The need to overcome risks associated with combining inadequate paleozoological records and conservation biology

Archaeological occurrences of terrestrial herpetofauna in the insular Caribbean: cultural and biological significance

Although the importance of the archaeological record for addressing questions of biodiversity is gaining ground, its relevance for describing past faunal communities is still under-exploited, particularly for the most under-documented areas and species. Among the most poorly documented taxa are reptiles and amphibians, which are rarely studied in detail in the archaeological record, even in tropical areas where most of these species occur today. Here I evaluate the archaeological and paleontological significance of reptiles and amphibians from the Indigenous archaeological record of the insular Caribbean. Quantitative (bone counts) and qualitative (taxonomic identification) analyses allow researchers to discuss the role of herpetofauna in the subsistence strategies of Indigenous populations as well as their interest for assessing past insular biodiversity. This overview sheds light on both the poor representation of herpetofaunal taxa in Caribbean archaeological deposits and trends in the potential exploitation of reptiles and amphibians by Indigenous populations. In terms of paleoecology, the presented results reveal strong regional differences in the quality and density of data as well as the inadequacy of available archaeofaunal data for addressing questions of past biodiversity.

'Emptying Forests?' Conservation Implications of Past Human-Primate Interactions

Non-human primates are among the most vulnerable tropical animals to extinction and ~50% of primate species are endangered. Human hunting is considered a major cause of increasingly 'empty forests', yet archaeological data remains under-utilised in testing this assertion over the longer-term. Zooarchaeological datasets allow investigation of human exploitation of primates and the reconstruction of extinction, extirpation, and translocation processes. We evaluate the application and limitations of data from zooarchaeological studies spanning the past 45 000 years in South and Southeast Asia in guiding primate conservation efforts. We highlight that environmental change was the primary threat to many South and Southeast Asian non-human primate populations during much of the Holocene, foreshadowing human-induced land-use and environmental change as major threats of the 21st century.