Arvicoline rodent fauna from the Room 2 Excavation in Cathedral Cave, White Pine County, Nevada, and its biochronologic significance

Autor: Christopher N. Jass, Christopher J. Bell
Rok vydání: 2011
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 31:684-699
ISSN: 1937-2809
0272-4634
Popis: Test-pit excavations from 1989 in Room 2 of Cathedral Cave yielded a diverse faunal assemblage, but age estimates derived from radioisotopic dates and bio chronological assessment were widely disparate. New excavations were undertaken in 2003 to increase faunal samples and clarify chronological resolution. Arvicoline rodents recovered from the 2003 excavation include Allophaiomys pliocaenicus, Microtus meadensis, M. paroperarius, Microtus sp., Mictomys meltoni or M. kansasensis, 4- and 5-triangle morphotypes of Lemmiscus curtatus, Ondatra zibethicus, and representatives of both ancient and recent lineages of Phenacomys. A maximum age for the fauna falls between 146.02 ± 2.584 and 153.7 ± 6.4 ka, as determined through uranium-series analyses of flowstones collected near the base of the excavation. Paleomagnetic analyses, and morphological data from recovered Ondatra, are consistent with that age interpretation. Cathedral Cave contains the youngest known Irvingtonian fauna, including the youngest r...
Databáze: OpenAIRE