Evening star., 1952-04-28
Clue to Early Hunters
In Glacial, Era Found
Nebraska Digging Also
Reveals Animal Evidence
By Thomas R. Henry

Evidence of wandering bison hunters
in southwestern Nebraska in late glacial
times and of hitherto unknown varieties
of extinct animals in the preceding
Pliocene geological era have been found
by University of Nebraska paleontolo-
gists who worked at the site of the
Medicine Greek Reservoir before it was
flooded
This is part of the cooperative pro-
ject of the Smithsonian Institution. the
Bureau of Reclamation, the National
Parks Service and the Corps of En-
gineers of the Army which is engaged in
rescuing any scientific material from
areas throughout the country where
reservoirs are planned. So far as possible
local workers are urged to cooperate.
The findings at Medicine Creek reser-
voir have. just been reported to the
American Association for the Advance
ment of Science by E. Mott Davis and
c. Bertrand Schultz of the University
of Nebraska. They excavated at seven
major sites within the reservoir area.
They report in Science, official organ
of the American Association:
Judging from the evidence in these
sites, southwestern Nebraska was oc-
cupied in late glacial times by wander
ing groups of bison hunters. Some Of
these groups, representing more than
one cultural tradition, camped repeat
edly along Medicine Creek-probably
because of the abundance there Of
easily worked jasper and the presence
of plentiful game.
Further work is necessary before it
will be possible to determine the local
sequence of occupation. This informa-
ton will then contribute to the broader
story of the part played by human be-
ings in the changing geological situa-
ton on the Great Plains during late
glacial and early postglacial times.
Importance of Find.
"The archaeological material OBJ
tanned from the late Pleistocene sites is
of special interest because it represents
the first extensive fauna from deposits
of this age to be reported from the
Great Plains region. Some of the faunal
elements are similar to modern forms,
whereas others appear to represent ex-
tinct species
"The coyote bones, for example. can
not be differentiated from those of the
modern species, CAMS latranS Say.
whereas the samples OF bison compare
favorably with those of the extinct form
Bison antiquS Leidy from the late Pleis-
tocene deposits of the Great Plains
rather than with the modern B. bison.
The radiocarbon dates obtained from
two of the sites are valuable aid in
the study of the actual rate of evolu-
ton that has taken place during the
past 10000 years in number of phylo-
genetic lines of mammals.
Trends in Evolution.
Additional faunal evidence from the
more recent terrace fills of the region
has provided supplementary data on the
rate and trends in evolution. These evo-
lutionary yardsticks may well give us a
clearer understanding of mammalian
development in the earlier, as well as the
latter, part of the Pleistocene.
I'm the late Pliocene localities paleon-
tological work took place primarily in a
formation which contained the remains
of the shovel-tuSked mastodont Ame-
belodon fricki as well as various new
species of mammals. The most impor-
tant single specimen Salvaged was the
skull and ramus of a new form of giant
Saber-toothed cat, not ancestral to the
saber-toothed felids of the Pleistocene.
The formation heretofore had yielded
nylo fragmentary faunal evidence in the
central Great Plains. The sediments di-
rectly below also yielded fossils. The
new material has helped to complete
the late Pliocene faunal sequence and
hence has thrown much new light on
the Pliocene- -Pleistocene boundary line
problem"