CULINARY PROCESSING OF JACKRABBITS AT ANTELOPE CAVE, ARIZONA.

The faunal assemblage from Antelope Cave, a Virgin Anasazi site located in northwestern Arizona, is dominated by jackrabbits (Lepus californicus). The excellent preservation of the assemblage allows for the development of inferences regarding acquisition, butchering, cooking, and consumption activities using patterns of fragmentation, burning, articulation, and skeletal part representation. The occupants of the site were maximizing the extraction of nutritional benefits from jackrabbits through a combination of roasting, stewing, marrow processing, and pulverizing methods. The data provide important insights for understanding the processing decisions made by prehistoric foragers in a region relatively devoid of fuel sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]