San Josecito Cave and Its Paleoecological Contributions for Quaternary Studies in Mexico

Joaquin Arroyo-Cabrales,Eileen Johnson,J Alberto Cruz

doi:10.3390/quat4040034

Abstract

San Josecito Cave (2250 m elevation) is located nearby Aramberri, Nuevo León, northeastern Mexico, with excavations occurring in 1935–1941 and 1990. It is a paleontological cave and the significance of its faunal data rests in the understanding of the Quaternary ecosystems of the Mexican Plateau and the Southern Plains. This significance is underpinned by a consideration of associated stratigraphic and geochronological data. The fauna is composed of mollusks, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. More than 30 extinct vertebrate species have been identified, constituting one of the most important Quaternary localities in the Americas. Radiocarbon dates and faunal correlations indicate the excavated deposits represent an interval of time between 45,000 and 11,000 14C years BP. The current synthesis demonstrates that the previous view of the assemblage as a single local fauna is erroneous and that, instead, several successive local faunas are present within a stratigraphic framework. This finding underscores the need for detailed studies of single localities in building paleoenvironmental models. As a corollary, results point to the necessity of including all vertebrate classes represented from a locality in building those models. In addition, the field and analytical methodologies demonstrate the importance of very detailed paleontological excavations, with precise spatial and temporal controls, to assess the taphonomic history of a locality, construct a stratigraphic and geochronological framework, and infer the paleoecological conditions during the time span considered based on the number of local faunas represented. The recognition of San Josecito Cave as an important Late Pleistocene vertebrate paleontological locality is enhanced with the consideration of its faunal data for paleoenvironment reconstruction and possible contribution to Quaternary paleoclimatic modeling.

Highlights

Paleoenvironmental research data are a resource that should be managed in a way that provides the entire global-change research community with the tools to find, access, and manipulate quickly the data needed for a particular investigation [1]
The second focuses on reconstructing the response of surface systems to climatic and environmental change
Under the direction of Stock [26], field crews representing the California Institute of Technology quarried a section of San Josecito Cave between 1935 and 1941

Summary

Introduction

Paleoenvironmental research data are a resource that should be managed in a way that provides the entire global-change research community with the tools to find, access, and manipulate quickly the data needed for a particular investigation [1]. The first priority is the original “raw” or primary paleoclimate, palaeoecological, and palaeoceanographic data, including associated chronological information. These raw data are the foundation for paleoenvironmental research, and the ultimate source of paleoenvironmental information. The first examines proxy records that define the state of climatic and biological systems at various times in the past and provides empirical data necessary for testing and refinement of paleoclimatic models. The second focuses on reconstructing the response of surface systems to climatic and environmental change. This synthesis is concerned primarily with the first pathway

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Results

Conclusion