The Late Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) Vertebrate Local Fauna from Zone 3 of Kincaid Rockshelter (41UV2), Uvalde County, Texas

Summary

Kincaid Rockshelter (41UV2) is a stratified, multi-component archaeological site spanning the late Pleistocene-Holocene in Uvalde County along the Sabinal River in south-central Texas. Texas Memorial Museum investigations in 1948 produced a small but relatively diverse sample of late Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) vertebrates from the lacustrine Zone 3 depositional unit. Zone 3 material was examined as part of a review of American lion (Panthera leo atrox) remains from Texas. New qualitative and quantitative observations demonstrated the presence of two forms of extinct horse (Equus mexicanus, E. francisi), dire wolf (Canis dirus), American lion, yesterday’s camel (Camelops hesternus), ancient bison (Bison antiquus), mammoth (Mammuthus), alligator (Alligator mississippiensis), softshell turtle (Trionyx), pond turtle (Trachemys scripta), and extinct box turtle (Terrapene carolina putnami). While the presence of American lion in Zone 3 was confirmed, reported jaguar (Panthera onca) remains were re-assigned to Panthera leo atrox. Zone 3 specimens placed the American lion in the Balcones Escarpment, a diverse modern ecotone between the rugged Edwards Plateau and the Gulf Coastal Plain. In combination, four confirmed records of Panthera leo atrox extended across Texas, from the Southern High Plains to the Gulf Coast, evincing the versatile ecology of this dominant Rancholabrean carnivore.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20700