Papers by Carly Monks
Australian Archaeology, 2023
This study presents the first data on a level one archaeology student cohort, exploring their dem... more This study presents the first data on a level one archaeology student cohort, exploring their demographic composition and motivations for enrolling, as well as external stressors such as health and caring responsibilities that may influence student study goals, retention, and needs. A survey of 107 students enrolled in introductory level archaeology units at 13 Australian universities was undertaken in Semester 1, 2021. The results show a diverse cohort by age, gender, and educational background. Consistent with the professional Australian archaeological community, there is little diversity in the ethnicity of enrolled students. Further, many respondents reported having caring responsibilities, and both physical and mental health concerns. Students were motivated to enrol both for general interest and future career pathways; however, there was a poor understanding within the cohort of Australian archaeological job opportunities. These results indicate that there is clearly much to be done in public archaeological engagement and outreach in Australia. What is required of the Australian archaeological community is a concerted effort to improve how the discipline is taught and learned across all levels of education, and a collaborative approach to designing teaching methods suitable for our modern student cohort.
Australian Archaeology, 2014
ABSTRACT Niche construction theory concerns the modification of environments by all organisms, an... more ABSTRACT Niche construction theory concerns the modification of environments by all organisms, and gives a new perspective on zooarchaeological records in southwest Australia. Aboriginal people in this region historically used fire to improve habitat and hunt animals, suggesting pre-European traditions of environmental management. Analysis of a new faunal record from the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Region, at the Wonitji Janga rockshelter, suggests post-European changes in Aboriginal hunting are the result of changed firing regimes or restrictions on traditional management techniques. These preliminary findings suggest that similar research planned for the Swan Coastal Plain, coupled with advances in ancient DNA analysis, will demonstrate past landscape modification.
A Jewel in the Crown of a Biodiversity Hotspot, 2019
Archaeology in Oceania, 2018
Evidence for human occupation of Western Australia’s northern Swan Coastal Plain derives mainly f... more Evidence for human occupation of Western Australia’s northern Swan Coastal Plain derives mainly from Holocene coastal midden sites. Here, we present preliminary results from archaeological investigations at Yellabidde Cave, located 9 km inland from the present coast. Excavations in the limestone cave’s sandy floor deposit revealed cultural and palaeontological materials dating from c. 25,500 cal. BP to the 19th C. These provide the first evidence for Pleistocene occupation in the region, indicating that Yellabidde Cave was intermittently occupied throughout the late Pleistocene and Holocene, and reflecting dynamic human-environment
relationships in present near-coastal to littoral environments.
This paper presents the results of investigations of two newly recorded sites: the Oakajee midden... more This paper presents the results of investigations of two newly recorded sites: the Oakajee midden north of Geraldton,
and the North Head midden near Jurien Bay, both in Western Australia (WA). The Oakajee midden is situated in
a dune complex containing open artefact concentrations and other archaeological sites. The North Head midden is
eroding from a shallow dune atop a limestone cliff overlooking a wavecut rock platform. These middens contribute
to the sparse data on mid- to late Holocene marine resource exploitation along the WA coastline. The results of
radiocarbon analyses show that midden deposition ceased ca 3000 cal. BP. We suggest that this change reflects a
decline in littoral resource exploitation following the stabilisation of Holocene sea levels, when environmental and
geomorphological conditions altered the availability and accessibility of estuarine and littoral molluscs.
Niche construction theory concerns the modification of environments by all organisms, and gives a... more Niche construction theory concerns the modification of environments by all organisms, and gives a new perspective on zooarchaeological records in southwest Australia. Aboriginal people in this region historically used fire to improve habitat and hunt animals, suggesting pre-European traditions of environmental management. Analysis of a new faunal record from the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Region, at the Wonitji Janga rockshelter, suggests post-European changes in Aboriginal hunting are the result of changed firing regimes or restrictions on traditional management techniques. These preliminary findings suggest that similar research planned for the Swan Coastal Plain, coupled with advances in ancient DNA analysis, will demonstrate past landscape modification.
Talks by Carly Monks
Conference Poster by Carly Monks
Despite considerable research work in the 1970s and 1990s, zooarchaeological sites in southwester... more Despite considerable research work in the 1970s and 1990s, zooarchaeological sites in southwestern Australia are under-utilised as sources of information about past Aboriginal land management. Niche Construction Theory (NCT) suggests that anthropogenic change in animal habitat can be identified from zooarchaeological records. Excavations in 2013 at Wonitji Janga, a late Holocene limestone rockshelter site, and a nearby unnamed sink-hole, near Yallingup, southwestern Australia, reveal changes in species representation from 500 BP to the early-to-mid-twentieth century. The most marked changes are among species that require the most intensive effort to manage or capture. This evidence suggests that as their ability to manage some animal species using traditional methods became restricted by British settlement, Wardandi Noongar people exploited alternative resources requiring less intensive foraging and management techniques. It also suggests NCT will be a useful paradigm for assessing pre-European Noongar land management elsewhere in the region.
Dortch, J., W. Webb, T. Webb, R. Foote, S. Henderson, C. Monks and T. Busher 2014 Demonstrating niche construction through zooarchaeology in South Western Australia. Poster presented at the AAA/ASHA Annual Conference, 1-3 December, Cairns.
Book Reviews by Carly Monks
Thesis Chapters by Carly Monks
Uploads
Papers by Carly Monks
relationships in present near-coastal to littoral environments.
and the North Head midden near Jurien Bay, both in Western Australia (WA). The Oakajee midden is situated in
a dune complex containing open artefact concentrations and other archaeological sites. The North Head midden is
eroding from a shallow dune atop a limestone cliff overlooking a wavecut rock platform. These middens contribute
to the sparse data on mid- to late Holocene marine resource exploitation along the WA coastline. The results of
radiocarbon analyses show that midden deposition ceased ca 3000 cal. BP. We suggest that this change reflects a
decline in littoral resource exploitation following the stabilisation of Holocene sea levels, when environmental and
geomorphological conditions altered the availability and accessibility of estuarine and littoral molluscs.
Talks by Carly Monks
Conference Poster by Carly Monks
Dortch, J., W. Webb, T. Webb, R. Foote, S. Henderson, C. Monks and T. Busher 2014 Demonstrating niche construction through zooarchaeology in South Western Australia. Poster presented at the AAA/ASHA Annual Conference, 1-3 December, Cairns.
Book Reviews by Carly Monks
Thesis Chapters by Carly Monks
relationships in present near-coastal to littoral environments.
and the North Head midden near Jurien Bay, both in Western Australia (WA). The Oakajee midden is situated in
a dune complex containing open artefact concentrations and other archaeological sites. The North Head midden is
eroding from a shallow dune atop a limestone cliff overlooking a wavecut rock platform. These middens contribute
to the sparse data on mid- to late Holocene marine resource exploitation along the WA coastline. The results of
radiocarbon analyses show that midden deposition ceased ca 3000 cal. BP. We suggest that this change reflects a
decline in littoral resource exploitation following the stabilisation of Holocene sea levels, when environmental and
geomorphological conditions altered the availability and accessibility of estuarine and littoral molluscs.
Dortch, J., W. Webb, T. Webb, R. Foote, S. Henderson, C. Monks and T. Busher 2014 Demonstrating niche construction through zooarchaeology in South Western Australia. Poster presented at the AAA/ASHA Annual Conference, 1-3 December, Cairns.