Deer astragulus measurements were first done by Thomas Emerson to calculate
live weights and were further refined by Rick Purdue.  Emerson uses a single
length measurement whereas Purdue uses multiple measurements. You could use
either of these depending on the data you have for sheep.  A problem you may
encounter is distinguishing juvenile deer from adult sheep. Since the
astragulus does
not have epiphyseal plates juvenile elements look just like those of adults
but have a more porous surface texture and are obviously smaller.  When
differentiating these you will probably have to rely on morphology rather
than size.


Emerson, Thomas E.

1978 A new method for calculating the live weight of northern white-tailed
deer from osteo-archaeological material.  Midcontinental Journal of
Archaeology 3(1):35-44.

Purdue, J. Rick

1991 Dynamism in the Body Size of White-tailed Deer, In Beamers Bobwhites
and Blue Points: Tributes to the Career of Paul W. Parmalee.  J. R. Purdue,
W. E. Klippel, and B. W. Styles Eds.  Illinois State Museum Scientific
Papers, Vol. 23, Springfield.

1989 Changes during the Holocene in the size of white-tailed deer
(Odocoileus virginianus) from central Illinois.  Quaternary Research,
32:307-316.

1987 Estimation of body weight of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)
from bone size. Journal of Ethnobiology 7:1-2.

1986 The size of white tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) during the
Archaic Period in central Illinois. Pp. 65-95, in Foraging, collecting, and
harvesting: Archaic Period subsistence and settlement in the eastern
woodland, S. Neusius ed., Occasional Paper, Center for Archaeological
Investigation, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. No.6.

1983 Methods of determining sex and body size in prehistoric samples of
white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Transactions of the Illinois
State Academy of Sciences. 76:351-357.

-----Original Message-----
From: Claudia Milne [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, September 09, 2004 4:13 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [ZOOARCH] Sheep and Deer Measurements


Hi all!

Does anyone have a comparative collection of measurement ranges for the
astragulus for both white tail deer and domestic sheep?
I am working with a collection from New York City that is very weathered
and fragmented.  There were both prehistoric and historic occupations of
the site and some are mixed up and the only real identifiable/measurable
bones are these.

Thanks in advance for your assistance,

Claudia Milne
Stamford CT