Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.2010, Side 104

VÉRONIQUE FORBES, ALLISON BAIN, GUÐRÚN ALDA GÍSLADÓTTIR AND KAREN B. MILEK
The archaeoentomological samples
examined were composed of mixed turf
debris and silt with peat ash (context
8554), turf debris and wood ash (context
8566), and peat ash mixed with turf
debris (contexts 8583). The heavy frac-
tions from all three samples contained
important numbers of animal bones as
well as some charcoal fragments.
The archaeoentomological assem-
blage from this room (samples S-13, 14,
and 17, Table 2) is clearly dominated by
species living in mouldy hay and decom-
posing organic matter (Fig. 13). This sug-
gests that old hay and unusable turf was
dumped in this room. The dung beetle
Aphodius lapponum was possibly trans-
ported along with the hay and turf col-
lected from grazed fields, or may simply
have flown into the building. Not surpris-
ingly, many staphylinid beetles were
recovered from these midden samples,
which included large quantities of animal
bones and decomposing organic matter.
The presence of a few sheep keds in this
assemblage suggests that the wastes
thrown into the room included residues
resulting from wool processing.
Very few insects ffom this assemblage
represent the outdoor environment; these
include two true bugs belonging to Nysius
ericae, one Notiophilus ground beetle, six
weevils (Otiorhynchus arcticus and O.
nodosus), and one rove beetle, Acidota
crenata. It is not likely that the low
number of outdoor species is due to
differential preservation, since most
outdoor specimens are robust and highly
sclerotized, in comparison with the more
minute beetles typically associated with
mouldy hay. The near absence of outdoor
specimens thus suggests that the room
was not easily accessible to the out of
doors, and it is likely that the roof and
walls were still intact when the refuse was
deposited there.
^ Ectoparasites
13 Fauna associated with
organic matter
■ Outdoor fauna
0 Pests of stored
products
□ Dung feeders
II Fauna associated with
mouldy hay
Figure 14. Distribution of insects from Context E according to their ecological preferences.
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