Elands Bay Research Articles

Regional variance in alluvial sedimentation and revised stratigraphy of the Klipheuwel Group and Franschhoek Formation

Abstract The siliciclastic sediments of the Klipheuwel Group mark the transition from Pan-African tectonism and amalgamation of Southwest Gondwana to the shallow marine deposits of the Cape Supergroup in the Western Cape. The rocks are preserved in a number of seemingly isolated depositories and previous studies have mainly focused on selected occurrences. The lack of any integration of regional sedimentological or structural characteristics has, to date, resulted in only tentative stratigraphic correlations and subdivisions of the Klipheuwel Group. Lithological and structural data from the Klipheuwel Group indicate at least two separate depocentres that accommodated the post Pan-African peneplanation of the Saldania Belt and clastic detritus in distinctly different palaeoenvironments. A northern depocentre can be distinguished from a southern depocentre, each characterised by distinct architectural elements and facies associations that reflect topographic and structural controls. The northern depocentre, including Klipheuwel Group occurrences at Eendekuil, Redelinghuys and Elands Bay, show laterally persistent braided fluvial facies associations that developed multi-storey superimposed ‘braided sheet’ deposits. Here, the rocks show gentle dips and thicknesses range from 300 to 450 m. The southern depocentre, including the Klipheuwel and Klapmutskop localities, are characterised by much larger thicknesses (up to >2 000 m), steep dips of the rocks and laterally discontinuous braided fluvial facies associations that developed staggered channelised braided deposits. The lateral continuity of fluvial facies in the northern depocentre reflect sedimentation on a peneplained basement. The larger thickness, steep dips and strongly channelised deposits in the southern facies, in contrast, indicate deposition in actively subsiding half-graben structures that reactivated basement faults. The spatially closely associated Franschhoek Formation shares numerous characteristics with the Klipheuwel Group but preserves Pan-African strains similar to that of the underlying Malmesbury Group, that may indicate its formation as compressional piggyback basins with synorogenic sedimentation.

Coastal foraging and transgressive sea levels during the terminal Pleistocene: Insights from the central west coast of South Africa

World shorelines were reconfigured after the Last Glacial Maximum due to rising sea levels. A few South African sites are known to document human adaptive responses on this trajectory, and Elands Bay Cave (EBC) is one among them. EBC faunal and cultural assemblages have been studied, but marine invertebrate remains have not received due attention until now. Successive stages of socio-economic and settlement changes moved in tandem with an approaching coastline. EBC chrono-stratigraphy shows an increasing use of the cave and a domestic character since ~13.2 cal BP when coastal foraging began. Terrestrial resources were common initially, but marine invertebrates were increasingly incorporated into peoples’ diet, with the heaviest predation and smallest limpet sizes by ~11.5 cal BP. Black mussels were dominant almost throughout and, because of unfavourable ecological conditions affecting their growth, sizes were small. Subsistence was reformulated immediately thereafter, around 10.9 cal BP, to include large quantities of marine and terrestrial vertebrates in order to satisfy the demands posed by frequent and long visits at EBC. Some visits seem to have had a ritual component associated with them, probably related to wide and active social networks. This trend ended ~9.0 cal BP when people stopped using EBC.

Pentaplacodinium saltonense gen. et sp. nov. (Dinophyceae) and its relationship to the cyst-defined genus Operculodinium and yessotoxin-producing Protoceratium reticulatum

Strains of a dinoflagellate from the Salton Sea, previously identified as Protoceratium reticulatum and yessotoxin producing, have been reexamined morphologically and genetically and Pentaplacodinium saltonense n. gen. et sp. is erected to accommodate this species. Pentaplacodinium saltonense differs from Protoceratium reticulatum (Claparède et Lachmann 1859) Bütschli 1885 in the number of precingular plates (five vs. six), cingular displacement (two widths vs. one), and distinct cyst morphology. Incubation experiments (excystment and encystment) show that the resting cyst of Pentaplacodinium saltonense is morphologically most similar to the cyst-defined species Operculodinium israelianum (Rossignol, 1962) Wall (1967) and O. psilatum Wall (1967). Collections of comparative material from around the globe (including Protoceratium reticulatum and the genus Ceratocorys) and single cell PCR were used to clarify molecular phylogenies. Variable regions in the LSU (three new sequences), SSU (12 new sequences) and intergenic ITS 1–2 (14 new sequences) were obtained. These show that Pentaplacodinium saltonense and Protoceratium reticulatum form two distinct clades. Pentaplacodinium saltonense forms a monophyletic clade with several unidentified strains from Malaysia. LSU and SSU rDNA sequences of three species of Ceratocorys (C. armata, C. gourreti, C. horrida) from the Mediterranean and several other unidentified strains from Malaysia form a well-supported sister clade. The unique phylogenetic position of an unidentified strain from Hawaii is also documented and requires further examination. In addition, based on the V9 SSU topology (bootstrap values >80%), specimens from Elands Bay (South Africa), originally described as Gonyaulax grindleyi by Reinecke (1967), cluster with Protoceratium reticulatum. The known range of Pentaplacodinium saltonense is tropical to subtropical, and its cyst is recorded as a fossil in upper Cenozoic sediments. Protoceratium reticulatum and Pentaplacodinium saltonense seem to inhabit different niches: motile stages of these dinoflagellates have not been found in the same plankton sample.

