Carpinteria Asphalt Pit (Pleistocene of the United States)

Where: Santa Barbara County, California (34.4° N, 119.5° W: paleocoordinates 34.4° N, 119.5° W)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

• small collection-level geographic resolution

When: Late/Upper Pleistocene (0.1 - 0.0 Ma)

• "The Pleistocene formation is practically in horizontal position and reaches a thickness in cliff-section of 10 to 12 feet"

• group of beds-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: tar; conglomeratic, carbonaceous sandstone

• "sharp sand and some gravel... thoroughly impregnated by petroleum... sometimes cross-bedded"

Size class: macrofossils

Preservation: original chitin, original cellulose

Collected by N. Stuart in 1927

• discovered when "a steam shovel which was taking out road material over a deposit of asphalt disclosed some bones"; material is in the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and/or CIT collection

Primary reference: R. Hoffmann, C. Stock, L. Miller, R. W. Chaney, and H. L. Mason. 1927. The Finding of Pleistocene Material in an Asphalt Pit at Carpinteria, California. Science 66:155-157 [L. van den Hoek Ostende/L. van den Hoek Ostende/M. Uhen]more details

Purpose of describing collection: general faunal/floral analysis

PaleoDB collection 79630: authorized by John Alroy, entered by John Alroy on 15.03.2008, edited by Matthew Clapham and Mark Uhen

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

unclassified
  -
Arceuthobium sp.
"twigs, scale-leaves, staminate and pistillate flowers, and fruits"
Chorizanthe sp.
organs not indicated, flowers is a guess
Dicotyledoneae
 Ericales - Ericaceae
Arctostaphylos sp. Adanson 1763 heather
"3 species... wood, leaves, flowers, and fruits"
Angiospermae
 Proteales - Platanaceae
Platanus sp. Linnaeus 1753 plane tree
organs not indicated, leaves is a guess
 Rosales - Pomaceae
Amelanchier sp. Medikus 1789 shadbush
"flowers"
 Coniferales - Cupressaceae
Pinopsida
 Pinales - Pinaceae
Pinus radiata Don 1837 pine
"The conifers are all represented by wood, leaves, ovulate and staminate strobile"
Insecta
 Dicondylia -
Coleoptera indet. Linnaeus 1758 beetle
"remains of beetles"
 Coleoptera - Carabidae
Scaphinotus interruptus5 Menetries 1843 ground beetle
 Coleoptera - Tenebrionidae
"Eleodes grandicollis" = Eleodes (Eleodes) grandicollis3, "Eleodes gracilis" = Eleodes (Eleodes) gracilis3, "Eleodes acuticaudus" = Eleodes (Eleodes) acuticauda3, "Eleodes laticollis" = Eleodes (Eleodes) acuticauda3, "Eleodes giganteus" = Eleodes (Xysta) gigantea3
"Eleodes grandicollis" = Eleodes (Eleodes) grandicollis3 Mannerheim 1843 darkling beetle
"Eleodes gracilis" = Eleodes (Eleodes) gracilis3 LeConte 1858 darkling beetle
"Eleodes acuticaudus" = Eleodes (Eleodes) acuticauda3 LeConte 1851 darkling beetle
"Eleodes laticollis" = Eleodes (Eleodes) acuticauda3 LeConte 1851 darkling beetle
"Eleodes giganteus" = Eleodes (Xysta) gigantea3 Mannerheim 1843 darkling beetle
Aves
 Cathartiformes - Cathartidae
Gymnogyps californianus Shaw 1797 California condor
 Strigiformes - Strigidae
Bubo virginianus Gmelin 1788 great horned owl
 Piciformes - Picidae
"Colaptes cafer" = Colaptes auratus cafer
"Colaptes cafer" = Colaptes auratus cafer Gmelin 1788 northern flicker
 Cuculiformes - Cuculidae
Geococcyx californianus Lesson 1829 Greater roadrunner
 Passeriformes -
Passeriformes indet. Linnaeus 1758 perching bird
 Passeriformes - Corvidae
Corvus corax Linnaeus 1758 common raven
 Anseriformes - Anatidae
Anas ? platyrhynchos Linnaeus 1758 mallard
 Accipitriformes - Accipitridae
Accipitridae indet. Viellot 1816 hawk
"Buteonid hawks"
Aquila chrysaetos Linnaeus 1758 golden eagle
Neophrontops americanus Miller 1916 Old World vulture
Neogyps errans Miller 1916 Old World vulture
 Falconiformes - Falconidae
"Polyborus cheriway" = Caracara cheriway
"Polyborus cheriway" = Caracara cheriway Jacquin 1784 crested caracara
 Falconiformes - Vulturoidae
Teratornis merriami Miller 1909 Merriam's teratorn
 Galliformes - Meleagridae
 Galliformes - Odontophoridae
"Lophortyx californica" = Callipepla californica
"Lophortyx californica" = Callipepla californica Shaw 1798 California quail
Reptilia
 Testudines - Emydidae
"Clemmys marmorata" = Emys marmorata1
"Clemmys marmorata" = Emys marmorata1 Baird and Girard 1852 western pond turtle
 Squamata - Anguidae
Elgaria multicarinata1 Blainville 1835 southern alligator lizard
 Squamata - Colubridae
Thamnophis sp.1 Fitzinger 1843 garter snake
Coluber constrictor1 Linnaeus 1758 black racer
 Squamata - Iguanidae
Mammalia
 Proboscidea - Mammutidae
Mammut pacificus2 Dooley et al. 2019 mastodon
 Carnivora - Mephitidae
Mephitis sp. Cuvier 1800 skunk
 Carnivora - Canidae
Aenocyon cf. dirus Leidy 1858 dire wolf
"Aenocyon, near dirus"
Urocyon cf. cinereoargenteus4 Schreber 1775 gray fox
"Urocyon, near californicus"
"Canis ? ochropus" = Canis latrans Say 1823 coyote
"Canis, probably ochropus"
 Perissodactyla - Equidae
"Equus cf. occidentalis" = Equus mexicanus
"Equus cf. occidentalis" = Equus mexicanus Hibbard 1955 horse
"Equus, near occidentalis"
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
Odocoileus sp. Rafinesque 1832 New World deer
 Rodentia - Sciuridae
Eutamias sp. Trouessart 1880 chipmunk
 Lagomorpha - Leporidae
Lepus sp. Linnaeus 1758 hare