New Paris Sinkhole No. 4
Basic information
Sample name: New Paris Sinkhole No. 4

Reference: J. E. Guilday, P. S. Martin, and A. D. McCrady. 1964. New Paris No. 4: a Pleistocene cave deposit in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. Bulletin of the National Speleological Society 26(4):121-193 [ER 3218]
Geography
Country: United States

State: Pennsylvania


Coordinate: 40° 5' N, 78° 39' W
Coordinate basis: stated in text

Time interval: Late Pleistocene

Ma: 0.0113

Age basis: radiocarbon (uncalibrated)

Geography comments: "2.4 km [1.5 mi.] northeast of New Paris"
the lower "nine to six meters" belongs to the "Hudsonian zone" and the upper "six to four meters, may correspond to the Alleröd of Europe"
there is a date on charcoal of "11,300 +/- 1,000 yrs. B.P." from a depth of 4.6 m and another of "9,540 +/- 500 yrs. B.P." on small mammal bones at a depth of 5.2 to 6.4 m, and the latter is rejected because the "date was a short run" (presumed to be uncalibrated because errors are symmetrically distributed)

Environment
Lithology: limestone

Taphonomic context: cave,pitfall trap

Habitat comments: matrix was "rich in organic inclusions (bone, pollen charcoal)" and the walls and original roof of the pitfall were limestone
"Deposition took the form of a conical talus" in the pitfall trap
"many of the skeletons" were "still in articulation" although there "must have been some disturbance", the fill was "homogeneous", and there was "uneven deposition" (meaning that material fell down the talus)

Methods
Life forms: bats,carnivores,rodents,ungulates,other small mammals,birds,frogs

Sampling methods: quarry,screenwash

Sample size: 3925 specimens

Years: 1956 - 1963

Sampling comments: a "screen of 1.5 mm mesh" was used to wash "125 tons of matrix" (i.e., 125,000 pounds or 56,699 kg)
salamanders "have not been studied" and salamanders, Hyla cf. crucifer, and snakes are listed but not inventoried
no specimen counts are given for five additional species of birds

Metadata
Sample number: 3538

Contributor: John Alroy

Enterer: John Alroy

Created: 2019-09-14 14:38:27

Modified: 2023-09-11 10:46:37

Abundance distribution
44 species
7 singletons
total count 3925
geometric series index: 57.5
Fisher's α: 6.941
geometric series k: 0.8558
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.8991
Shannon's H: 2.7160
Good's u: 0.9982
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts.
Register
Anaxyrus americanus168
"Bufo americanus" (two subspecies found at different levels)
Lithobates pipiens130
"Rana pipiens" (limb bones are not counted)
Lithobates sylvaticus1
"Rana sylvatica"
Pedioecetes phasianellus1
Meleagris gallopavo97.8 kg omnivore
Condylura cristata1652.2 g
Parascalops breweri4
Sorex hoyi302.8 g
"Microsorex hoyi"
Sorex cinereus834.1 g
Sorex fumeus18.5 g
Sorex dispar54.5 g
Sorex arcticus158.1 g
Sorex palustris111.4 g
Blarina brevicauda9215.1 g
compared to kirtlandi and an unnamed "Pleistocene form"
Myotis keenii3424.7 g insectivore
Myotis cf. lucifugus1547.4 g insectivore
Perimyotis cf. subflavus275.6 g insectivore
compared to "Pipistrellus subflavus"
Eptesicus cf. grandis3
Marmota monax64.5 kg
Ictidomys tridecemlineatus24160 g
"Citellus tridecemlineatus"
Tamias striatus66113 g frugivore-insectivore
Glaucomys sabrinus5593.4 g
Glaucomys volans467.4 g
Tamiasciurus hudsonicus tenuidens78187 g
Neotoma cf. floridana8252 g
Peromyscus cf. maniculatus41419.1 g
Peromyscus cf. leucopus2121.0 g
Dicrostonyx hudsonius10
Synaptomys cooperi3329.0 g
Synaptomys borealis16821.3 g
Myodes gapperi63424.1 g
"Clethrionomys gapperi"
Microtus pennsylvanicus17435.7 g
Microtus chrotorrhinus4933.0 g
Microtus xanthognathus80968.5 g
Microtus pinetorum2324.0 g
"Pitymys pinetorum"
Ondatra zibethicus31.1 kg
Zapus hudsonius815.6 g
Napaeozapus insignis3722.7 g
Erethizon dorsatum39.9 kg herbivore
Lepus americanus2111.4 kg browser
teeth are fully inventoried, but there is "skeletal material representing at least 49 animals" (included in the count)
Martes americana1946 g
Pekania pennanti13.8 kg
"Martes pennanti"
Mustela nivalis277.5 g carnivore
"Mustela rixosa"
Mylohyus nasutus1