Bird remains from a prehistoric cave deposit in Grant County, New Mexico

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Two lots of bones were recently submitted to me by Dr. Robert A. Zeller, Jr., of Hachita, New Mexico. In the course of a geological study, Zeller screened the bones from the dry dust of the floor of a cave high on the north side of Howells Ridge, Little Hatchet Mountains, Grant County, New Mexico. I take this opportunity to thank Dr. Zeller, not only for sending the first lot of bones, but particularly, for returning to the cave to enlarge the collection and accumulate data. Most of the bones are of rodents; a few are of larger mammals, such as horse and camel. Well over two hundred represent nineteen species of birds. Dr. Zeller's test excavation was about 5 feet in diameter and reached a depth of 3 feet. He believes that the bedrock floor of the cave lies several feet farther down. He states that the dust of the cave floor is not in clearly defined strata, but that most of the bones were found about 1 foot below the surface. No articulated skeletons were found; bones were scattered. Dr. Zeller considers the cave deposits to be Quaternary, the skeletal remains possibly representing a mixture of late Pleistocene and Recent forms. He notes the presence of a few flint chips and pieces of charcoal that suggest human association.

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Reference Code: A62HOW01IDUS

Full Citation: Howard, H. 1962. Bird remains from a prehistoric cave deposit in Grant County, New Mexico. Condor 64(3): 241-242.

Location: ANIMAL EF: OREORTYX PICTUS