Chronology of the Pleistocene deposits at Elands Bay Cave (South Africa) based on charcoals, burnt lithics, and sedimentary quartz and feldspar grains

In 2011 we conducted a field campaign at the site of Elands Bay Cave (EBC), on the West coast of South Africa, with the aim of clarifying the nature and chronology of its human Pleistocene occupations. In the present paper, we present the results of a chronology based on various materials and methods: radiocarbon (C14) dating was applied to 8 fragments of charcoal whereas luminescence dating methods (OSL, IRSL and TL) were applied to quartz and feldspar grains extracted from 5 sediment samples and to 4 burnt fragments of quartzite rock. For the upper part of the sequence, the luminescence ages are either in agreement with or slightly younger than the C14 ages. The results suggest that the upper part of the EBC sequence extends from MIS3 to MIS2, including successively late Middle Stone Age (starting from 38 ± 3 ka), Early Later Stone Age (ending 22 ka ago) and Robberg occupations (starting 19.1 ± 0.3 ka ago). The lower part of the EBC sequence, associated with Early Middle Stone Age assemblages, remains poorly constrained: the sediment sample taken above could be a mixture of different layers and could not be dated, whereas OSL ages for sediments below are 236 ± 23 ka and only one stone sample could be dated within this layer (83 ± 14 ka). Considering both the chronological and techno-cultural points of view, the EBC sequence is complementary to the Diepkloof sequence, located less than 20 km eastward.

Chronology of the Pleistocene deposits at Elands Bay Cave (South Africa) based on charcoals, burnt lithics, and sedimentary quartz and feldspar grains

In 2011 we conducted a field campaign at the site of Elands Bay Cave (EBC), on the West coast of South Africa, with the aim of clarifying the nature and chronology of its human Pleistocene occupations. In the present paper, we present the results of a chronology based on various materials and methods: radiocarbon (C14) dating was applied to 8 fragments of charcoal whereas luminescence dating methods (OSL, IRSL and TL) were applied to quartz and feldspar grains extracted from 5 sediment samples and to 4 burnt fragments of quartzite rock. For the upper part of the sequence, the luminescence ages are either in agreement with or slightly younger than the C14 ages. The results suggest that the upper part of the EBC sequence extends from MIS3 to MIS2, including successively late Middle Stone Age (starting from 38 ± 3 ka), Early Later Stone Age (ending 22 ka ago) and Robberg occupations (starting 19.1 ± 0.3 ka ago). The lower part of the EBC sequence, associated with Early Middle Stone Age assemblages, remains poorly constrained: the sediment sample taken above could be a mixture of different layers and could not be dated, whereas OSL ages for sediments below are 236 ± 23 ka and only one stone sample could be dated within this layer (83 ± 14 ka). Considering both the chronological and techno-cultural points of view, the EBC sequence is complementary to the Diepkloof sequence, located less than 20 km eastward.

Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction based on carbon and oxygen stable isotope analysis of bovid tooth enamel from Elands Bay Cave, South Africa

Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction based on carbon and oxygen stable isotope analysis of bovid tooth enamel from Elands Bay Cave, South Africa

