FRAGMENTS OF ICE AGE ENVIRONMENTS

Statistical analysis on metapodial bones of living brown bears regarding gender differences in males and females

Kerstin ATHEN

Significant results of high quality in the discriminant analysis.

Abstract

The results presented here are part of a ‘Synthesys’ Project, in which the metrical data of Ursus arctos metapodial bones of the Naturhistoriska riksmuseet in Stockholm were collected. The data were statistically analysed using univariate as well as discriminant methods in order to find distinguishing features linked to sexual dimorphism. The results showed that this material, of which the gender was known a priori, could successfully be separated into the two gender groups. In the two-sample tests, 89 % of the examined parameters showed significant differences between males and females, verifying sexual dimorphism. Two to three variables each were extracted in eight out of ten skeletal elements using discriminant analysis, which showed a significant distinction between the gender groups.

Keywords: Ursus arctos, statistics, discriminant analysis, gender classification

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2011, (Opera Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae, 21), 280 pages, 44 b-w photographs, 10 drawings, 52 tables, 71 graphs and 9 maps, 20 x 29 cm hardcover, ISBN 978-961-254-257-3.

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