Crystal Ball Cave
Basic information
Sample name: Crystal Ball Cave
Sample aka: LACM 4534; BYUVP 772
Reference: T. H. Heaton. 1985. Quaternary paleontology and paleoecology 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 [ER 3109]
Geography
Country: United States
State: Utah
County: Millard
Coordinate: 39.48° N, -114.03° W
Latlng basis: stated in text
Time interval: Late Pleistocene
Max Ma: 0.01882
Min Ma: 0.01298
Age basis: radiocarbon (calibrated)
Geography comments: "4.8 km (3 miles) northwest of the town of Gandy, and 0.9 km (0.6 miles) east of the Utah-Nevada border" in sec. 30, T. 15 S, R. 19 W.
"Late Wisconsinan" with four dates, one a minimum and the others ranging from 18, 820 + 1510 - 1270 to 12, 980 + 2680 - 2000 years B.P. (presumed to be calibrated because errors are not symmetrically distributed)
"Late Wisconsinan" with four dates, one a minimum and the others ranging from 18, 820 + 1510 - 1270 to 12, 980 + 2680 - 2000 years B.P. (presumed to be calibrated because errors are not symmetrically distributed)
Environment
Lithology: limestone
Taphonomic context: cave
Habitat comments: "the sediments are mostly derived from within the cave by weathering of the limestone and calcite crystals... It is difficult to say if any other animals besides wood rats contributed to transporting fossils into the cave... Clearly no inorganic processes such as wind, water, or gravity could have been responsible for the fossil deposits"
Methods
Life forms: herbs, bats, carnivores, rodents, ungulates, other small mammals, birds, lizards, fishes, scarab beetles, other arthropods, snails
Sampling methods: quarry, screenwash
Sample size: 9651 specimens
Years: 1977, 1981, 1982
Net or trap nights: 0
Basal area status: not applicable
Sampling comments: "Sediment was also taken to the lab in bags and screened"
Metadata
Sample no: 3396
Contributor no: John Alroy
Enterer: John Alroy
Created: 2019-08-29 19:15:16
Modified: 2023-04-03 09:14:04
Abundance distribution
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts. Values are logged.
Statistics
64 species
8 singletons
total count 9651
geometric series index: 88.6
Fisher's α: 9.2
geometric series k: 0.8735
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.6555
Shannon's H: 1.5955
Good's u: 0.9992
Register
| Ephedra cf. viridis | 2 | |
| Chrysothamnus sp. | 1 | |
| Haplopappus nanus | 5 | |
| Peristyle stansburii | 4 | |
| Brassicaceae indet. | 8 | |
| Opuntia sp. | 12 | |
| Symphoricarpos cf. longiflorus | 61 | |
| Elymus sp. | 2 | |
| compared to this genus | ||
| Panicum sp. | 6 | |
| compared to this genus | ||
| Oreohelix strigosa | 9 | |
| Armadillidae indet. | 1 | |
| questionably referred | ||
| Aphodius distinctus | 1 | |
| Teleostei indet. | 37 | |
| Squamata indet. | 265 | |
| Aves indet. | 611 | |
| Sorex sp. | 1 | |
| another 32 specimens may represent this species | ||
| Myotis sp. | 27 | |
| possibly Plecotus | ||
| Corynorhinus ? townsendii | 24 | 8.6 g |
| "Plecotus ? townsendii" | ||
| Antrozous pallidus | 6 | |
| Ochotona princeps | 54 | 157.0 g |
| Brachylagus idahoensis | 5 | |
| "Sylvilagus idahoensis" | ||
| Sylvilagus nuttallii | 11 | 1.1 kg |
| Lepus cf. americanus | 3 | 1.4 kg |
| Lepus townsendii | 66 | |
| Lepus californicus | 3 | 2.1 kg |
| Marmota flaviventris | 449 | |
| Urocitellus townsendii | 5013 | |
| "Spermophilus townsendii" | ||
| Ammospermophilus cf. leucurus | 3 | 90.8 g |
| Neotamias minimus | 5 | |
| "Eutamias minimus" | ||
| Neotamias dorsalis | 10 | |
| "Eutamias dorsalis" | ||
| Thomomys umbrinus | 20 | |
| Perognathus cf. formosus | 8 | 18.5 g |
| Microdipodops megacephalus | 11 | 11.9 g |
| Dipodomys microps | 14 | 53.6 g |
| Peromyscus maniculatus | 42 | 19.1 g |
| Peromyscus cf. crinitus | 3 | 13.7 g |
| Peromyscus cf. truei | 1 | 19.3 g |
| Neotoma lepida | 5 | 117.0 g |
| Neotoma cinerea | 2506 | 240.0 g |
| Ondatra zibethicus | 2 | |
| Microtus cf. longicaudus | 24 | 30.2 g |
| Microtus cf. montanus | 2 | 44.7 g |
| Microtus cf. pennsylvanicus | 1 | 35.7 g |
| Lemmiscus curtatus | 40 | 30.5 g |
| "Lagurus curtatus" | ||
| Canis cf. latrans (coyote) | 5 | 12.0 kg |
| Canis cf. lupus (gray wolf) | 5 | 43.0 kg |
| Vulpes vulpes (red fox) | 15 | |
| Vulpes velox (swift fox) | 3 | |
| Neogale cf. frenata (long-tailed weasel) | 6 | |
| "Mustela frenata" | ||
| Neogale cf. vison (American mink) | 2 | |
| "Mustela cf. vison" | ||
| Martes caurina (Pacific marten) | 4 | |
| "Martes americana": reassigned based on geographic location | ||
| †Brachyprotoma obtusata | 3 | |
| "Brachyprotoma brevimala" | ||
| †Smilodon cf. fatalis (saber-toothed cat) | 2 | |
| Puma concolor (cougar) | 5 | |
| "Felis concolor" | ||
| Lynx cf. rufus (bobcat) | 3 | |
| Equus scotti = †Equus cf. excelsus (horse) | 14 | |
| †Equus ? conversidens (horse) | 81 | |
| †Camelops cf. hesternus (camel) | 28 | |
| †Hemiauchenia cf. macrocephala (camel) | 4 | |
| Cervus cf. canadensis (elk) | 1 | |
| "Cervus cf. elaphus" | ||
| Odocoileus hemionus (mule deer) | 76 | 65.0 kg |
| Antilocapra americana (pronghorn) | 1 | 51.0 kg |
| Ovis canadensis (bighorn sheep) | 3 | 55.0 kg |
| †Bootherium cf. bombifrons | 6 | |
| "Symbos cf. cavifrons" | ||