Carnivore alteration of human bone from a late prehistoric site in Illinois.

The nature and pattern of destruction of human bone by scavenging animals, probably canids, is described for 30 Oneota skeletons from a west-central Illinois cemetery dated at ca. A.D. 1300. The most frequently damaged parts of the skeleton include bones covered by relatively little soft tissue, such as the major joints of the limbs, and those in the facial, abdominal, and gluteal regions.