Fishing through time: Using archaeological fish remains to reconstruct ancient fishing practices and coastal habitats in the Arabian Gulf

Mark J. Beech

ABSTRACT

This paper aims to summarise the key points arising from my Phd research (1997-2000) carried out within the Departments of Archaeology and Biology at the University of York (U.K.). During this research I have studied fish bones from 30 different archaeological excavations throughout the Arabian Gulf, most of them being located along the Gulf coastline of the United Arab Emirates. The results of this study provide for the first time a detailed insight into the status of past fisheries resources in the region. They also offer a unique insight into the fishing strategies utilised within the coastal habitats of the southern Arabian Gulf during the course of the past 6,000 years.  A special focus on the use of biometrical techniques enabled the size reconstruction of economically important fish groups. Work on archaeological otoliths provided valuable information on the age of the fish caught, as well as on their season of capture.  A consequence of this research has been the creation of a large skeletal reference collection of Arabian Gulf fishes. This will be housed in the near future in the Marine Environmental Research Center (MERC) at the Environmental Research and Wildlife Development Agency (ERWDA) in Abu Dhabi. Overall, it is demonstrated that the study of archaeological fish remains can provide important information of relevance to not only archaeologists but also to those involved in marine/coastal  ecology and conservation. The long time dimension which archaeology provides allows us to detect relationships between coastal marine communities and habitats, and demonstrates where environmental changes may have taken place historically along the Gulf coastline. 

[ HOME - WHATS NEW - RESEARCH - PUBLICATIONS - PROFILE - USEFUL LINKS - FUN ]