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Claws of avian raptors have been used to make symbolic objects and decorations in many geographic regions and cultures; thus, their species identification increases our ability to draw more in‐depth conclusions from zooarcheological materials. It is the first ever manual for identification of ungual phalanges of European Accipitridae. It can be used in conjunction with a previously published manual for owls and falcons as well as independently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the first of two scheduled publications for this project. It contains a dichotomous key to the identification of the ungual phalanges of European owls and falcons; the second part will contain accipitrids. The manual(s) will facilitate the work of zooarchaeologists and palaeontologists, especially since comparative specimens in osteological collections are often difficult to access and/or incomplete. This, in turn, will indirectly contribute to a more in‐depth interpretation of zooarcheological materials, because bird talons were used to produce symbolic objects and decorations in different archeological periods and in various geographical areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bird bones from archeological sites near cliffs and at the entrance to caves may have been accumulated by the peregrine falcon and not by humans. To find out who deposited these remains—humans, peregrine falcons, or some other predators—taphonomic studies must be carried out. This study shows the characteristic damage to the bones of modern birds done by peregrine falcons. These include greater than expected abundance of humeri and coracoids, relatively little fragmentation of long bones, perforations mainly seen in the sternum and humerus, and characteristic proportions of the preserved skeleton elements. The described features make it possible to clearly distinguish food remains deposited by diurnal birds of prey from those accumulated by humans or owls. To identify the most likely species of bird of prey that has accumulated a given assemblage, it is important not only to establish the taxonomic composition of the assemblage but also to take into account the prey size preferred by the various raptors. The present research shows that the differences between bone damage of different victims of peregrine falcons are relatively small, which indicates that the results of our research are quite universal and can be applied to different geographic areas inhabited by different species of birds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]