Port Eliza cave: North American West Coast interstadial environment and implications for human migrations
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| Authors: | Ward, BC; Wilson, MC; Nagorsen, DW; Nelson, DE; Driver, JC; Wigen, RJ |
| Year: | 2003 |
| Journal: | Quat. Sci. Rev. 22: 1383-1388 Article Link (DOI) |
| Title: | Port Eliza cave: North American West Coast interstadial environment and implications for human migrations |
| Abstract: | The timing of Late Pleistocene glacial advance, retreat, relative sea level and environmental viability between 25 and 12.5 ka (C-14 yrs BP) remain a key issue in the feasibility of a coastal migration route for the first North Americans. This is discussed on the basis of stratigraphic, radiometric and faunal data for Port Eliza cave, a raised sea cave, on the west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Ice cover is indicated by the occurrence of 2m of laminated clay, representing deposition in a subglacial take. From immediately below this clay a diverse vertebrate fauna of marmot, vote, marten, cervid and various species of birds and fish was recovered, yielding ages of 18-16 ka. These dates and others from the region show that ice cover on the outer coast was brief, from ca 15.5-14ka.. The fish species indicate that relative sea level was close to the cave and that salmon runs were likely present. The terrestrial vertebrate fauna is consistent with a cool, open parkland environment with maximum summer temperatures cooler than present; these conditions lasted until at least 16 ka. With a diverse fauna and favorable climate, humans could have survived here on a mixed marine-terrestrial diet, confirming the viability of the coastal migration hypothesis for this portion of the route. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. |
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