John K. Yasuda, On Feeding the Masses: An Anatomy of Regulatory Failure in China

Use of Mussel Casts from Archaeological Sites as Paleoecological Indicators: An Example from CA-MRN-254, Marin County, Alta California

“…Taken cumulatively, we believe the evidence indicates that they represent species of Modiolus and not those of Mytilus as previously identified by McBeath (1967) and Huddleson (1998), even though no shells of Modiolus species were identified at CA-MRN-254.…”

“…Treganza (1958) also commented that the dominance of Mytilus trossulus (as M. edulis) and Macoma nasuta was considered typical of shellmounds bay-wide. As with CA-MRN-254, many of these sites also yielded mussel casts that were determined to be the fortuitous result of the roasting process (e.g., CA- MRN-192;McBeath 1967). Based on our study, it is likely that these too were casts of Modiolus species and that they may provide paleoenvironmental information at archaeological sites throughout the San Francisco Bay area.…”

“…Therefore, despite the fact that these mussel casts were originally attributed to M. edulis (McBeath 1967) and M. trossulus (Huddleson 1998), it is unlikely that a species of Mytilus would form these internal sediment casts. Species of the mytilid genus Modiolus, in contrast, are elongate and rhomboidal in shape as juveniles (Table 4).…”