Editing Zooarchaeology (section)

===Taphonomy===
One of the issues to which zooarchaeologists pay close attention is [[taphonomy]].<ref name="Landon2005" /> Techniques used in the study of taphonomy include researching how items are buried and deposited at an archaeological site, what the conditions are that aid in the preservation of these items, and how these items get destroyed, all a part of what is referred to by archaeologist [[Michael Brian Schiffer]] as [[behavioral archaeology]].<ref name="Landon2005" /> One important aspect of taphonomy is assessing how a specimen became damaged; understanding the taphonomy of a [[faunal assemblage]] can explain how and why bones were damaged.<ref name="Broughton2016">{{cite book |last1=Broughton |first1=Jack |last2=Miller |first2=Shawn |title=Zooarchaeology and Field Ecology: A Photographic Atlas |date=2016 |publisher=University of Utah Press}}</ref> One source of damage to animal bones is humans.<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|169}} Cut marks on animal bones provide evidence for [[butchering]].<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|169}} Fractures, such as by percussion impact and [[spiral fracture]] on a bone can suggest that it was processed by humans for its marrow, minerals, and nutrients.<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|170}} Other human processes that affect bones include burning<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|171}} and damage from archaeological excavations.<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|178}} Non-human damage to bones includes interspecies damage,<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|173}} damage from [[Raptor (bird)|raptor]]s and [[Scavenger|scavengers]],<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|173}} damage from [[rodent]]s,<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|175}} damage from [[fungi]],<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|176}} environmental [[weathering]],<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|176}} and [[polishing]].<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|176}} Distinguishing different types of damage to animal bones is a tedious and complex process that requires background in multiple scientific fields.<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|169}} Some of the physical damage on bones can be seen with the naked eye, but a lens with 10x magnification and good lighting is necessary for seeing most damage.<ref name="Broughton2016" />{{rp|169}}