Life cycle of hake and likely management implications

Despite its economic and social importance for Namibia and South Africa, limited documented information exists regarding key aspects of the biology of deep-water hake, including its life cycle. This study utilizes data collected through the demersal surveys of the R/V Dr Fridtjof Nansen in South Africa and F/V Blue Sea 1 in Namibia to describe the migratory patterns of deep-water hake in space and time. Furthermore the study investigates aspects of the life cycle of this important species in the Benguela region. Results show that deep-water hake spawns between the western Agulhas Bank and Elands Bay in South Africa with the main nursery ground between Hondeklip Bay and the northern tip of Orange Banks. Deep-water hake in Namibia (up to the Kunene River) and along the south coast of South Africa (eastwards to Port Alfred) originate from these grounds, and undertake long-range migrations across latitudes and longitudes, respectively. This hypothesis is supported by the finding that spawning has not been observed in Namibia and there are no small juveniles along the South African south coast from the eastern border of the Agulhas Bank. The proposed pattern implies an interconnection between the Namibian and the South African components of the stock and the consequent need for a revision of the present management regime based on the assumption of stocks confined within the respective national jurisdictions. This study has used length frequency distributions in space and time in order to investigate the life cycle, in terms of origin, movement and population structure in particular, an approach that may also be useful for other widely distributed species.

Terminal Pleistocene and Holocene dynamics of southern Africa's winter rainfall zone based on carbon and oxygen isotope analysis of bovid tooth enamel from Elands Bay Cave

Southern Africa's winter rainfall zone (WRZ) is sensitive to changes in the earth's atmospheric and oceanic systems. This region has the potential to provide valuable insight into both regional and global paleoenvironmental dynamics. δ13C values of herbivore tooth enamel apatite reflect the proportions of C3 and C4 plants consumed. Here we present δ13C and δ18O values for 86 samples of tooth enamel from grazing and browsing bovids from the terminal Pleistocene and Holocene layers of Elands Bay Cave. The assemblage is dominated by steenbok (Raphicerus campestris) and grysbok (Raphicerus melanotis), which are known to feed on browse if available. However, the assemblage also includes large grazers. This study aims to determine whether the grasses they were eating were purely C3 (indicating a winter rainfall regime) or included a C4 component (signaling at least some summer rainfall). Results show that terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene vegetation communities were overwhelmingly C3. Late Holocene animals show slightly more enriched δ13C values, indicating that C4 grasses and perhaps some CAM plants utilizing C4 photosynthesis became more common. We infer that late Pleistocene (including the LGM) to early Holocene rainfall was largely restricted to the winter months. In the late Holocene, the increased proportion of C4/CAM vegetation may be indicative of changes in the position of storm tracks associated with the westerlies. This finding is consistent with other proxy records from southernmost Africa that suggest extension of the growing season into warmer months and/or relatively warmer temperatures during the late Holocene. δ18O values from enamel carbonate reflect a complex combination of meteoric drinking water, diet and physiological processes, and vary quite widely within and between species. Browsers have more positive δ18O than grazers, because a significant proportion of their moisture intake is from leaves enriched in 18O as a result of evapotranspiration.

LITHOSTRATIGRAPHY OF THE WITZAND FORMATION (SANDVELD GROUP), SOUTH AFRICA

The Witzand Formation forms the youngest subdivision of the Cenozoic Sandveld Group and was named after the Witzand homestead about 40 km north of Cape Town, where the formation is well developed. The formation essentially comprises whitish, unconsolidated, coastal calcareous dunes of Holocene age. The combination of a summer- dry Mediterranean climate and the powerful regional, obliquely onshore southerly winds (driven by the South Atlantic Anticyclone) have resulted in the evolution dune plumes that extend up to 15 km inland. The plumes are sporadically distributed along the southern west coast from False Bay to Elands Bay and are best developed updrift (north) of river mouths.

LITHOSTRATIGRAPHY OF THE GRAAUW DUINEN FORMATION (CENOZOIC WEST COAST GROUP), SOUTH AFRICA

The Graauw Duinen Formation forms part of the Cenozoic West Coast Group and was named after the farm Graauw Duinen 152 south of the Olifants River, where it is well exposed in mining faces of a heavy mineral sand mine. However, these exposures are ephemeral and more enduring natural sections at Cliff Point on the farm Geelwal Karoo 262 were chosen as the type area. The formation was previously regarded as a ‘Member’ of the Alexander Bay Formation, but along with other former subdivisions of this unit, has been elevated to ‘Formation’ status because of their broad significance on regional and even global scales. The formation essentially comprises late Neogene coastal calcareous aeolianites, widely distributed along the Namaqualand coast from north of Elands Bay to the Gariep (Orange) River. Fossils, stratigraphic context and correlation with the marine isotope record indicate that the age of the formation ranges from early to late Pliocene.

