PALEOINDIANS IN A DIVERSE LANDSCAPE

The ice sheet ca. 18,000 bp        The Colorado Plateau ca. 12,000 bp

THE PLEISTOCENE

Before 10,000 years ago, Much of the northern portion of North America and portions of the southern part of South America were enveloped by km thick ice sheet.

PLEISTOCENE EXTINCTIONS

The disappearing mammals in North America included all of the following:

*Mastodons

*Bison

*Some of these fossils are directly associated with human artifacts in archaeological sites.

To the early Paleoindian projectile points  

To the late Paleoindian projectile points

THE PLEISTOCENE OCCUPATION OF THE NEW WORLD

- Ice free corridor?

- the coastal route

Clovis Migration into North America

    recent research in California by John Erlandson on the Channel Islands (ca. 11,000 bp)

    Monteverde, Chile (AMS 14C dated to 12,500 bp)

    Pendejo Cave, New Mexico (33,000 ?)

To Tony Baker's compilation of 14C Paleoindian dates

THE PALEOINIDAN OCCUPATION OF THE SOUTHWEST

To the map of Paleoindian sites in the Southwest

The radiocarbon chronology of SW Paleoindian sites

The Wenatchee, WA Clovis Points  

To the Folsom Type Site

Arizona Clovis Sites (Murray Springs, Naco, and Lehner)

To the map

To Naco, Arizona  (1951) : Emil Haury

To Lehner, Arizona (1955): Emil Haury

To Murray Springs, Arizona (1968): C. Vance Haynes

 The 1983-1984 Excavations at Blackwater Draw (Sanders gravel pit; from Haynes 1995)

More on Blackwater Draw

To the San Jose mammoth page (UCMP)

Back to the SW Prehistory Home Page