Radiocarbon Dating of Chitin

Remains of insects are often found in an archaeological context, and because insects are sometimes temperature sensitive, their presence in archaeological and environmental contexts gives them climatic significance. The use of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) to date small samples has allowed for the direct analysis of insect remains, and these studies have given a deeper understanding of Quaternary climate change and its effects on human activity during this time. In addition, the presence of certain insects can indicate particular types of human activity (i.e. animal husbandry or the existence of timber structures or open fields), and direct dating of insects provides chronological constraints on these activities throughout the range of the radiocarbon timescale.