Strandloping as a Resource-Gathering Strategy in the Cape, South African Holocene Later Stone Age: The Verloren Vlei Record

ABSTRACTElands Bay and adjacent coastline near the mouth of the Verloren vlei on the South African Atlantic coast offered Later Stone Age foragers a variety of marine, estuarine, and terrestrial food resources. We suggest that strandloping (beachwalking or beachcombing) by latest Holocene foragers as a regular practice constituted an important component in their repertoire of subsistence activities. Washed-up mussels, seals, birds, whales, and other recently dead animals would have been available to such strandlopers. We distinguish strandloping as a subsistence practice from the procurement of living prey, including shellfish, mammals, birds, and other animals. The Holocene archaeological record of the Elands Bay area suggests changes through time in resource use, and these changes appear to be recognizable in patterns of shellfish gathering. During the latest part of the Holocene, between about 1,500 and 300 years ago, subsistence practices display a distinctive character that perhaps conforms more strongly than previously to what we conceive of as strandloping.

Site Distribution and Chronology at Soutpansklipheuwel, a Rocky Outcrop on the West Coast of South Africa

ABSTRACT Archaeological research along the West Coast of South Africa has unveiled a diversity of Holocene adaptive strategies as shown by the different type, size, composition, and distribution of sites and their faunal and artifactual contents. Some differences and similarities are apparent between the northerly semi-desert of Namaqualand and the more central Lamberts Bay and Elands Bay areas. On first impression, this archaeological variability seems related to environmental gradients, human demographics, related divergent economic developments, and perhaps to different contexts for cultural contact between indigenous populations. However, differences between Namaqualand and the central parts of the West Coast need to be assessed more closely in order to understand the influence of environmental and cultural/behavioral variables that could have shaped them and their geographic interaction. Sampling of locations near Lamberts Bay and the southern parts of Namaqualand has become vital. Here we present first observations on a survey and broad chronology at one such locality, namely Soutpansklipheuwel outcrop. First results reveal a millennia-long history of occupation. Possible shared attributes that respond to biogeographic and cultural variables are outlined.

Lead exposure in young school children in South African subsistence fishing communities

BackgroundLead is an established toxic substance, with wide-ranging health effects, including neurodevelopmental decrements and behavioural problems, even at low levels in blood. Anecdotal reports of lead melting to make fishing sinkers in South African subsistence fishing communities prompted the conduct of an epidemiological study in two South African fishing villages to investigate the extent of lead melting and the associated risks in children. ObjectivesThe objectives of the study were to determine the extent of lead melting, and the blood lead distributions and associated risk factors in children. MethodsCross-sectional, analytical studies were undertaken among 160 young school children in the fishing villages of Struis Bay and Elands Bay located along the south-eastern and western South African coastline, respectively. Blood samples were collected for lead content analysis, and anthropometric and hemoglobin measurements were taken. Questionnaires were administered to obtain information about socio-economic status and risk factors for lead exposure. ResultsBlood lead levels ranged from 2.2 to 22.4µg/dl, with the mean blood lead level equalling 7.4. Around 74% of the children had blood lead levels ≥5µg/dl and 16% had blood lead levels ≥10µg/dl. Socio-economic factors, and lead melting practices were strongly associated with elevated blood lead levels. ConclusionsBlood lead levels in these remote subsistence fishing communities were unexpectedly elevated, given the absence of local lead industries or other obvious sources of lead exposure. Lead exposure and poisoning is an important, yet neglected, public health concern in South African subsistence fishing communities, and potentially on the entire African continent.

Optical Detectors for Integration into a Low Cost Radiometric Device for In-Water Applications: A Feasibility Study

Higher water temperatures and nutrient loads, along with forecasted climate changes are expected to result in an increase in the frequency and intensity of eutrophication-linked algal blooms (Bernard, 2010, unpublished). The destructive impact such phenomena have on marine and freshwater systems threaten aquaculture, agriculture and tourism industries on a global scale (Bernard, 2010, unpublished). An innovative research project, Safe Waters Earth Observation Systems (SWEOS) proposes the use of space-based remote sensing techniques, coupled with in-situ radiometric technology to offer a powerful and potentially cost effective method of addressing algal bloom related hazards. The work presented in this paper focuses on the decision making processes involved in the development of autonomous bio-optical sensors whose purpose includes, but is not limited to; water constituent monitoring, satellite calibration validation and ocean colour satellite product matchups. Several criteria including cost, optical throughput, linearity and spectral sensitivity were examined in an attempt to choose the detector best suited for its intended application. The CMOS based module tested in the laboratory experiments that was found to have produced the best performance-cost ratio was chosen for integration into the in-water radiometric device built and tested at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) (Ramkilowan et al. 2012, unpublished). Mass production of this prototype technology will commence, pending data quality comparable to that of an already calibrated, in-water radiometer; to be tested at field trials in Elands Bay (32°17′45.82″S; 18°14′44.45″E), Loskop Dam (25°27′15.25″S; 29°17′28.21″E) and Saldanha Bay (33° 3′11.38″S; 17°59′54.29″E).

