Osteometry of Duck Species in Northwestern Europe—A Reassessment of Woelfle's (1967) Dataset

This study revisits and expands upon Elisabeth Woelfle's (1967) foundational analysis of bone morphology and osteometry, which has long been a key reference for zooarcheological identification of duck species in northwestern Europe. By examining Woelfle's unpublished measuring protocols and incorporating 523 newly measured specimens, we evaluate the reliability of traditional skeletal measurements. Our results highlight significant inconsistencies in inter‐ and intra‐observer reproducibility of several commonly used metrics. We identify nine problematic measurements and propose revised definitions to improve standardization and recommend abandoning poorly defined metrics. This revision aims to refine osteometric practices for ducks and potentially other avian taxa, to ensure greater accuracy in zooarcheological identifications. All measurement data, including digitized versions of Woelfle's original data, are made publicly available to support further morphological and comparative studies

• Species identification by analysis of bone collagen using matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionisation time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry

  Open Access•Michael Buckley, M J Collins et al.•Rapid Communications in Mass…•2009

  Incluir item

• Bird exploitation in an Early Anglo-Saxon community

  Open Access•Donna De Groene, Ged Poland et al.•Quaternary International•2020

  Incluir item

• The molecular palaeoecology of geese

  Open Access•Ian Barnes, Keith Dobney et al.•International Journal of…•1998

  Incluir item

• DNA-based Identification of Goose Species from Two Archaeological Sites in Lincolnshire

  Open Access•Ian Barnes, J Peter W Young et al.•Journal of Archaeological Science•2000

  Incluir item