Blanche Cave (Pleistocene of Australia)

Also known as 5U4, 5U5, 5U6; Naracoorte Caves World Heritage Area

Where: South Australia, Australia (37.0° S, 140.8° E: paleocoordinates 37.0° S, 140.8° E)

• coordinate estimated from map

• small collection-level geographic resolution

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

Environment/lithology: cave; poorly lithified, silty, sandy siliciclastic sediments

• karstic cave in Oligocene to Miocene limestones; for further details see Forbes & Bestland (2007, p. 371-373)
• According to Forbes & Bestland (2007, p. 373) the fossiliferous cave sediments are “red silts overlain by yellow sands that are, in turn, capped by darker, organic-rich silts and sands. [...] Various clasts of weathered limestone, calcrete, charcoal, and bone are found throughout the three deposits [...]”.

Size class: macrofossils

Collected in the 1970s

Collection methods: sieve,

• South Australia Museum (SAM)

•Flinders University, Adelaide, vertebrate paleontology collection

Primary reference: G. J. Prideaux. 2004. Systematics and evolution of the sthenurine kangaroos. In S. W. Awramik, A. Barnosky, J. A. Doyle, M. L. Droser, P. M. Sadler (eds.), UC Publications in Geological Sciences, University of California Press 146:1-623 [G. Prideaux/G. Gully/T. Liebrecht]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 136072: authorized by John Alroy, entered by Albert Garcia Selles on 16.11.2012, edited by Torsten Liebrecht

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Amphibia
 Salientia - Leptodactylidae
"Crinia signifera" = Ranidella signifera Girard 1853 frog
Limnodynastes tasmaniensis Günther 1858 spotted marsh frog
 Salientia - Hylidae
Litoria ewingi Duméril and Bibron 1841 southern brown tree frog
Mammalia
 Rodentia -
Pseudomys apodemoides Australian mouse
Pseudomys australis Australian mouse
Pseudomys cf. gouldii Australian mouse
Pseudomys shortridgei Australian mouse
Pseudomys sp. Gray 1832 Australian mouse
 Rodentia - Muridae
 Chiroptera - Vespertilionidae
Vespertilionidae indet. Gray 1821 vesper bat
 Diprotodontia - Pseudocheiridae
Pseudocheirus peregrinus Boddaert 1785 common ringtail possum
 Diprotodontia - Potoroidae
Potorous platyops Gould 1844 potoroo
Bettongia lesueur Quoy and Gaimard 1824 bettong
 Diprotodontia - Acrobatidae
Acrobates pygmaeus Shaw 1794 feathertail glider
 Diprotodontia - Phalangeridae
Trichosurus vulpecula Kerr 1792 common brushtail possum
 Diprotodontia - Petauridae
Petaurus breviceps Waterhouse 1839 sugar glider
 Diprotodontia - Burramyidae
Cercartetus nanus Desmarest 1818 eastern pygmy possum
Cercartetus lepidus Thomas 1888 Tasmanian pygmy possum
 Diprotodontia - Macropodidae
Protemnodon brehus Owen 1874 kangaroo
"Macropus giganteus" = Macropus (Macropus) giganteus Shaw 1790 eastern grey kangaroo
Macropus rufogriseus Desmarest 1817 kangaroo
 Diprotodontia -
Sthenurus andersoni Marcus 1962 short-faced kangaroo
Procoptodon gilli Merriless 1965 short-faced kangaroo
"Procoptodon" browneorum Merriless 1968 short-faced kangaroo
 Peramelemorphia - Peramelidae
Isoodon obesulus Shaw 1797 short-nosed bandicoot
Perameles gunnii Gray 1838 eastern barred bandicoot
 Dasyuromorphia - Thylacinidae
Thylacinus cynocephalus Harris 1808 thylacine
 Dasyuromorphia - Dasyuridae
Phascogale tapoatafa Meyer 1793 brush-tailed phascogale
Antechinus flavipes Waterhouse 1838 Yellow-footed antechinus
Ningaui yvonnae Kitchener et al. 1983 Southern ningaui
Sminthopsis crassicaudata Gould 1844 fat-tailed dunnart
Sminthopsis murina Waterhouse 1837 Slender-tailed dunnart
Dasyurus viverrinus Shaw 1800 eastern quoll
Reptilia
 Squamata - Elapidae
Austrelaps superbus Günther 1858 copperhead snake
 Squamata - Scincidae
 Squamata - Agamidae
Tympanocryptis lineata Peters 1864 squamates
Rankinia diemensis Gray 1841 mountain dragon
Aves
 Charadriiformes - Charadriidae
Pluvialis squatarola Linnaeus 1758 black-bellied plover
Charadrius bicinctus Jardine and Selby 1827 double-banded plover
 Charadriiformes - Turnicidae
Turnix velox Gould 1841 little buttonquail
 Charadriiformes - Pedionomidae
Pedionomus torquatus Gould 1841 plains-wanderer
 Caprimulgiformes - Podargidae
Podargus strigoides Latham 1801 Tawny frogmouth
 Caprimulgiformes - Aegothelidae
Aegotheles cristatus Shaw 1790 Australian owlet-nightjar
 Passeriformes - Cracticidae
Gymnorhina tibicen Latham 1801 Australian magpie
 Passeriformes - Hirundinidae
Hirundo neoxena Gould 1842 welcome swallow
 Passeriformes - Corvidae
Corvus sp. Linnaeus 1758 crow
 Psittaciformes - Psittaculidae
Pezoporus wallicus Kerr 1792 ground parrot
Platycercus sp. Vigors 1825 parrot
 Psittaciformes - Psittacidae
Neophema indet. Salvadori 1891 parrot
 Strigiformes - Tytonidae
Tyto alba Scopoli 1769 barn owl
Tyto novaehollandiae Stephens 1826 Australian masked-owl
 Gruiformes - Rallidae
"Gallinula mortierii" = Tribonyx mortierii Du Bus de Gisignies 1840 Tasmanian nativehen
Gallirallus philippensis Linnaeus 1766 buff-banded rail
Porzana fluminea Gould 1843 Australian crake
 Anseriformes - Anatidae
Anas superciliosa Gmelin 1789 Pacific black duck
 Galliformes - Phasianidae
Coturnix pectoralis Gould 1837 stubble quail