Forensic Taphonomy and Ecology of North American Scavengers compiles research on vertebrate scavenging behavior from numerous academic fields, including ecology and forensic anthropology. It is an ideal reference for both students and medicolegal professionals, serving as a field manual for the identification or exclusion of common scavenging species known to modify human remains. It addition, the book proposes investigative strategies to improve both the recovery efficiency and accuracy of forensic reconstructions in cases affected by vertebrate scavenging.
The actions of vertebrate scavengers can significantly impact the medicolegal investigation of human remains. Scavenging behavior can displace remains from their depositional context, confound postmortem interval estimations, destroy osteological markers, and inflict damage that mimics or disguises perimortem trauma.
- Examines scavenging behavior through an evolutionary and ecological lens, integrating research from diverse fields
- Includes brief summaries of the taphonomic signatures of common or well-studied North American scavenging taxa
- Proposes strategies to maximize the recovery of vertebrate-scavenged human remains and improve forensic reconstructions of peri- and postmortem events
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Comprehensive field manual on how to identify or exclude common scavenging species known to modify human remains
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ix | |
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xiii | |
Acknowledgments |
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xv | |
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1 | (16) |
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Forensic Science Under the Medicolegal Microscope |
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4 | (2) |
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Forensic Error: Proving Guilt in the Innocent |
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6 | (2) |
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Putting "Science" in Forensic Science |
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8 | (3) |
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11 | (1) |
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11 | (1) |
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12 | (5) |
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Chapter 2 Unwitting Accomplices: Scavengers and Forensic Investigation |
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17 | (16) |
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17 | (2) |
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Scavenging and Identification |
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19 | (3) |
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Scavenging and Trauma Analysis |
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22 | (3) |
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Scavenging and Postmortem Interval Estimation |
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25 | (3) |
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28 | (1) |
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28 | (5) |
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Chapter 3 There Is No Such Thing as a Free Lunch: The Evolution of Scavenging |
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33 | (10) |
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33 | (1) |
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34 | (1) |
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35 | (4) |
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39 | (1) |
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39 | (4) |
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Chapter 4 Scavenger Identification Strategies: Interpreting Taphonomic Signatures |
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43 | (20) |
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43 | (1) |
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Faunal and Genetic Evidence |
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44 | (3) |
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47 | (2) |
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Introducing the Maker's Mark: Taphonomic Signatures |
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49 | (1) |
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Soft Tissue and Bone Modification |
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50 | (5) |
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Patterns of Tissue Consumption |
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55 | (1) |
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Disarticulation, Scattering, and Element Removal |
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56 | (2) |
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58 | (1) |
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58 | (5) |
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Chapter 5 What Big Teeth You Have: Taphonomic Signatures of North American Scavengers |
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63 | (86) |
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Family Canidae---Canids---Dogs, Coyotes, Foxes, and Wolves |
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63 | (11) |
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Family Cathartidae---New World Vultures |
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74 | (8) |
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Family Cervidae---Cervids---Deer |
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82 | (7) |
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Family Corvidae---Corvids---Magpies, Crows, and Ravens |
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89 | (5) |
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Order Crocodilia---Crocodilians---Alligators, Crocodiles, and Caimans |
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94 | (7) |
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Family Didelphidae---Didelphis virginiana---Virginia Opossum |
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101 | (4) |
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Family Felidae---Felids---Wild and Domestic Cats |
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105 | (7) |
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Family Procyonidae---Procyon lotor---Northern Raccoon |
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112 | (5) |
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117 | (7) |
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Superorder Selachimorpha---Sharks |
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124 | (6) |
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Family Suidae---Suids---Wild Boar and Domestic Pig |
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130 | (4) |
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Family Ursidae---Ursids---Bears |
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134 | (7) |
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141 | (8) |
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Chapter 6 Ecological Influences on Scavenging Behavior |
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149 | (22) |
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149 | (1) |
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Ecological Principles and Scavenging Behavior |
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150 | (3) |
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153 | (3) |
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Community Composition and Competition |
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156 | (7) |
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163 | (2) |
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Conclusion: Ecology, Behavior, and Taphonomic Effects |
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165 | (1) |
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166 | (5) |
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Chapter 7 Adapting Your Investigation: Recovery and Interpretation |
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171 | (14) |
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171 | (1) |
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The Importance of Archaeology |
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172 | (2) |
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Forensic Archaeology and Scavengers: Adapting the Methods Employed |
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174 | (3) |
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Considerations for Postmortem Interval and Trauma |
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177 | (1) |
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Investigating Vertebrate-Scavenged Remains: Best Practices |
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178 | (4) |
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182 | (1) |
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182 | (3) |
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Chapter 8 Suggestions for Future Directions |
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185 | (16) |
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185 | (1) |
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Missing Data and New Questions |
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185 | (6) |
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Studying Scavengers: Challenges and Research Design |
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191 | (4) |
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Bringing it All Together: Knowledge Distribution |
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195 | (1) |
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196 | (1) |
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197 | (4) |
Appendices |
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201 | (8) |
Index |
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209 | |
Ms. Sincerbox teaches Introductory Biological Anthropology, in the Forensic Anthropology Program, at Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas. Her research spans forensic anthropology, osteology, human decomposition and ecology. She previously participated in the HHMI Interdisciplinary Research Program and is currently focused on decomposition rate and post-mortem interval estimation. Dr. Elizabeth A. DiGangi received her bachelors degree in anthropology and history, magna cum laude, from the State University of New York at Buffalo. While working on her bachelors degree, she was one of the recipients of the Howard Hughes Undergraduate Fellowship in Biology where she received her first scientific research experience. She went on to earn a Masters of Arts degree from the same institution in physical anthropology where she was an Arthur Schomburg Graduate Fellow. Following her Masters, she moved to Knoxville, Tennessee to earn her doctorate from The University of Tennessee. She has taught extensively, either as an assistant or full instructor of several courses including Human Anatomy and Physiology, Primate Dissections, Human Origins, Introduction to Cultural Anthropology, Introduction to Physical Anthropology, Prehistoric Archaeology, and of a historical archaeological field school course. While at UT, she was awarded with several consecutive graduate teaching assistantships from both the Department of Anthropology and the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. She is a member of several honor societies, recipient of several merit-based travel awards, and recipient of the Tennessee Valley Authority Graduate Scholar in Archaeology award. She became tenure-track instructor of Anthropology at Pellissippi State Community College in Knoxville before completing her doctorate degree. Dr. DiGangi currently lives and works in Bogotá, Colombia, where she is contracted as a consultant for the International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP). In this capacity, she is charged with providing advisement, training, and equipment for the countrys professional forensic anthropologists and other scientists who work on exhuming and identifying the remains of victims of the Colombian conflict. Since 2008, she has coordinated, taught, and/or developed 23 courses in forensic archaeology, osteology, skeletal trauma analysis, and research methods, training over 450 professionals. Her research interests include age-at-death estimation in skeletal remains, health of prehistoric populations, and challenges and ethical considerations of work in anthropology outside of academia. She has presented her original research at annual professional conferences including the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, American Association of Physical Anthropologists, Paleopathology Association, and Asociación Latina de Antropología Forense. Her publications have appeared in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology and the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology. She is currently organizing a multi-faceted research program using Colombian anthropologists as primary researchers to create skeletal standards of the biological profile for the Colombian population.