Main Menu   Sites

Bat Cave

NM: Catron Co.: 33°46'30"N, 108°l2'42"W: 2134 m.

rule

Location of Bat Cave.Age. Late Wisconsin/Holocene. >11,000 BP to present.

General Description. Cave at the southeastern edge of the San Agustín Plains. The cave apparently is wave-cut, lying a short distance above the third of six fossil beach lines of Pleistocene Lake San Agustín.

Discussion. The cave produced a long sequence of corn evolution as well as other archaeological information (Dick 1965). Most of the fauna (Scarbrough 1986; not given here) is either Holocene or not clearly Pleistocene and was excavated by W. H. Wills (1988). A radiocarbon date of 10,410 ± 110 (A-3728) was obtained from Stratum 4, top of level 17, and a date of 11,370 ± 310 from Stratum 7, level 23 (Scarbrough 1986).

Stratum 4, level 17, is arbitrarily chosen as the division between Pleistocene and Holocene, and only taxa from this level or deeper are listed below. All taxa listed are from Scarbrough (1986).

Fauna.

Amphibia

Ambystoma mavortium—Barred Tiger Salamander

As Ambystoma sp.

Reptilia

Phrynosoma sp.—Horned Lizards

Aves

Anas sp.—Dabbling Ducks

Mammalia

Tamias minimus—Least Chipmunk
Chaetodipus/Perognathus sp.—Pocket Mice
Thomomys bottae—Botta's Pocket Gopher
Microtus pennsylvanicus—Meadow Vole
Microtus mogollonensis—Mogollon Vole
Neotoma sp.—Woodrats
Peromyscus sp.—Deer Mice
Sorex monticola—Montane Shrew

Literature. Dick 1965; Scarbrough 1986; Wills 1988.

rule

Last Update: 10 Feb 2013