MICROFAUNA
Rhian Mayon-White
Microfauna offer a rare insight into the past, especially concerning how humans interacted with their environment. When compared to the macrofauna, the microfauna of Çatalhöyük are not only more sensitive to any changes and variations within the environment, but also have a greater chance of being over-looked by even the most industrious of pre-historic cleaners. Their presence and distribution is, therefore, of particular interest to those trying to reconstruct the settlement and its people.
Microfaunal material was removed from the 1mm, 2mm and 4mm fractions of the heavy residue during the 2005 season at Çatalhöyük. This microfaunal material encompasses amphibian, reptilian and micro-mammalian remains, which were subsequently exported to University College London for further study. In total 254 bags were exported, each representing a separate unit. Nearly half of these units were derived from the BACH excavation, some representing the 4mm fraction of microfaunal material exported in 2004. The remaining units came from the excavation areas of South, West, 4040, and TP, and all represent priority units.