Late Pleistocene Extinction and Radiocarbon Dating

1960 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim J. Hester
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Great Plains ◽  
Bison Bison ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Alphabetical Listing ◽  
Pleistocene Mammals ◽  
Ground Sloth ◽  
Dire Wolf ◽  
Late Survival

AbstractAll radiocarbon dates from North America, associated with extinct Late Pleistocene mammals, those from levels stratigraphically later than levels with extinct forms, and dates associated with recent fauna are tabulated alphabetically by site. Dates associated with extinct fauna are cross-referenced in an alphabetical listing of species. Dates considered invalid are tabulated and are not utilized in formulating conclusions. Most herding animals, such as the Columbian mammoth, horse, camel, and bison, as well as the dire wolf, rapidly became extinct about 8000 years ago. The dates suggest a southward withdrawal from the Great Plains by the mammoth and a partial contemporaneity of Clovis elephant hunters in southern Arizona with Folsom bison hunters on the Plains. Dates for the extinction of the Imperial mammoth are probably too early. The mastodon may have survived in isolated areas after the extinction of other forms. The super bison may have become extinct earlier than 8000 years ago and Bison bison seems to have been present in some areas before the extinction of B. antiquus. Radiocarbon dates do not support the supposed late survival of the ground sloth. Extinction apparently occurred earlier in the Great Basin and Coahuila than in intervening areas.

scholarly journals Two New Late Pleistocene Avifaunas From New Mexico

The Condor ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 108 (3) ◽  
pp. 721-730 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecka L. Brasso ◽  
Steven D. Emslie
Keyword(s):  
New Mexico ◽  
Great Basin ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
New Records ◽  
Rocky Mountain ◽  
Subalpine Forest ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Aegolius Funereus ◽  
Boreal Owl ◽  
Gymnogyps Californianus

Abstract We report two new late Pleistocene avifaunas from New Mexico, recovered from Sandia Cave during archaeological excavations by F. Hibben in the 1930s and the nearby Marmot Cave excavated in 2000. The fossil assemblage from Sandia Cave consists of at least 30 taxa, including seven extralimital and two extinct species, Coragyps occidentalis (extinct vulture) and Ectopistes migratorius (Passenger Pigeon). The avifauna from Marmot Cave is limited to eight taxa shared with Sandia Cave. Two new records of Gymnogyps californianus (California Condor) are reported from these sites, as well as new records of Lagopus sp. (ptarmigan), Aegolius funereus (Boreal Owl), and Micrathene whitneyi (Elf Owl) from New Mexico. Two new radiocarbon dates on fossil G. californianus from Sandia and Marmot cave are reported at 10 795 ± 50 and 25 090 ± 220 14C years before present (B.P.), respectively. These collections provide further evidence for mixed avian communities in New Mexico during the late Pleistocene and are similar to other cave avifaunas of comparable age from the Great Basin and Rocky Mountain regions. The birds from Sandia Cave that are shared with other fossil avifaunas include species currently found in arctic tundra, boreal, and steppe habitats, as well as open, xeric communities. This collection provides additional evidence for widespread steppe-tundra, shrub, and subalpine forest environments at lower elevations of western North America during the late Pleistocene.

Age of the Shasta Ground Sloth from Aden Crater, New Mexico

1964 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 390-391
Author(s):  
Elwyn L. Simons ◽  
H. L. Alexander
Keyword(s):  
New Mexico ◽  
Tissue Sample ◽  
The Other ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Excellent Preservation ◽  
Ground Sloth ◽  
Late Survival

AbstractLate survival of the Shasta ground sloth, Nothrotherium shastense, an assumption partially based on excellent preservation of a specimen from the Aden Crater, New Mexico, can no longer be supported, at least on the basis of this specimen. Two radiocarbon dates, one derived from desiccated tissues and the other from an associated coprolite (9840 ± 160 and 11,080 ± 200 B.P.), place the specimen within the temporal span of other dated ground-sloth finds. The discrepancy of over 1000 years in these two dates can be explained by alcohol contamination of the tissue sample.

Late Pleistocene Camelops from the Gallelli Pit, Calgary, Alberta: morphology and geologic setting

1978 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 729-740 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Wilson ◽  
C. S. Churcher
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Bison Bison ◽  
Glacial Lake ◽  
Braided River ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Morphologic Variation ◽  
Bison Antiquus ◽  
Geologic Setting ◽  
Gravel Deposit ◽  
Cut And Fill

A radiocarbon-dated gravel deposit in Calgary, Alberta, has yielded a large humerus referred to the extinct camelid, Camelops cf. hesternus. With a date of 11 300 ± 290 BP (RL-757) this is the first securely dated postglacial record of Camelops in Canada. Studies of the gravels show them to represent a period of rapid aggradation by a braided river, subsequent to the drainage of glacial Lake Calgary. The gravels are equivalent in age and characteristics to the Bighill Creek Formation of the Cochrane area, 30 km west of Calgary; and are therefore assigned to that formation. Later fill units are, however, excluded from the formation as they represent Holocene cut-and-fill events of differing hydrologic significance. Recent suggestions that Lake Calgary persisted until 9000 years BP can now be rejected on the basis of stratigraphy and radiocarbon dates. Studies of the camel humerus suggest some revisions in our views concerning morphologic variation in the species: the species was probably more plastic than has been accepted to date. Associated Bison bison antiquus and Equus conversidens from the same gravels (Gallelli and Galvin Pits) are briefly described. The ungulate fauna from these pits suggests a semiforest habitat with extensive shrub and grassland elements.

