New Data Platform Illuminates History of Human Environmental Impact

The human environmental footprint is not only deep, but old. Ancient traces of this footprint can be found in animal bones , shells, scales, and antlers at archaeological sites. Together, these specimens tell the millennia-long story of how humans have hunted, domesticated and transported animals, altered landscapes and responded to environmental changes such as shifting temperatures and sea levels.

Now, that story is available digitally through a new open-access data platform known as ZooArchNet, which links records of animals across biological and archaeological databases.

Seed funding for ZooArchNet was provided by the University of Florida Office of Research, the UF Informatics Institute and the Florida Museum. VertNet received initial funding from the National Science Foundation. Open Context is maintained by the Alexandria Archive Institute with data archiving and preservation services provided by the University of California. It is also funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and other sponsors.