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).
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.
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Register
Lepus capensis | 46 | |
Bunolagus monticularis | 94 | |
also 18 Leporidae indet. | ||
Hystrix africaeaustralis | 14 | 15 kg browser |
Papio ursinus | 78 | 20 kg |
Herpestes pulverulentus | 3 | 787 g carnivore-insectivore |
Caracal caracal | 1 | 12 kg carnivore |
"Felis cf caracal" | ||
Felis sp. | 1 | |
Procavia capensis | 258 | 2.8 kg browser |
Equus sp. | 53 | |
zebra/quagga | ||
Potamochoerus larvatus | 1 | 38 kg grazer-browser |
also 3 Suidae indet. | ||
Taurotragus oryx | 9 | 393 kg browser-grazer |
Tragelaphus strepsiceros | 11 | 189 kg browser-grazer |
also 8 Tragelaphini indet. | ||
†Hippotragus leucophaeus | 4 | |
Hippotragus equinus | 1 | 246 kg grazer |
also 11 Hippotragus sp. | ||
Redunca fulvorufula | 2 | 29 kg |
Redunca arundinum | 1 | grazer |
also 5 Redunca sp. | ||
Alcelaphus buselaphus | 1 | 143 kg grazer-browser |
Damaliscus pygargus | 4 | 83 kg grazer-browser |
"Damaliscus dorcas", also 5 Alcelaphinae indet. | ||
Caprinae indet. | 75 | |
an unknown extinct species | ||
Pelea capreolus | 31 | 16 kg grazer |
Oreotragus oreotragus | 162 | browser-grazer |
Raphicerus melanotis | 2 | 9.1 kg |
Raphicerus campestris | 1 | 9.7 kg browser-grazer |
also 83 Raphicerus sp. and 126 Neotragini indet. | ||
Syncerus caffer | 2 | 548 kg grazer-browser |