Jessica Peto

Publication

• Date
• Type

Research

Thesis

Endlings: A Zooarchaeological and Biomolecular Investigation of the Paucity of Wolves in the British Archaeological Record and how this Informs their Decline and Extinction

There have been a number of academic studies focused on the detailed analysis of the historical evidence for wolves in Britain, and the changing attitudes expressed towards them from heroes to hellish. This analysis is often particularly focused within the Medieval period, when it is thought the beast began to become extinct in England (~14th century), Scotland (~18th century) and Ireland (~19th century). Our current understanding of these events is that heavy and targeted persecutions, combined with other wider ecological issues such as habitat loss, drove the wolves to extinction from our shores. Despite this existing comprehensive knowledge, the zooarchaeological evidence for wolves is often not used to its full potential. A main challenge of this utilisation is the difficulty in the confident distinction of large dogs and wolves. Using a multi-method and multi-disciplinary approach, this project conducts a dedicated and wide scale investigation of the archaeological record from the late Iron Age to the Early Modern period to find and critically assess wolf remains. Individual biographies are built for each of these found specimens, adopting novel morphometric analysis methods, dietary isotopes (carbon and nitrogen), mobility isotopes (strontium and oxygen) and genetic analysis in collaboration with PalaeoBARN at the University of Oxford. These together aid in more confidently separating the wolves from the large dogs, together with radiocarbon dating, which can secure their temporal position. By building a database of known archaeological wolf remains, it allows for a more comprehensive and well-rounded understanding of the extinction, aiding current evidence. By understanding - geographically and temporally - the later wolf populations, this can inform current conversations around the reintroduction of the wolf. From learning of the past, this can both inform and aid current and future conservation efforts. 

Funding sources

NERC GW4+ DTP

Supervisors

Richard Madgwick

Professor of Archaeological Science