Graham Avery

Nelson Bay Cave, Cape Province, South Africa : the Holocene levels

Report of excavations at Nelson Bay Cave, some sixty miles west of Klasies River Mouth, in four seasons between 1964 and 1979, with full accounts of material culture, and environmental data from deposits ranging between 5890 and 455 BP.

The 1992–1993 Excavations at the Die Kelders Middle and Later Stone Age Cave Site, South Africa

AbstractRenewed excavations at Die Kelders Cave 1, South Africa, have confirmed and augmented prior findings. The new excavations focused on the Middle Stone Age (MSA) deposits, but they added seeds, pips, and crayfish to the categories of Later Stone Age (LSA) food debris and artifacts recovered earlier. With respect to the MSA deposits, the principal new findings are: 1) previously unrecognized site formation processes ,including phosphatization by guano, microfaults, and slippage faces, and numerous minor interruptions in sand accumulation that correspond to Short occupation episodes; 2) ESR dates that place the top of the MSA sequence between 80,000 and 60,000 years b.p.; 3) fine-grained rock types, flake-blade sizes and other features that suggest the top of the sequence contains either the Howiesons Poort or a similar silcrete-rich variant of the MSA; 4) a pattern of artifact and bone abundance in newly recognized microstrati-graphic units that suggests that eagle owls (rather than people) accumula...

Protein Poisoning and Coastal Subsistence

Abstract The known effects of protein poisoning and the safe limits of protein intake are described. Attention is drawn to the need for consideration of the implications of the debilitating and potentially serious consequences of excess protein consumption when reconstructing palaeodiets and subsistence strategies. In spite of the ready availability of a stable source of protein-rich marine foods, the limits to protein utilization for energy (20–50% of daily needs) would have forced coastal hunter-gatherers to provide for a nutritional balance between protein and fat- or carbohydrate-rich sources of food. Current hypotheses concerning coastal palaeodiets are based on excessive protein intake and do not deal adequately with this problem. The concept of a largely protein marine diet as an economic strategy over more than a few days is questioned.

Seasonal exploitation of seabirds by late holocene coastal foragers: Analysis of modern and archaeological data from the Western Cape, South Africa

Abstract A new method for deriving information on seasonal exploitation of seabirds is presented and tested. Monthly surveys of beached seabirds conducted over 6 years are used to provide a database for comparison with Late Holocene open shell midden samples from the western Cape, South Africa. Correspondence analyses of the monthly occurrence of seabird species and age classes which could be recognized osteologically revealed a strong seasonality, splitting the year into three periods: February–April, June–August and October–December, with January, May and September as intermediates. Both conventional and correspondence analyses indicate that the archaeological samples are compatible with an October–January period of seabird exploitation.

Review of fossil phocid and otariid seals from the southern and western coasts of South Africa

ABSTRACT Remains of phocid and otariid seals from published and unpublished palaeontological and archaeological occurrences on the South African coast are reviewed. New phocid material supports Hendeys earlier contention that Homiphoca capensis was a breeding resident during the Early Pliocene (5 Ma) and extends its distribution. Lobodon carcinophagus is recorded from the Middle Pleistocene (270 ka) and Late Pleistocene. Arctocephalus is recorded from the Pliocene (probably 5 Ma, but possibly only 2.7 Ma) and A. pusillus from the Middle Pleistocene (~330 ka). Late Pleistocene records for Hydrurga leptonyx, Mirounga leonina, A. pusillus and A. gazella are listed. The possibility that Homiphoca capensis and Arctocephalus (sp. nov.) co-existed during the Pliocene is discussed.

A contribution from barn owl pellets to known micromammalian distributions in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Samples of barn owl pellets were collected from the Dundee, Estcourt and Kokstad areas of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, during March 2000 for their micromammalian prey remains. Other material collected from near Pietermaritzburg in 1988/89 by the late J.O. Wirminghaus was also analysed. A minimum of 38 micromammalian species was identified, with notable range extensions being recorded for Crocidura fuscomurina and Tatera leucogaster and new localities for all other species. These samples have also added to the numbers of insectivore and rodent species known to occur in the Drier and Moist Upland bioregions. General diversity appears to be much lower in the Coastal Hinterland bioregion but this is probably due to human disturbance of the vegetation near the collecting sites. The samples further illustrate the usefulness of data collection from barn owls for biodiversity studies in particular.

Is the Black Harrier Circus maurus a specialist predator? Assessing the diet of a threatened raptor species endemic to southern Africa

Studying the diet of wild animals is central for understanding their flexibility in food requirements. The Black Harrier Circus maurus is an endangered raptor in South Africa and Namibia. To date, information about the diet of the species is insufficient for a comprehensive understanding of its ecology. We studied the diet composition of breeding Black Harriers using c. 1 000 pellets (>1 700 identified prey) collected at nest sites in two geographical regions (coastal vs inland) over 10 breeding seasons (2006–2015). We show the importance of small mammals in Black Harrier diet (64.4% and 78.2% of prey and consumed biomass, respectively), with the four-striped mouse Rhabdomys pumilio being a main trophic resource. We also reveal the importance of birds and reptiles as alternative prey, particularly in inland regions, and show inter-annual variations in diet in both regions. Our study confirms that this species can be considered a small mammal specialist. Specialist predators are more vulnerable than generalist ones and diet specialisation has been linked with a poorer conservation status in other species. Our results thus have implications for the conservation of this species in southern Africa. These are highlighted for the long-term sustainability of this threatened endemic species.