Boomplaas Cave (Member BOL)
Basic information
Sample name: Boomplaas Cave (Member BOL)

Reference: J. T. Faith. 2013. Taphonomic and paleoecological change in the large mammal sequence from Boomplaas Cave, western Cape, South Africa. Journal of Human Evolution 65(6):715-730 [ER 3779]
Geography
Country: South Africa

State: Western Cape



Coordinate: 33° 22' 14" S, 22° 9' 31" E
Coordinate basis: stated in text

Time interval: Late Pleistocene

Section: 3779

Unit number: 11

Unit order: above to below

Max Ma: 0.056

Min Ma: 0.044

Age basis: other

Geography comments: "Boomplaas Cave is located in the Cango Valley in the foothills of the Swartberg mountain range, north of Oudtshoorn, Eden District Municipality in the Western Cape Province, South Africa".
The BOL member of the deposit has been constrained by dates of 56,000 ± 6000 BP and 44,000 ± 4000 BP.

Environment
Lithology: not described

Taphonomic context: bird accumulation,carnivore accumulation,cave,human accumulation

Archaeology: stone tools

Habitat comments: "Boomplaas Cave contains a stratified sequence of Middle Stone Age (MSA) and Late Stone Age (LSA) deposits spanning the last 65,000 years. People were the primary accumulators of the faunal remains in the LSA assemblages younger than ∼18,000 years ago (CL to BLD). In the LSA and MSA deposits dating from 18,000 to 50,000 years ago (BOL to GWA), a combination of humans, carnivores, and raptors accumulated the faunal remains, while the lowermost units were accumulated by carnivores and raptors".
The lithic assemblage of the BOL and BP Members are made primarily of quartzite and include long flake blades with lateral retouch on the main flake surface.

Methods
Life forms: carnivores,primates,rodents,ungulates,other large mammals,other small mammals

Sampling methods: quarry

Sample size: 185 specimens

Sampled by: H. J. Deacon

Years: 1974 - 1979

Sampling comments: "Excavations were conducted by H.J. Deacon from 1974 to 1979. In 2009 and 2010, taphonomic and taxonomic data were collected on thousands of previously unsorted specimens, in addition to those previously examined. All MSA and LSA units were examined with the exception of the uppermost pastoralist levels (member DGL)".

Metadata
Sample number: 4092

Contributor: Benjamin Carter

Enterer: Benjamin Carter

Created: 2023-02-23 13:39:44

Modified: 2023-05-30 04:56:42

Abundance distribution
16 species
4 singletons
total count 185
geometric series index: 28.3
Fisher's α: 4.203
geometric series k: 0.7356
Hurlbert's PIE: 0.6739
Shannon's H: 1.7012
Good's u: 0.9786
Each square represents a species. Square sizes are proportional to counts.
Register
Lepus capensis7
Bunolagus monticularis6
also 1 Leporidae indet.
Hystrix africaeaustralis415 kg browser
Papio ursinus1620 kg
Hyaenidae indet.2
Panthera pardus233 kg carnivore
Procavia capensis1002.8 kg browser
Equus sp.2
zebra/quagga
Redunca fulvorufula529 kg
Redunca arundinum1 grazer
also 2 Redunca sp.
Caprinae indet.2
an unknown extinct species
Pelea capreolus2416 kg grazer
Antidorcas cf. marsupialis140 kg browser-grazer
Oreotragus oreotragus11 browser-grazer
Raphicerus melanotis19.1 kg
also 28 Raphicerus sp. and 13 Neotragini indet.
Syncerus antiquus1