Identifying the woody resources of Diepkloof Rock Shelter (South Africa) using scanning electron microscopy of the MSA wood charcoal assemblages

This article presents the results of the anatomical identification of wood charcoal from pre-Still Bay, Still Bay and Howiesons Poort assemblages at Diepkloof Rock Shelter (South Africa) using scanning electron microscopy. In the earliest phases, with pre-Still Bay stone tools, the charcoal shows a predominance of Afromontane forest taxa, some riverine woodland species, mesic thicket and proteoid fynbos vegetation. With a change in lithic technology in Still Bay contexts, the balance of Afromontane and thicket taxa shifts towards favouring the latter. A more diverse array of proteoid fynbos species emerges, and there is evidence for the use of plants from the local wetlands of the Verlorenvlei. In Howiesons Poort contexts, typified by a different lithic technology, the charcoal shows some Afromontane forest persisting, but the overwhelming change is towards greater species diversity, with the woody taxa being increasingly representative of thicket and shrubland. Some of the fynbos and thicket species are typical of vegetational communities which inhabit well-drained soils, rocky or dry locations at the present day. More wetland plants from the Verlorenvlei were selected for use.The range of taxa in pre-Still Bay, Still Bay and Howiesons Poort contexts and the diversity of their preferred habitats (modelled on present-day recorded distributions) cannot be interpreted in a simplistic manner to reflect a unilinear change in climatic or soil moisture conditions. Whilst such factors may have played a significant part and contributed to some or all of the taxa having very different phytogeographical distributions compared to their modern counterparts (as at the nearby Elands Bay Cave), it is also necessary to consider to what extent people might have collected these diverse woody resources from a mosaic of vegetational communities, some local, some far away. These scenarios are not mutually exclusive and future collaborative work, which aims to include detailed local mapping of all woody taxa present in the sequence, will be crucial for presenting a resolved palaeoenvironmental and phytogeographical reconstruction through time.

Large Shell Middens and Hunter-Gatherer Resource Intensification Along the West Coast of South Africa: The Elands Bay Case Study

ABSTRACT “Megamiddens” appear along the West Coast of South Africa c. 3000–2000 BP. Kalahari San ethnography was used initially to explain them as processing localities given the massive volumes of marine shell and low densities of other remains. However, recent research in Lamberts Bay using a resource intensification model seems to explain more of the observed archaeological variability. In this paper, the evidence of Elands Bay megamiddens is studied in this same light and similar conclusions are arrived to. Rising population levels between 3500 and 2500 BP are followed by a reformulation of the foraging ecology of both marine and terrestrial prey, with isotopic values from human skeletons and archaeological data showing high marine food consumption during the megamidden period when compared to other stages. Signs of black mussel overexploitation are apparent by 3000 BP, although shellfish harvesting is most intense c. 2600–2200 BP. Further sampling of Elands Bay megamiddens is needed to better understand shellfish foraging between 3000 and 2500 BP. Foragers hunted less large mobile game by 2600 BP and instead small territorial bovids were procured more heavily at this time with tortoise collection being intensified between 3000 and 2600 BP. Cave usage may have been very different to that before and after the megamidden millennium given the lack of visits to these sites in Elands Bay at this time.

Anoxia in southern Benguela during the autumn of 2009 and its linkage to a bloom of the dinoflagellate Ceratium balechii

