Carpinteria Asphalt Pit: Late/Upper Pleistocene, California
collected by N. Stuart 1927
List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
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unclassified
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Arceuthobium sp. leaf, flower
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| "twigs, scale-leaves, staminate and pistillate flowers, and fruits" | ||||||||||
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Chorizanthe sp. flower
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| organs not indicated, flowers is a guess | ||||||||||
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Reptilia
- Strigiformes
- Strigidae
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Bubo virginianus
(Gmelin 1788)
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2 specimens | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Cuculiformes
- Cuculidae
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Geococcyx californianus
(Lesson 1829)
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1 specimen | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Piciformes
- Picidae
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Colaptes cafer
(Gmelin 1788)
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2 specimens | |||||||||
| recombined as Colaptes auratus cafer | ||||||||||
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Reptilia
- Anseriformes
- Anatidae
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Anas ? platyrhynchos
Linnaeus 1758
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2 specimens | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Passeriformes
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Passeriformes indet.
Linnaeus 1758
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1 specimen | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Passeriformes
- Corvidae
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Corvus corax
Linnaeus 1758
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2 specimens | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Cathartiformes
- Cathartidae
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Gymnogyps californianus
(Shaw 1797)
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4 specimens | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Falconidae
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Polyborus cheriway
(Jacquin 1784)
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2 specimens | |||||||||
| recombined as Caracara cheriway | ||||||||||
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Reptilia
- Teratornithidae
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Teratornis merriami
Miller 1909
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1 specimen | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Meleagridae
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Parapavo californica
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17 specimens | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Odontophoridae
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Lophortyx californica
(Shaw 1798)
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1 specimen | |||||||||
| recombined as Callipepla californica | ||||||||||
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Reptilia
- Accipitriformes
- Accipitridae
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Accipitridae indet.
Viellot 1816
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15 specimens | |||||||||
| "Buteonid hawks" | ||||||||||
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Aquila chrysaetos
(Linnaeus 1758)
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28 specimens | |||||||||
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Neophrontops americanus
Miller 1916
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1 specimen | |||||||||
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Neogyps errans
Miller 1916
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1 specimen | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Colubridae
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Coluber constrictor
Linnaeus 1758
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Brattstrom 1955 | |||||||||
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Thamnophis sp.
Fitzinger 1843
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Brattstrom 1955 | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Anguidae
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Elgaria multicarinata
(Blainville 1835)
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Brattstrom 1955 | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Iguanidae
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Sceloporus occidentalis
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Brattstrom 1955 | |||||||||
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Reptilia
- Testudines
- Emydidae
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Clemmys marmorata
(Baird and Girard 1852)
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Brattstrom 1955 | |||||||||
| original and current combination Emys marmorata | ||||||||||
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Mammalia
- Proboscidea
- Mammutidae
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Mammut pacificus
Dooley et al. 2019
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Dooley et al. 2019 | 1 specimen | ||||||||
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Mammalia
- Carnivora
- Mephitidae
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Mephitis sp.
Cuvier 1800
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Mammalia
- Carnivora
- Canidae
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Canis ? ochropus
Eschscholtz 1829
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| synonym of Canis latrans | ||||||||||
| "Canis, probably ochropus" | ||||||||||
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Urocyon cf. californicus
Merriam 1899
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| "Urocyon, near californicus" | ||||||||||
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= Urocyon cf. cinereoargenteus
Schreber 1775
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Lutugin 1894 | |||||||||
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Aenocyon cf. dirus
(Leidy 1858)
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| "Aenocyon, near dirus" | ||||||||||
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Mammalia
- Perissodactyla
- Equidae
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Equus cf. occidentalis
Leidy 1865
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| synonym of Equus (Hesperohippus) mexicanus | ||||||||||
| "Equus, near occidentalis" | ||||||||||
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Mammalia
- Cervidae
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Odocoileus sp.
Rafinesque 1832
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Mammalia
- Lagomorpha
- Leporidae
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Lepus sp.
Linnaeus 1758
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Mammalia
- Rodentia
- Sciuridae
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Eutamias sp.
Trouessart 1880
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Insecta
- Coleoptera
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Coleoptera indet.
