwater marsh habitat. In 1974, at least 45 meters (150 feet) of the site was
exposed along the riverbank.
Figure 10. Overview of SAC-329 Excavation, 1975. View to the west. (Photo on file at CSUS Curation
Facility Archives).
58
Excavations were conducted by CSUS from July to August of 1975 as part of the Sacramento
River bank protection project for the Sacramento District Army Corps of Engineers (Soule 1976:1).Plains
Miwok village of Junizumne was located at or near the town of Walnut Grove on Numerous artifacts
associated with Late Period occupations were recovered from the site in 1975 (Figure 10). Projectile points
were dominated by Stockton serrated types, with a few Desert Side-Notched, Gunther barbed, Cottonwood,
and Rose Spring series also recovered (Soule 1976:32-34). Shell beads analyzed by Bennyhoff consisted
mainly of thin rectangular Olivella M1a, M2a, and M2b beads with a few round thin-lipped (E1a), and tinydisk (H series), as well as clamshell disk beads (Bennyhoff and Hughes 1987:135; Soule 1976:27-29).
Steatite disk and spool beads and a magnesite disk bead were also recovered, as were two fragments of a
bilateral harpoon point. Based on the artifactual evidence, occupation is dated to the Late Period from 1,170
to 350 B.P. (Soule 1976:61).
There are two issues concerning the site’s faunal assemblage used in this thesis. First, fish data
from SAC-329 are available only as minimum number of individual (MNI) estimates. Second, unpublished
terrestrial fauna data discovered during archival research at the CSUS curation facility was used to provide
a more robust sample than the one published by Soule in 1979 (see Appendix B).
SAC-267
SAC-267, or the Blodgett Site, is a large, year-round occupation site located on a terrace above Deer Creek,
overlooking the floodplain between Deer Creek and the Cosumnes River (Ritter 1968). Elevation is 30.5
meters (100 feet) above sea level. The site was recorded in 1968 as measuring 50 meters (165 feet) in
diameter; its original diameter and height is unknown because much of the mound had been
previously removed. An aerial photo depicting the location of SAC-267 is presented in Figure 11.
SAC-267 was excavated by UC Davis in 1969 and Sacramento State College (now CSUS) from
1969 to 1973 as part of the Folsom South Canal Project. Radiocarbon dates indicate occupation of the site
between 1,450 and 110 B.P. (Johnson 1976:90). Features excavated at the site include evidence of three
59
Deer Creek
Overflow
SAC-267
Figure 11. SAC-267 Site Overview. View to northwest. (Photo on file at CSUS Curation Facility
Archives).
structures, one of which has dimensions similar to a dance house, and two large hearths. Locations
excavated by CSUS are presented in Figure 12
Artifacts recovered from the midden portion of the site support a Late Period affiliation and
include Stockton serrated, Cottonwood Triangular, and Delta Desert Side notched projectile points,
magnesite, steatite, and clamshell disk beads, and Cosumnes Brownware. The Late Period midden is
located east of the burials and cremations (see Figure 12). Only faunal data from units within the Late
Period midden (21A Feature 7, 22A, 29B, 30J, 41A, 48A, 51A, 51C, and one unit with no designation)
were used to compile the faunal assemblage. The historic vegetation map (Figure 2) places SAC-267
60
Figure 12. SAC-267 Site Map (adapted from Johnson 1976:Map 4).
compile the faunal assemblage. The historic vegetation map (Figure 2) places SAC-267 in the grassland
habitat just outside the Cosumnes River riparian woodland corridor.
SAC-29
Site SAC-29, also known as the King-Brown or Roeder site, likely represents the Valley Nisenan
village of Sama. It is located 0.4 kilometers (0.25 mile) west of the Sacramento River and 1.2 kilometers
(0.75 mile) south-southeast of former Sutterville Lake in the Pocket area of Sacramento. As of 1954, the
mound measured 125 by 69 meters (410 feet by 225 feet) in size and was at least 3 meters (10 feet) high
(Dougherty 1990:9), although Heizer (1934) recorded it as being 24 meters (80 feet) in diameter and
61
Figure 13. SAC-29 Site Map (adapted from Craw 2002:Figure 5.1).
