Faunal remains from Old Mobile

The high acidity of soils at the Old Mobile site has limited recovery of faunal remains to small calcined specimens. Despite poor preservation, however, samples of bone and shell fragments from each of the excavated structures indicate a reliance on wild fauna, with lesser dependence on domesticated species. Chicken and pig remains have been found, although other domesticates are mentioned in historical documents. Comparison with the faunal assemblage from the contemporary Indian house site (1MB147) suggests ethnic differences in food preferences during this initial period of French colonization.