My research focusses on the relationship through time between man and animal in his environment, as reflected in faunal assemblages from archaeological sites in Europe, the Near East and Africa. I conducted my research at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels and at the Centre for Archeological Sciences of the KU Leuven. As an archaeozoologist I am particularly interested in the study of fish remains as a meansof investigatingthe role of fish in the human diet, and of documentingstatus, former fishing techniques, seasonality and trade relationships. In addition, I became very interested in the domestication of the cat after excavating the complete skeletons of small felids in the predynastic site of Hierakonpolis illustrating that cat taming started 2000 years earlier in Egypt than previously thought.