Archaeobiology, the study of the biology of ancient times through archaeological materials, is a subspecialty

Archaeological sub-disciplines

As with most academic disciplines, there are a number of archaeological sub-disciplines typically characterised by a focus on a specific method or type of material, geographical or chronological focus, or other thematic concern. In addition, certain civilizations have attracted so much attention...

 of archaeology

Archaeology

Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...

. It can be seen as a blanket term for paleobotany

Paleobotany

Paleobotany, also spelled as palaeobotany , is the branch of paleontology or paleobiology dealing with the recovery and identification of plant remains from geological contexts, and their use for the biological reconstruction of past environments , and both the evolutionary history of plants, with a...

 and animal osteology

Osteology

Osteology is the scientific study of bones. A subdiscipline of anatomy, anthropology, and archeology, osteology is a detailed study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements, teeth, morphology, function, disease, pathology, the process of ossification , the resistance and hardness of bones , etc...

. The difference between archaeobiology and palaeontology is mainly one of date: archaeobiologists typically work with more recent, non-fossilised

Fossil

Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

material found at archaeological sites. Only very rarely are archaeobiological excavations performed at sites with no sign of human presence.