Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta
Bibliography: p. 271-290 Some pages are in colour Wally's Beach (DhPg-8) is a latest Pleistocene palaeontological/archaeological site in southern Alberta, Canada. A ten metre water level drop of the St. Mary Reservoir exposed the reservoir floor to intense wind erosion, exposing a diverse assem...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Other Authors: | , |
Format: | Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
Language: | English |
Published: |
University of Calgary
2009
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1880/103775 https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 |
id |
ftunivcalgary:oai:prism.ucalgary.ca:1880/103775 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunivcalgary:oai:prism.ucalgary.ca:1880/103775 2023-08-27T04:11:39+02:00 Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta McNeil, Paul E. Hills, Leonard V. Currie, Philip J. 2009 xv, 331 leaves : ill. 30 cm. application/pdf http://hdl.handle.net/1880/103775 https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 eng eng University of Calgary Calgary McNeil, P. E. (2009). Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta (Unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/2774 http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 http://hdl.handle.net/1880/103775 University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. doctoral thesis 2009 ftunivcalgary https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 2023-08-06T06:34:52Z Bibliography: p. 271-290 Some pages are in colour Wally's Beach (DhPg-8) is a latest Pleistocene palaeontological/archaeological site in southern Alberta, Canada. A ten metre water level drop of the St. Mary Reservoir exposed the reservoir floor to intense wind erosion, exposing a diverse assemblage of mammal bones, tracks, trackways, tramplegrounds, and Palaeo-Indian artifacts. This site provides a rare look at the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta. Pleistocene tracks are rare worldwide, and Wally's Beach documents the only Canadian locality. Six new ichnospecies are defined that include tracks of extinct wooly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius), western camel (Came/ops hesternus), Mexican horse (Equus conversidens), ancient bison (Bison antiquus), and extant caribou (Rangifer tarandus). Analysis of the tracks provides information on the biomechanics of locomotion and behaviour. Mammoth track data indicate a walking speed of four to five km/h for adult wooly mammoths. The behaviour of Pleistocene mammals, as revealed through tracks and tramplegrounds, is similar to that exhibited by their extant relatives, despite a long period since they shared a common ancestor. This indicates that extrapolating the behaviour of fossil animals from that of their modem relatives is valid. Mammoth tramplegrounds confirm previous Wally's Beach track studies that showed a deficit of juveniles, suggesting that Late Pleistocene mammoth populations in southern Alberta were in decline. Multigeneric trample grounds, formed in a short period of time, suggest high concentrations of mammals simultaneously inhabited the Pleistocene Albertan steppe. Wally's Beach horse bones provide new insights into human horse utilization, characteristics for identification, and Late Pleistocene relationships. Equus conversidens and E. lambei populations may be separated based on both qualitative characteristics and by quantitative methods. The humeri of E. conversidens are slightly longer on average than those of E. lambei. Quantitative ... Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis Rangifer tarandus PRISM - University of Calgary Digital Repository Canada Indian |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
PRISM - University of Calgary Digital Repository |
op_collection_id |
ftunivcalgary |
language |
English |
description |
Bibliography: p. 271-290 Some pages are in colour Wally's Beach (DhPg-8) is a latest Pleistocene palaeontological/archaeological site in southern Alberta, Canada. A ten metre water level drop of the St. Mary Reservoir exposed the reservoir floor to intense wind erosion, exposing a diverse assemblage of mammal bones, tracks, trackways, tramplegrounds, and Palaeo-Indian artifacts. This site provides a rare look at the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta. Pleistocene tracks are rare worldwide, and Wally's Beach documents the only Canadian locality. Six new ichnospecies are defined that include tracks of extinct wooly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius), western camel (Came/ops hesternus), Mexican horse (Equus conversidens), ancient bison (Bison antiquus), and extant caribou (Rangifer tarandus). Analysis of the tracks provides information on the biomechanics of locomotion and behaviour. Mammoth track data indicate a walking speed of four to five km/h for adult wooly mammoths. The behaviour of Pleistocene mammals, as revealed through tracks and tramplegrounds, is similar to that exhibited by their extant relatives, despite a long period since they shared a common ancestor. This indicates that extrapolating the behaviour of fossil animals from that of their modem relatives is valid. Mammoth tramplegrounds confirm previous Wally's Beach track studies that showed a deficit of juveniles, suggesting that Late Pleistocene mammoth populations in southern Alberta were in decline. Multigeneric trample grounds, formed in a short period of time, suggest high concentrations of mammals simultaneously inhabited the Pleistocene Albertan steppe. Wally's Beach horse bones provide new insights into human horse utilization, characteristics for identification, and Late Pleistocene relationships. Equus conversidens and E. lambei populations may be separated based on both qualitative characteristics and by quantitative methods. The humeri of E. conversidens are slightly longer on average than those of E. lambei. Quantitative ... |
author2 |
Hills, Leonard V. Currie, Philip J. |
format |
Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
author |
McNeil, Paul E. |
spellingShingle |
McNeil, Paul E. Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta |
author_facet |
McNeil, Paul E. |
author_sort |
McNeil, Paul E. |
title |
Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta |
title_short |
Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta |
title_full |
Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta |
title_fullStr |
Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta |
title_full_unstemmed |
Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta |
title_sort |
bones and tracks at wally's beach site (dhpg8): an investigation of the latest pleistocene mega-fauna of southern alberta |
publisher |
University of Calgary |
publishDate |
2009 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/1880/103775 https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 |
geographic |
Canada Indian |
geographic_facet |
Canada Indian |
genre |
Rangifer tarandus |
genre_facet |
Rangifer tarandus |
op_relation |
McNeil, P. E. (2009). Bones and tracks at Wally's Beach Site (DhPg8): an investigation of the latest Pleistocene mega-fauna of southern Alberta (Unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/2774 http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 http://hdl.handle.net/1880/103775 |
op_rights |
University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/2774 |
_version_ |
1775354642109038592 |