Reindeer Demographics at Iarte VI, Iamal Peninsula, Arctic Siberia

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study focuses on constructing a demographic profile for a large set of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) remains from the Iron Age Iarte VI site on the Iamal Peninsula in Siberia. Iarte VI produced one of the largest reindeer assemblages in the entire Arctic, totalling ∼22,000 specimens. Age assessment is conducted by examining teeth eruption sequences in 686 mandibular fragments. Sex identification is based on analysis of 595 os coxae through visual observation of the acetabulum ventro-medial rim or border. Our assessments demonstrate that inhabitants at Iarte VI accessed various reindeer age categories, with adults being the most often utilised group of animals. Adults were found in all excavated sections and cultural strata at the site and consisted of both males and females. Other age groups such as newborns, yearlings, and juveniles were also present but in smaller quantities. The majority of the sub-adult individuals were under six months of age, indicating the use of this location during the warmer seasons, most often in fall. This seasonal pattern of site use is similar to historic seasonal migrations by many Indigenous reindeer herding families, who move north to utilise the tundra of Iamal Peninsula during the spring, summer, and early fall.