New Mexico Geological Society Annual Spring Meeting — Abstracts

Archaeological and paleontological studies in the Tularosa Basin have revealed the possibility of artifacts in association with the fossil remains of a mastodon and a series of vertebrate trackways. Preliminary excavation of the site recovered fragments of a molar, a partial tusk and bone fragments belonging to a juvenile mastodon. A partial ulna from a woodpecker and a partial femur from a mouse were also recovered from the same unit.The vertebrate trackways were composed of camlids, proboscidean, and canid tracks. Print, step, and stride length measurements of the tracks indicate that these large mammals had a walking speed that ranged from 2.3 km/h to 4.2 km/hr. Radiocarbon dates indicate that the mastodon fossil remains are no younger than 35 kya, while the trackways were made between ~35 kya to ~25.7 kya. Paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the site indicates that the mastodon was living near a wetland environment, while the formation of the trackways coincides with more arid conditions for the region. The results from this study indicate that the fossil remains and footprints are associated with lake margin deposits that predate the last glacial maximum and the arrival of humans in New Mexico. One explanation for the presence of lithic flakes found around the fossil remains is that they could have been washed in from an upslope archaeological site. Fieldwork will continue in 2015 to develop a more detailed assessment of the stratigraphy, paleoclimate, vertebrate paleontology and archaeology for the Tularosa Basin and Paleolake Otero.