extantextantextinctextinctextantextinctextantextinctextinctextinctextinctextantextinctextinctextantextantextantextantextantextinctextantextinctextinctextantextantextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextantextantextantextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextinctextantextinctextinctextinctextinctextantextantextantextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextinctextantextinctextantextantextantextantextantextantextantextinctextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextinctextinctextantextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextantextinctextantextinctextantextantextinctextantextinctextinctextantextinctextinctextantextantextantextinctextantextinctextantextinctextantextantextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextinctextantextinctextantextantextinctextinctextinctextantextantextinctextantextinctextantextantextantextinctextantextantextantextinctextantextinctextinctextinctextantextantextantextinctextinctextantextinctextantextantextinctextantextinctextantextantextantextantextantextantextinctextantextantextinctextantextantextantextinctextant The Ecological Register: Sehonghong (ALP)
Sehonghong (ALP)
Basic information
Sample name: Sehonghong (ALP)

Reference: I. Plug and P. Mitchell. 2008. Sehonghong: hunter-gatherer utilization of animal resources in the highlands of Lesotho. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 45:31-53 [ER 3742]
Geography
Country: Lesotho

State: Thaba-Tseka


Coordinate: 29° 46' S, 28° 47' E
Coordinate basis: stated in text

Time interval: Holocene

Section: 3742

Unit number: 3

Unit order: above to below

Max Ma: 0.00729

Min Ma: 0.00701

Age basis: radiocarbon (uncalibrated)

Geography comments: "Sehonghong is a large rock-shelter on the banks of the Sehonghong River, close to its confluence with the Senqu (Orange/Gariep) in the Thaba Tseka District of the highlands of Lesotho. The site lies at an elevation of 1800 m above sea level".
"Layer ALP produced four highly similar radiocarbon dates ranging from 7290 ± 80 BP to 7010 ± 70 BP, with a mean value of 7150 BP".

Environment
Lithology: ash

Taphonomic context: human accumulation,rock shelter

Archaeology: hearths,stone tools,other structures

Habitat comments: "Layer ALP (Ashy Loam with Plants) consists of a series of predominantly reddish-brown or black ashy loams, many of which contain partly humified plant remains. It contained one pit and two shallow hearths, along with a ‘later Oakhurst’ lithic assemblage, featuring many retouched tools".
"While not all of the animal remains in the deposit would have been accumulated by people, the intense degree of fragmentation and burning that characterizes the Sehonghong assemblages strongly suggests that people were responsible for acquiring almost all of the faunal remains".

Methods
Life forms: carnivores,primates,rodents,ungulates,other large mammals,other small mammals,birds,lizards,snakes,turtles,frogs,fishes,clams,snails

Sampling methods: quarry,screenwash

Sample size: 1287 specimens

Sampled by: P. Mitchell

Years: 1992

Sampling comments: "The primary excavation of the site was conducted by P. Mitchell in 1992. All sediment removed from the deposits was dry-sieved through a 1.5 mm mesh".
For Layer ALP, "188 buckets of deposit were removed in 39 units".

Metadata
Sample number: 3981

Contributor: Benjamin Carter

Enterer: Benjamin Carter

Created: 2022-08-25 13:25:17

Modified: 2023-05-30 01:41:18

Abundance distribution
39 species
8 singletons
total count 1287
geometric series index: 57.5
Fisher's α: 7.589
geometric series k: 0.8671
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.9010
Shannon's H: 2.6831
Good's u: 0.9938
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts.
Register
Papio hamadryas12312 kg
Vulpes chama12.7 kg carnivore-frugivore
Canis mesomelas47.9 kg carnivore
Suricata suricatta1663 g invertivore-carnivore
also 6 Herpestidae indet.
Proteles cristatus19.1 kg insectivore
Caracal caracal612 kg carnivore
Felis lybica2
"Felis silvestris"; also 1 Felis sp. and 7 Carnivora indet.
Equus quagga30279 kg grazer
Procavia capensis2252.8 kg browser
Phacochoerus africanus482 kg grazer-browser
Connochaetes gnou44 grazer
Alcelaphus buselaphus13143 kg grazer-browser
also 2 Alcelaphinae indet.
Sylvicapra grimmia313 kg browser-grazer
Antidorcas marsupialis440 kg browser-grazer
Oreotragus oreotragus115 browser-grazer
Ourebia ourebi414 kg grazer-browser
Raphicerus campestris379.7 kg browser-grazer
Pelea capreolus10716 kg grazer
Hippotragus cf. leucophaeus1
Taurotragus oryx32393 kg browser-grazer
"Tragelaphus oryx"
Redunca arundinum1 grazer
Redunca fulvorufula729 kg
also 817 Bovidae indet.
Pedetes capensis22.4 kg
Hystrix africaeaustralis1515 kg browser
Otomys sp.59
Cryptomys sp.3
also 62 Rodentia indet.
Pronolagus sp.1
Lepus saxatilis292.0 kg
also 3 Lepus sp. and 81 Lagomorpha indet.
Struthio camelus1111 kg grazer-browser
Scleroptila cf. afra3
"Scleroptila cf. africanus"; also 62 Aves indet.
Testudinidae indet.1
"Tortoise"
Serpentes indet.16
Pseudocordylus sp.2
also 16 Lacertilia indet.
Anura indet.22
"Frog/toad"
Achatina sp.105
also 16 Gastropoda indet.: including 1 "Bulinus/Succinea"
Unio caffer9
also 33 Unionidae indet.
Labeobarbus aeneus226
Labeo capensis13
also 472 Labeoninae indet.
Austroglanis sclateri15