Oxygen deficiency in the southern Benguela has a pronounced negative impact on living marine resources and within the greater St Helena Bay anoxia is the cause of large episodic mortalities of the rock lobster Jasus lalandii. These impacts have motivated further investigation, specifically of the role of high biomass dinoflagellate blooms, commonly known as red tides, in the development of anoxic conditions. A high resolution time series of dissolved oxygen concentrations obtained from a bottom mooring off Elands Bay, located within the greater St Helena Bay region, is examined in relation to the development of an exceptional bloom of the dinoflagellate Ceratium balechii and an anoxia-induced mass mortality. A clear seasonal trend is evident in bottom dissolved oxygen concentrations, initiated in spring by upwelling events that advect low oxygen waters across the shelf. Increased deposition of organic carbon derived from primary production maxima in summer and autumn, together with the development of an increasingly stratified environment exacerbate dissolved oxygen deficits leading to a progressive decline in dissolved oxygen concentrations in the cold bottom layer. Within this seasonal timeframe episodic anoxia may occur throughout the water column of shallow inshore regions following the decay of red tides accumulated within these environments under conditions of persistent downwelling. Anoxia within these shallow non-stratified nearshore regions is dependent on exceptional organic loading of the water column as afforded by the decay of red tide and to the absence of wind-induced mixing or wave action. These requirements contribute to the local and transient character of these events of anoxia. With the onset of winter strong mixing results in reduced primary production and increased ventilation of bottom waters causing an increase in dissolved oxygen concentrations.

Opportunistic Subsistence Strategies among Late Holocene Coastal Hunter-Gatherers, Elands Bay, South Africa

ABSTRACT Hunting and gathering was practiced for many hundreds of thousands of years in South Africa's Western Cape region, until ceramics and a stock-keeping economy first appeared c. 2,000 years ago, and in the Elands Bay and Lamberts Bay areas 200 years later. Subsistence and settlement patterns in this part of the West Coast of South Africa changed dramatically after this date, but the nature of interactions between indigenous groups engaging with these two types of subsistence practices is still poorly understood. The cultural-contact scenarios so far proposed view this interaction as basically competitive, with forager groups living at the margins of herder society and compelled to change their subsistence and settlement choices by focusing on small food parcels and having to move to less accessible areas. Observations from Borrow Pit Midden and other sites in the study area do not support this scenario. Instead, their records suggest flexible adaptive responses among foragers when at coastal and pericoastal locations. Overall, an opportunistic subsistence strategy was practiced mostly within the immediate surrounding environment of camps with high mobility, characterizing forager settlement. The components of a new cultural-contact model are emerging, but much remains to be done before it is established on a reliable empirical foundation.

Multiphase late Quaternary aeolian sediment accumulation in western South Africa: Timing and relationship to palaeoclimatic changes inferred from the marine record

Extensive aeolian deposits exist along the western margin of South Africa from Cape Town through to the Namib Sand Sea, and represent a significant palaeoenvironmental archive recording millennial-scale patterns of regional and hemispheric environmental change. To establish the timing of dune development, this study applies optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating techniques to the aeolian features of the west coast. In total, 35 samples were obtained from six dune cores along a north–south transect extending from Elands Bay (32°26′S, 18°14′E) to Kleinsee (29°14′S, 16°59′E). Ages from these dunes exhibit five distinct peaks, suggesting phases of activity/deposition at 4–5, 16–24, 30–33, 43–49 and 63–73 ka. The spatial and temporal extent of the data have allowed for correlations to be made with evidence from marine cores from the Southeast Atlantic, and a more coherent regional environmental history to be developed. Results suggest that: (1) environmental changes in this region are strongly linked to variations in wind strength and atmospheric circulation systems during the late Quaternary; and (2) luminescence ages from aeolian deposits cannot necessarily be equated with periods of increased aridity, with other factors such as wind strength and sediment supply being of critical importance.

Community evolution of Neogene micromammals from Langebaanweg ‘E’ Quarry and other west coast fossil sites, south-western Cape, South Africa

This paper provides an overview of the micromammalian palaeocommunities found in fossil bearing palaeontological and archaeological west coast sites dating from the Mio-Pliocene, as represented by the site of Langebaanweg ‘E’ Quarry, and other sites dating from the late Middle Pleistocene, until the late Holocene. Recent excavations at Langebaanweg have resulted in the addition of more murid genera to previously compiled faunal lists. An updated faunal list is presented, and a comparison is made on a generic level between the micromammals from Langebaanweg, and the considerably younger west coast fossil sites of Elands Bay Cave, Steenbokfontein Cave, the Saldanha Bay Yacht Club site and Hoedjiespunt 1, and some modern owl pellet collections. The palaeobiogeographical and palaeoenvironmental significance of the different west coast micromammal communities, and the evolution of the west coast rodent community is examined. Nine of the micromammal genera found at LBW are present in some, or all, of the west coast fossil sites dating from the late Middle Pleistocene until the Holocene. This indicates the endurance of many of the genera present at LBW, and in the Kalahari South West Arid and Namib Regions, from the Mio-Pliocene, up until the present.