Linnaeus 1758
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| "remains of beetles" | ||||||||||
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Insecta
- Coleoptera
- Carabidae
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Scaphinotus interruptus
(Menetries 1843)
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Miller 1978 | 1 specimen | ||||||||
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Insecta
- Coleoptera
- Tenebrionidae
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Eleodes grandicollis
Mannerheim 1843
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Doyen and Miller 1980 | 1 specimen | ||||||||
| recombined as Eleodes (Eleodes) grandicollis | ||||||||||
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Eleodes acuticaudus
LeConte 1851
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Doyen and Miller 1980 | 6 specimens | ||||||||
| recombined as Eleodes (Eleodes) acuticauda | ||||||||||
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Eleodes laticollis
LeConte 1851
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Doyen and Miller 1980 | 15 specimens | ||||||||
| synonym of Eleodes (Eleodes) acuticauda | ||||||||||
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Eleodes gracilis
LeConte 1858
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Doyen and Miller 1980 | 5 specimens | ||||||||
| recombined as Eleodes (Eleodes) gracilis | ||||||||||
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Eleodes giganteus
(Mannerheim 1843)
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Doyen and Miller 1980 | 2 specimens | ||||||||
| recombined as Eleodes (Xysta) gigantea | ||||||||||
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Angiospermae
- Ericales
- Ericaceae
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Arctostaphylos sp. leaf, flower
Adanson 1763
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| "3 species... wood, leaves, flowers, and fruits" | ||||||||||
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Angiospermae
- Rosales
- Pomaceae
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Amelanchier sp. flower
Medikus 1789
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| "flowers" | ||||||||||
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Angiospermae
- Proteales
- Platanaceae
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Platanus sp. leaf
Linnaeus 1753
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| organs not indicated, leaves is a guess | ||||||||||
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Coniferales
- Cupressaceae
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Cupressus goveniana leaf, seed repro
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Pinopsida
- Pinales
- Pinaceae
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Pinus muricata leaf, seed repro
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Pinus radiata leaf, seed repro
Don 1837
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| "The conifers are all represented by wood, leaves, ovulate and staminate strobile" | ||||||||||
| see common names | ||||||||||
Geography
| Country: | United States | State/province: | California | County: | Santa Barbara |
| Coordinates: | 34.4° North, 119.5° West (view map) | ||||
| Paleocoordinates: | 34.4° North, 119.5° West | ||||
| Basis of coordinate: | based on nearby landmark | ||||
| Geographic resolution: | small collection |
Time
| Period: | Quaternary | Epoch: | Pleistocene |
| Stage: | Late/Upper Pleistocene | 10 m.y. bin: | Cenozoic 6 |
| Key time interval: | Late/Upper Pleistocene | ||
| Age range of interval: | 0.12900 - 0.01170 m.y. ago |
Stratigraphy
| Stratigraphic resolution: | group of beds | ||||
| Stratigraphy comments: "The Pleistocene formation is practically in horizontal position and reaches a thickness in cliff-section of 10 to 12 feet" | |||||
Lithology and environment
| Primary lithology: | "cross stratification" conglomeratic,carbonaceous sandstone |
| Lithology description: "sharp sand and some gravel... thoroughly impregnated by petroleum... sometimes cross-bedded" | |
| Environment: | tar |
Taphonomy
| Modes of preservation: | body,original chitin,original cellulose |
| Size of fossils: | macrofossils |
| Feeding/predation traces: | arthropod boring |
Collection methods and comments
| Collection methods: | survey of museum collection | ||
| Reason for describing collection: | general faunal/floral analysis | ||
| Collectors: | N. Stuart | Collection dates: | 1927 |
| Collection method comments: discovered when "a steam shovel which was taking out road material over a deposit of asphalt disclosed some bones"; material is in the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and/or CIT collection | |||
Metadata
| Database number: | 79630 | ||
| Authorizer: | J. Alroy, M. Clapham, M. Uhen | Enterer: | J. Alroy, M. Clapham, M. Uhen |
| Modifier: | M. Uhen | Research group: | paleoentomology,vertebrate |
| Created: | 2008-03-15 16:35:30 | Last modified: | 2022-03-07 08:27:28 |
| Access level: | the public | Released: | 2008-03-15 16:35:30 |
| Creative Commons license: | CC BY |
Reference information
Primary reference:
| 26738. | R. Hoffmann, C. Stock, L. Miller, R. W. Chaney, and H. L. Mason. 1927. The Finding of Pleistocene Material in an Asphalt Pit at Carpinteria, California. Science 66:155-157 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy/M. Uhen] |
Secondary references:
| 28656 | B. H. Brattstrom. 1955. Small herpetofauna from the Pleistocene of Carpinteria, California. Copeia 1955(2):138-139 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy] | |
| 35474 | A. C. Dooley, E. Scott, J. Green, K. B. Springer, B. S. Booley and G. J. Smith. 2019. Mammut pacificus sp. nov., a newly recognized species of mastodon from the Pleistocene of western North America. PeerJ 7:e6614 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen/M. Uhen] | |
| 52658 | J. T. Doyen and S. E. Miller. 1980. Review of Pleistocene darkling ground beetles of the California asphalt deposits (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae, Zopheridae). The Pan-Pacific Entomologist 56:1-10 [M. Clapham/M. Clapham] | |
| 52657 | S. E. Miller. 1978. A fossil of Scaphinotus interruptus from the Pleistocene Carpinteria asphalt deposit, Santa Barbara County, California (Coleoptera, Carabidae). The Pan-Pacific Entomologist 54:74-75 [M. Clapham/M. Clapham] |