Palynology
Pollen grains are male cells carrying genetic material necessary for reproduction, and they range in size from about 8 to 120 microns (.008 mm-.12 mm). For pollination, pollen is carried by wind (anemophilous) and by animals (zoophilous). At any time, varying amounts of pollen are in the air (pollen rain). Pollen assemblages in that rain reflect the area’s plant communities. As pollen falls to the ground, it is incorporated into sediment. In a strict sense, most pollen recovered from unconsolidated sediment is not fossilized, but it is, nevertheless, called fossil pollen. In cultural settings, pollen assemblages are affected by human activity, and that obscures the natural pollen rain. Pollen is often found in contexts where it would not happen naturally; in such cases, it can be interpreted as cultural use. In a sense, fossil pollen grains are artifacts and can therefore be used to examine certain aspects of behavior, such as subsistence activity.
BGP’s analysis per unit rate is $350. Services include extraction, analysis, and a full report. (Options and full rate sheet available upon request.)
Spurge pollen
Macrobotanical (flotation) analysis
Macrobotanical analysis looks at charred, inert (no longer subject to decay) plant remains.Charred remains are typically recovered by flotation: sediment samples are agitated in water, and the plant remains that float to the surface are collected, sorted, and analyzed. Charred seeds, maize cob fragments, and rare squash rinds reflect subsistence activities. Recovered charcoal could have been fuel, construction material, or possibly containers, such as baskets. A wide range of available plants were used in numerous ways, and the remaining charcoal offers glimpses of people’s subsistence behavior. Along with palynology, flotation analysis has become an indispensable tool for subsistence studies archaeology in the Southwest and across the Americas. Charred annual seeds and other remains recovered by flotation provide reliable specimens for AMS radiocarbon dating.
BGP’s analysis per unit rate is $300. Services include flotation, analysis, and a full report. (Options and full rate sheet available upon request.)
Maize cupule
Paleolimnology
Diatoms are single-celled algae with siliceous cell walls and are virtually ubiquitous in moist environments. The inorganic glass diatom frustules (shells) remain intact long after other portions of the organism have decayed. Because diatoms are sensitive to a number of environmental factors (e.g., temperature and water chemistry), their remains can be used to reconstruct the conditions of their environment when their shells were deposited. For decades, diatoms have been studied worldwide to develop paleoclimatic records reflected in lake sediments. In a recent study, I used diatoms to establish the presence and the salinity of standing water in an early historic Hawaiian fishpond. This helped establish the limno-environment and depositional history represented in sedimentary cores. Diatoms have been used to study construction episodes of irrigation canals in Mexico. I apply a similar approach to Hohokam canals and reservoirs.
BGP’s analysis per unit rate is $320. Services include extraction, analysis, and a full report. (Options and full rate sheet available upon request.)
