Boomplaas Cave (Member BRL)
Basic information
Sample name: Boomplaas Cave (Member BRL)

Reference: J. T. Faith. 2013. Taphonomic and paleoecological change in the large mammal sequence from Boomplaas Cave, western Cape, South Africa. Journal of Human Evolution 65(6):715-730 [ER 3779]
Geography
Country: South Africa

State: Western Cape



Coordinate: 33° 22' 14" S, 22° 9' 31" E
Coordinate basis: stated in text

Time interval: Pleistocene - Holocene

Section: 3779

Unit number: 3

Unit order: above to below

Max Ma: 0.010425

Min Ma: 0.0091

Age basis: radiocarbon (uncalibrated)

Geography comments: "Boomplaas Cave is located in the Cango Valley in the foothills of the Swartberg mountain range, north of Oudtshoorn, Eden District Municipality in the Western Cape Province, South Africa".
The BRL member of the deposit has been radiocarbon dated to between 10,425 ± 125 BP and 9100 ± 135 BP (12,613–9866 cal. BP).

Environment
Lithology: not described

Taphonomic context: cave,human accumulation

Archaeology: stone tools

Habitat comments: "Boomplaas Cave contains a stratified sequence of Middle Stone Age (MSA) and Late Stone Age (LSA) deposits spanning the last 65,000 years. People were the primary accumulators of the faunal remains in the LSA assemblages younger than ∼18,000 years ago (CL to BLD). In the LSA and MSA deposits dating from 18,000 to 50,000 years ago (BOL to GWA), a combination of humans, carnivores, and raptors accumulated the faunal remains, while the lowermost units were accumulated by carnivores and raptors".

Methods
Life forms: carnivores,primates,rodents,ungulates,other large mammals,other small mammals

Sampling methods: quarry

Sample size: 855 specimens

Sampled by: H. J. Deacon

Years: 1974 - 1979

Sampling comments: "Excavations were conducted by H.J. Deacon from 1974 to 1979. In 2009 and 2010, taphonomic and taxonomic data were collected on thousands of previously unsorted specimens, in addition to those previously examined. All MSA and LSA units were examined with the exception of the uppermost pastoralist levels (member DGL)".

Metadata
Sample number: 4084

Contributor: Benjamin Carter

Enterer: Benjamin Carter

Created: 2023-02-23 13:02:26

Modified: 2023-05-30 04:57:03

Abundance distribution
24 species
7 singletons
total count 855
geometric series index: 40.4
Fisher's α: 4.586
geometric series k: 0.7855
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.8361
Shannon's H: 2.1403
Good's u: 0.9918
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts.
Register
Lepus capensis46
Bunolagus monticularis94
also 18 Leporidae indet.
Hystrix africaeaustralis1415 kg browser
Papio ursinus7820 kg
Herpestes pulverulentus3787 g carnivore-insectivore
Caracal caracal112 kg carnivore
"Felis cf caracal"
Felis sp.1
Procavia capensis2582.8 kg browser
Equus sp.53
zebra/quagga
Potamochoerus larvatus138 kg grazer-browser
also 3 Suidae indet.
Taurotragus oryx9393 kg browser-grazer
Tragelaphus strepsiceros11189 kg browser-grazer
also 8 Tragelaphini indet.
Hippotragus leucophaeus4
Hippotragus equinus1246 kg grazer
also 11 Hippotragus sp.
Redunca fulvorufula229 kg
Redunca arundinum1 grazer
also 5 Redunca sp.
Alcelaphus buselaphus1143 kg grazer-browser
Damaliscus pygargus483 kg grazer-browser
"Damaliscus dorcas", also 5 Alcelaphinae indet.
Caprinae indet.75
an unknown extinct species
Pelea capreolus3116 kg grazer
Oreotragus oreotragus162 browser-grazer
Raphicerus melanotis29.1 kg
Raphicerus campestris19.7 kg browser-grazer
also 83 Raphicerus sp. and 126 Neotragini indet.
Syncerus caffer2548 kg grazer-browser