3.05 meters (10 feet) in height. Deposits are situated on an overbank deposit of the Sacramento River that
was essentially devoid of naturally occurring stone (Dougherty1990:12). Based on the historic vegetation
map, it is likely SAC-29 was located within the Sacramento River riparian woodland during aboriginal
occupation (see Figure 2).Academic investigations of SAC-29 were conducted in 1938 through 1940 by
Sacramento Junior College and from 1954 through 1956 by CSUS (Dougherty 1990:9-10). Additional
salvage excavations were conducted by CSUS in 1957. However, the majority of the deposit was recovered
in 1967 under contract to the State Division of Beaches and Parks (now Department of Parks and
Recreation) during the construction of Interstate 5 (Figure 13). The most recent work at the site was in
1972, when Dr. Jerald Johnson monitored the site for public utility relocations (Craw 2002:33; Dougherty
1990:10).
62
The deposit at SAC-29 is one of the richest and most diverse assemblages of cultural material and
faunal remains in the lower Sacramento Valley. It dates from the Middle Period through historic times
(Dougherty 1990:94). The faunal material utilized for this thesis represents four units excavated in 1967,
S7/W0, S7/W3, N1/W13, and N2/W10. All of these units were dated to the Late Period based on obsidian
hydration (largely Napa Valley sources, average 1.74 microns) and artifactual remains (Craw 2002,
Appendix B, Table 1). Artifacts associated with these units included clamshell disk beads and H1a (ground
disk), K1 (cupped callus), and M series (thin rectangle) Olivella beads, steatite beads, and Desert Sidenotched and Stockton serrated projectile points (Craw 2002:Appendix C).
Quantitative Analysis
Identifying changes in subsistence patterns across time and space within the lower Sacramento
Valley is the goal of this investigation. In order to achieve that goal, catchment areas were created for each
site and faunal data were subjected to quantitative analyses.
Catchment area analysis was used to illuminate changes in foraging patterns over time. Catchment
areas were based on the historic vegetation map (Figure 2) presented previously which was created using
GIS data from the 2012 San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta of the Early
1800’s map and the 1999 California State University Chico (CSUC) Historic Vegetation Base Map (Pre1900). The vegetation habitats illustrated in the SFEI map were reconstructed from multiple sources,
including historic maps, journals, newspapers articles, photographs, and art. This information was matched
with soil, hydrologic, seasonal, and topographic information before vegetation boundaries were plotted
(Whipple et al. 2012:30). The CSUC map was largely compiled from historic map sources such as United
States Geologic Survey (USGS) quadrangles, United States Forest Service maps, and Bay Institute historic
maps (CSUC 2003:7). The information was then digitized and compared in order to “create the best
available historical vegetation information for the pre-1900 period” (CSUC 2003:6). The SFEI map
includes a total of 17 vegetation habitats while the CSUC map has eight. Not all of the habitats are found in
the study area and those that are were collapsed into three primary habitats as discussed in Chapter 2.
63
Five kilometer diameter site catchments were drawn around each of the six archaeological sites
examined in this thesis. This diameter was chosen on the basis of Vita-Finzi and Higgs’ (1970) assessment
that such a distance is representative of the area reasonably exploited on a regular basis by agricultural
societies. Although the indigenous people inhabiting the study area were hunter-gatherers, their sedentary
lifestyles and dense populations made them more akin to agricultural societies (Anderson 2005:252-253;
Lightfoot and Parrish 2009:136-137, 379 and references therein). Further, this restricted mobility pattern is
believed by many researchers to have been established in the study area by 4,000 B.P. (Rosenthal and
Meyer 2008:68; Rosenthal et al. 2007:154). Thus, the five kilometer catchment area seems appropriate for
both Middle and Late Period populations in the lower Sacramento Valley.
