Crystal Ball Cave (Pleistocene to of the United States)

Also known as LACM locality 4534; BYU locality 772

Where: Millard County, Utah (39.5° N, 114.0° W: paleocoordinates 39.5° N, 114.0° W)

• coordinate stated in text

• outcrop-level geographic resolution

When: Late/Upper Pleistocene to Late/Upper Pleistocene (0.1 - 0.0 Ma)

• "Radiocarbon dates show that the fossils have been accumulating since at least 23,000 Y.B.P." and continues to the present although "many elements of the present local fauna are... poorly represented"; the stated minimum is based on one sample with no detectable C-14, but there are three dates on large mammals and the oldest is "18,820 + 1510 - 1270 years B.P"

•"fossiliferous sediments are unstratified and never more than 0.5 m (1.5 feet) thick"

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: cave; unlithified, shelly/skeletal, calcareous siltstone

• "shallow dry dust... Sediment from site 1... is composed of about 80% calcite and 20% very fine but poorly sorted clastic grains... mostly derived from within the cave by weathering... sediments of sites 1 and 2 are composed of nearly 10% vertebrate bones by volume"

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Preservation: bone collector

Collected by H. H. Gerisch, R. Patterson, M. Stokes, W. E. Miller, T. Heaton, J. Heaton in 1956, 1977, 1981, 1982; reposited in the LACM

Collection methods: bulk, surface (float), sieve,

• LACM and Brigham Young University collections

•"early [LACM] collections consisted of float only" and also included "some specimens" from "Gandy Mountain Cave" which "lies about 0.4 km... south of and 30 m... higher than Crystal Ball Cave"

•new collecting was with a combination of "digging... and collecting specimens by hand"; screening "in the lab" for microvertebrates; and screening "inside the cave" for "larger bones" and "was done mainly at sites 1 and 2, but a few specimens were taken from sites 3 and 4... No significant differences were found between fossils from the various sites"

Primary reference: T. H. Heaton. 1985. Quaternary paleontology and paleocology of Crystal Ball Cave, Millard County, Utah: with emphasis on mammals and description of a new species of fossil skunk. Great Basin Naturalist 45(3):337-390 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy]more details

Purpose of describing collection: general faunal/floral analysis

PaleoDB collection 93326: authorized by John Alroy, entered by John Alroy on 14.01.2010, edited by Richard Hulbert

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• Aphodius distinctus is considered "Recent" because it is a European introduction

•Ovis cf. aries is also present but considered to be "Recent" based on the material's "greasy appearance"

