Tracing past biodiversity in Central Alaska through comparative osteological identification and compound specific isotopic analysis

Abstract Northern landscapes are rapidly changing. Researchers in the region can leverage archaeological to contextualize the degree and pace of contemporary ecological change. The Klein Site on Quartz Lake offers a valuable ecological record from the late Holocene. Two occupations, at approximately 600 and 1200 years ago, reflect biodiversity before and after a volcanic eruption that arguably shifted local resources and resource use dramatically. However, fragmentary faunal remains from this site are difficult to assess using traditional techniques. Results of morphometric and isotopic analyses show that diet and available resources remained diverse before and after the eruption. This method can improve reconstructions of human behavior and biodiversity.