T* 
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Animal Food 
Nearly three thousand six hundred whole and fragmentary shells, 
animal bones, teeth, and antlers were found, most of them belonging to 
animals whose flesh had probably been used as food. Many of the bones 
were broken, probably to extract the marrow or to make them small 
enough to go into cooking pots. 
Shells of the following species of land snails were found: Polygyra 
albolabriSj Polygyra albolabris dentata, Polygyra palliata , Polygyra sayi, 
Polygyra fraudulenta, Polygyra monodon, Patula alternata, and Omphalina 
fuliginosa. There are also two poorly preserved shells of freshwater 
snails, one Pleurocera subulare , the other possibly Pleurocera elevatum. 
Although some of the shells of the land snails are unquestionably old, being 
cpiite chalky in appearance, it is not certain that they are not intrusive. 
The smaller species, such as Polygyra fraudulenta , Polygyra palliata, and 
Polygyra monodon are certainly too small to have been of any use as food, 
so their presence in the deposits is probably accidental. Moreover, we 
have no evidence that snails were used as food by the Indians of this part 
of the continent. 
Clam shells were not as abundant here as at later Neutral sites in the 
same county. Only nine specimens were found, representing the species 
Unio gibbosus, Lampsilis luteolus, and probably L. radiatus. In the little 
stream, north of the site, live two species of clams, Symphynota compressor 
and A nodontoides f erussacianus var. subcylindraceus , but the shells of neither 
occurred in the refuse deposits of the site, either because they did not 
inhabit the creek when the site was occupied, or were not considered 
suitable for use as food or as material for artifacts. 
Nearly one hundred, or about 2 per cent of the animal remains, are 
those of fish. Most of the bones are not sufficiently characteristic to be 
easily identified, but those of the following species can be recognized: 
common catfish, pike, sand pickerel, and sheepshead. J. J. Williams, of 
Otterville, Ontario, informs me that the catfish and sheepshead still inhabit 
Otter creek. Other important food fishes in this creek, according to Mr. 
Williams, are the rock bass, speckled trout, suckers (probably Catostomus 
commersoni), and brown mullet (probably Moxostoma aureolum). The 
little creek, flowing along the north side of the site, probably once contained 
trout. 
The presence of several bones of frogs, about the size of those of the 
leopard frog, suggests that these animals were used as food. 
Thirty-eight, or about 1 per cent of the bones, are those of the painted 
turtle and snapping turtle. The bones of the former were the most num- 
erous, and consisted mostly of parts of the carapace and plastron. 
Two hundred and fifty-four, or about 8 per cent of the bones, are 
those of birds, of which about one-sixth are mere splinters. Fourteen 
different species of birds are represented; some of them may not have 
been used as food. The names are given in order of abundance: passenger 
pigeon, wild turkey, ruffed grouse, Canada goose, bald-headed eagle, 
flicker, horned grebe, pintail duck, swan (Olor sp.), barred owl, raven, 
crow, brown thrasher, and robin. 
1 Shells of this species were abundant at village sites in York county, Ontario. See W, Brodie: “Animal Remains 
Found on Indian Village Sites,” Ann. Archaeological Kept., 1901, being part of Appendix to the Rept. of the Minister 
of Education, Ontario, Toronto, 1902, p. 45. It is referred to under its old name Unio pressus. 
