Applications of Stable Isotopes in Zooarchaeology and Historical Ecology

Stable isotope analyses of historical archives (e.g., tissues from specimens held in natural history collections and faunal remains recovered from archaeological and subfossil contexts) enable researchers to reconstruct the diets of animals in the past, from previous decades to several millennia. These analyses can provide important information on the historic relationships between humans and animals, but can also offer a temporal perspective on contemporary environmental and ecological issues. For example, researchers are able to compare animal diets under different environmental conditions or levels of anthropogenic disturbance, and hence assess the impacts on different species and predict future trends.

In this Research Topic, our goal is to highlight how stable isotope analyses of different historical animal archives can be used to provide novel insights into current environmental issues. This issue will build on a three-day meeting of the Stable Isotopes Working Group of the International Council of Archaeozoology (hosted by the School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Reading)entitled:“Back to the Future Zooarchaeological Isotope Approaches to Modern Questions". Submissions to this issue are not limited to conference attendees and contributions are welcomed from any researchers working in the field.

This Research Topic has a broad scope, and we encourage submissions on a wide range of animal taxa, geographic regions and time periods. Authors are invited to submit any of the following article types: Brief Research Report; Classification; General Commentary; Hypothesis and Theory; Methods; Mini Review; Opinion; Original Research; Perspective; Review; Systematic Review; Technology and Code.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Stable isotopes; archaeology; ecology; environmental science; global change; zooarchaeology

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.