scholarly journals Calibration of Radiocarbon Dates for the Late Pleistocene Using U/Th Dates on Stalagmites

Radiocarbon ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Vogel ◽  
Joel Kronfeld
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Magnetic Dipole ◽  
Satisfactory Agreement ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Calibration Curve ◽  
Dipole Field ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Magnetic Dipole Field

Twenty paired 14C and U/Th dates covering most of the past 50,000 yr have been obtained on a stalagmite from the Cango Caves in South Africa as well as some additional age-pairs on two stalagmites from Tasmania that partially fill a gap between 7 ka and 17 ka ago. After allowance is made for the initial apparent 14C ages, the age-pairs between 7 ka and 20 ka show satisfactory agreement with the coral data of Bard et al. (1990, 1993). The results for the Cango stalagmite between 25 ka and 50 ka show the 14C dates to be substantially younger than the U/Th dates except at 49 ka and 29 ka, where near correspondence occurs. The discrepancies may be explained by variations in 14C production caused by changes in the magnetic dipole field of the Earth. A tentative calibration curve for this period is offered.

Pleistocene Mammals from Gold Run Creek, Yukon Territory

1973 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 697-759 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. R. Harington ◽  
F. V. Clulow
Keyword(s):  
Yukon Territory ◽  
Radiocarbon Date ◽  
Common Elements ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Equus Asinus ◽  
Wild Ass ◽  
Pleistocene Mammals ◽  
First Time

Remains of thirteen species of mammals are reported from Pleistocene deposits at Gold Run Creek near Dawson, Yukon Territory. Eight of the thirteen species are extinct and two are no longer living in the Yukon. The most common elements of the fauna are Equus (Asinus) lambei (Yukon wild ass), and Bison crassicornis (large-horned bison). Taxidea (badger) and Bison alaskensis (Alaskan bison) are reported for the first time from the Yukon Pleistocene. A kiang-like horse is also reported from deposits at Gold Run Creek.These mammals may have inhabited a cool grassland or open parkland during late Wisconsin time. Bison crassicornis and mammoth bone from deposits at Gold Run Creek have yielded radiocarbon dates of 22 200 ± 1400 yr B.P. and 32 250 ± 1750 yr B.P. respectively. Bison alaskensis is evidently older than the remainder of the fauna as bone from the specimen yielded a radiocarbon date of over 39 900 yr B.P.

New Source of Dietary Data for Extinct Herbivores

1988 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
William A. Akersten ◽  
Theresea M. Foppe ◽  
George T. Jefferson
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Indirect Evidence ◽  
Bison Bison ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
Usual Assumption ◽  
Microhistological Analysis ◽  
Rancho La Brea ◽  
Very High ◽  
Control Study ◽  
Dietary Data

The teeth of many large herbivores contain “pockets” (fossettes, fossettids, etc.) which entrap impacted samples of food (dental boluses) during mastication. These do not preserve well in most fossil deposits, but at Rancho La Brea, paleobotanical remains survive essentially intact and dental boluses from late Pleistocene forms are amenable to microhistological analysis. Of the identifiable bolus contents, those from Bison antiquus averaged 87% nonmonocotyledons; from Camelops hesternus, 90% nonmonocotyledons; and from Equus occidentalis (one specimen), 56% nonmonocotyledons. A control study on modern Bison bison shows that the boluses contain somewhat lower percentages of monocotyledons than do alimentary samples from the same individuals. However, this accounts for only a part of the very high percentage of nonmonocotyledons in the boluses of the extinct Bison. We conclude that the populations of B. antiquus and C. hesternus represented at Rancho La Brea probably fed little on grasses and that there is enough indirect evidence to suggest that the same may be true for other populations of these taxa. The Equus data are not sufficient to do more than question the usual assumption that Pleistocene horses were always obligate grass eaters.

Points in Time: Direct Radiocarbon Dates on Great Basin Projectile Points

2013 ◽  
Vol 78 (3) ◽  
pp. 580-594 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey M. Smith ◽  
Pat Barker ◽  
Eugene M. Hattori ◽  
Anan Raymond ◽  
Ted Goebel
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Projectile Point ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Projectile Points ◽  
Primary Means ◽  
Point Types ◽  
Cross Dating ◽  
Age Estimates

AbstractTypological cross-dating is the primary means by which archaeological sites are placed into chronological frameworks. This approach relies on the assumption that artifacts at undated sites—usually projectile points—are coeval with similar artifacts found at Other, dated sites. While typological cross-dating is necessary in regions dominated by open-air lithic scatters, the approach can be problematic when undated and dated sites are separated by significant distances. Here, we present radiocarbon dates on projectile points with organic hafting material still attached or found within organic storage bags. Our results provide unequivocal ages for various morphological projectile point types at several Great Basin locales and should be useful to researchers seeking local age estimates for those point types, which often involves relying on chronological data from more distant sites. The results also highlight potential issues with uncritically applying typological cross-dating using typologies based on metric attributes, and in two cases, suggest the need to revise the age ranges for certain point styles in the western Great Basin.

First Complete Skull of a Late Pleistocene Steppe Bison (Bison priscus) in the Iberian Peninsula

Ameghiniana ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 53 (5) ◽  
pp. 543-551
Author(s):  
Jone Castaños ◽  
Pedro Castaños ◽  
Xabier Murelaga
Keyword(s):  
Iberian Peninsula ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Bison Bison ◽  
Steppe Bison ◽  
Bison Priscus
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