•numerous lizard, snake, and bird specimens were recovered but not identified

unclassified
  -
Ginkgoopsida
 Ephedrales - Ephedraceae
Angiospermae
 Brassicales - Brassicaceae
Brassicaceae indet. Burnett 1835
 Poales - Poaceae
cf. Panicum sp. Linnaeus 1753 panicgrass
Gastropoda
 Stylommatophora - Oreohelicidae
Oreohelix strigosa mountain snail
Malacostraca
 Isopoda - Armadillidae
? Armadillidae indet. Brandt 1831 isopod
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Sciuridae
Eutamias minimus Bachman 1839 least chipmunk
"Spermophilus townsendii" = Urocitellus townsendii Bachman 1839 Townsend's ground squirrel
Marmota flaviventris Audubon and Bachman 1841 yellow-bellied marmot
"Eutamias dorsalis" = Neotamias dorsalis Baird 1855 cliff chipmunk
Ammospermophilus cf. leucurus Merriam 1889 white-tailed antelope squirrel
 Rodentia - Geomyidae
Microdipodops megacephalus Merriam 1891 dark kangaroo mouse
Thomomys umbrinus Richardson 1829 southern pocket gopher
 Rodentia - Heteromyidae
Dipodomys microps, "Perognathus cf. formosus" = Chaetodipus formosus
Dipodomys microps Merriam 1904 chisel-toothed kangaroo rat
"Perognathus cf. formosus" = Chaetodipus formosus Merriam 1889 long-tailed pocket mouse
 Rodentia - Cricetidae
Neotoma cinerea Ord 1815 bushy-tailed woodrat
Neotoma lepida Thomas 1893 desert woodrat
"Lagurus curtatus" = Lemmiscus curtatus Cope 1868 sagebrush vole
Peromyscus cf. truei Shufeldt 1885 pinyon mouse
Peromyscus maniculatus Wagner 1843 deer mouse
Peromyscus cf. crinitus Merriam 1891 canyon mouse
Microtus cf. pennsylvanicus Ord 1815 meadow vole
Microtus cf. montanus Peale 1848 montane vole
Microtus cf. longicaudus Merriam 1888 long-tailed vole
Ondatra zibethicus Linnaeus 1766 muskrat
 Lagomorpha - Leporidae
Lepus townsendii Bachman 1839 white-tailed jackrabbit
Lepus cf. americanus Erxleben 1777 snowshoe hare
Lepus californicus Gray 1837 black-tailed jackrabbit
"Sylvilagus idahoensis" = Brachylagus idahoensis Merriam 1891 pygmy rabbit
Sylvilagus nuttallii Bachman 1837 mountain cottontail
 Lagomorpha - Ochotonidae
Ochotona princeps Richardson 1828 American pika
 Theriamorpha - Soricidae
Sorex sp. Linnaeus 1758 long-tailed shrew
 Chiroptera - Vespertilionidae
Antrozous pallidus Le Conte 1856 pallid bat
? Plecotus townsendii Cooper 1837 Townsend's big-eared bat
Myotis sp. Kaup 1829 vesper bat
 Perissodactyla - Equidae
Equus ? conversidens, "Equus cf. scotti" = Equus mexicanus
Equus ? conversidens Owen 1869 horse
"Equus cf. scotti" = Equus mexicanus Hibbard 1955 horse
 Artiodactyla - Camelidae
Camelops hesternus Leidy 1873 camel
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
Odocoileus hemionus Rafinesque 1817 mule deer
cf. Cervus elaphus Linnaeus 1758 red deer
 Artiodactyla - Bovidae
"cf. Symbos cavifrons" = Bootherium bombifrons, Ovis canadensis
"cf. Symbos cavifrons" = Bootherium bombifrons Harlan 1825 antelope
Ovis canadensis Shaw 1804 bighorn sheep
 Artiodactyla - Antilocapridae
Antilocapra americana Ord 1815 pronghorn
 Carnivora - Felidae
Smilodon cf. fatalis Leidy 1868 saber-toothed cat
"Felis concolor" = Puma concolor Linnaeus 1771 puma
Lynx cf. rufus Schreber 1777 bobcat
 Carnivora - Mephitidae
"Brachyprotoma brevimala n. sp." = Brachyprotoma obtusata
"Brachyprotoma brevimala n. sp." = Brachyprotoma obtusata Cope 1899 short-faced skunk
 Carnivora - Mustelidae
"Mustela cf. vison" = Neogale vison, "Mustela cf. frenata" = Neogale frenata
"Mustela cf. vison" = Neogale vison Schreber 1777 mink
"Mustela cf. frenata" = Neogale frenata Lichtenstein 1831 long-tailed weasel
 Carnivora - Canidae
Canis cf. latrans Say 1823 coyote
Canis cf. lupus Linnaeus 1758 gray wolf
Vulpes velox Say 1823 swift fox
Vulpes vulpes Linnaeus 1758 red fox
Aves
 Charadriiformes - Scolopacidae
Tringa melanoleuca Gmelin 1789 greater yellowlegs
 Falconiformes - Falconidae
Falco sp. Linnaeus 1758 falcon
Falco mexicanus Schlegel 1850 Prairie falcon
Polyborus plancus Miller 1777 southern caracara
 Falconiformes - Vulturoidae
cf. Teratornis merriami Miller 1909 Merriam's teratorn
 Accipitriformes - Accipitridae
Aquila chrysaetos Linnaeus 1758 golden eagle
Accipiter gentilis Linnaeus 1758 northern goshawk
Accipiter striatus Vieillot 1897 sharp-shinned hawk
Buteo sp. de Lacepède 1799 hawk
Buteo lagopus Pontoppidan 1763 rough-legged hawk
or could be Buteo swainsoni
Buteo jamaicensis Gmelin 1788 red-tailed hawk
or could be Buteo regalis
 Caprimulgiformes - Caprimulgidae
Chordeiles minor Forster 1771 common nighthawk
 Passeriformes - Troglodytidae
Salpinctes obsoletus Say 1822 rock wren
 Passeriformes - Corvidae
 Podicipediformes - Podicipedidae
Podiceps nigricollis Brehm 1831 black-necked grebe
 Strigiformes - Strigidae
Bubo cf. sinclairi Miller 1911 owl
Bubo virginianus Gmelin 1788 great horned owl
Asio otus Linnaeus 1758 long-eared owl
 Gruiformes - Rallidae
Fulica americana Gmelin 1789 American coot
 Gruiformes - Gruidae
"cf. Grus canadensis" = Antigone canadensis
"cf. Grus canadensis" = Antigone canadensis Linnaeus 1758 Sandhill crane
 Anseriformes - Anatidae
Clangula hyemalis Linnaeus 1758 long-tailed duck
Anas crecca Linnaeus 1758 Eurasian teal
or could be Anas discors
Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus 1758 mallard
Anas acuta Linnaeus 1758 northern pintail
 Galliformes - Phasianidae
Dendragapus obscurus Say 1823 dusky grouse
Centrocercus urophasianus Bonaparte 1827 greater sage-grouse
Actinopteri
 Teleostei -