NISP was used because it is the preferred measure of relative taxonomic abundances within an
assemblage and the least biased quantification method for intersite comparisons (Lyman 2008:81; Peres
2010:22). Further, because it is a fundamental measurement (a simple tally) rather than a derived
measurement, the only analyst-related source of variation in NISP involves the identification skills of the
analyst (Lyman 2008:79; Peres 2010:24). Differences in the experience levels of the analysts who produced
the data used in this thesis (i.e., students vs. established scholars) are discussed above.
Two additional established biases relating to NISP are specimen interdependence, i.e., skeletal
elements from one or a few animals, and sample size. Researchers have found that specimen
interdependence is less of a problem than it seems, because of the randomness of taphonomic, depositional,
and recovery processes (Lyman 2008:37). Yet, interdependence is a source of controversy in determining
the origin of small rodents. One method used to resolve this issue is to assess skeletal completeness and
burning patterns. The simplified assumption here is that bone exhibiting patterned burning is of cultural
origin and unevenly burnt or unburned bone is of natural deposition. The recovery of relatively complete
skeletons is likewise believed to indicate a natural, “burrow” death for small rodents. Ethnographic data,
however, indicate that small rodents were a commonplace part of the indigenous diet (see Chapter 3). Mice
are reported to have been dried whole and the carcass pounded into a meal, while gophers were roasted
directly in hot ashes (Beals 1933:349). As such, it is unlikely that mice would leave any skeletal evidence
64
whereas gopher bones might be burned and skeletal completeness reasonably high. Gopher remains were
quantified in all assemblages examined for this thesis, but mice, voles, and moles were not. Evidence of
thermal alteration was not consistently recorded for all specimens. Given all of the above, the present study
assumes that gophers were culturally deposited and mice, voles, and moles were naturally deposited.
The second bias associated with faunal assemblages is related to sample size. It is inherent that the
larger the sample, the higher the NISP (e.g., Grayson 1984). To correct for differences in sample size
between assemblages, a diversity index was used to quantify the biodiversity of each sample and chi-square
with adjusted residuals were calculated for abundance ratios. Procedures for applying the statistics are
presented in Chapter 6.
Methodological Limitations
The analysis of archaeofaunal remains is fundamental to the reconstruction of past subsistence
patterns. However, like all scientific endeavors, it possesses certain limitations. Taphonomic factors always
present limitations for faunal analyses, particularly disturbance and differential preservation. Krotovina
(underground passageways created by burrowing animals that become backfilled with soil) were noted at
almost every site examined in the present study and human disturbance of the midden was a particular
problem at SAC-267 (Johnson 1976:246). Nonetheless, preservation is generally believed to be consistent
in the lower Sacramento Valley due to local edaphic conditions (Jerald Johnson, personal communication
2006; Johnson and Farncomb 2005:23, 39-40). Copious amounts of freshwater mussel shell in deposits also
aided in faunal preservation by lowering the pH value of midden soils (Peres 2010:20; Reitz and Wing
1999:117). Thus, assuming the faunal identifications presented are reasonably acceptable, data chosen for
this study are likely a close approximation of what was deposited in the past (Peres 2010:19 and references
therein).
Additional limitations relating to the identification of animal remains include curation, dating,
recovery methods, and analyst expertise. Using the criteria listed at the beginning of this chapter to select
65
samples and employing NISP quantifications helped to reduce disparities between samples, including
effects associated with sample size. The faunal samples selected for analysis range from 1,087 to 4,465
specimens. To correct for these differences, abundance ratios and statistical analyses (i.e., chi-square,
adjusted residuals, and Simpson’s Diversity Index) were used. The results of these measures and how they
relate to study area subsistence patterns are discussed in the next chapter.