BISON OCCIDENTALIS LUCAS FOUND AT TABER, ALBERTA, CANADA

Abstract

An articulated incomplete skeleton of a mature male Bison occidentalis Lucas was found in alluvial sand on the uppermost terrace of the Oldman River near Taber, Alberta. Description of the bones and some comparison with ox and horse are made. Two radiocarbon ages of 10 500 and 11 000 years coupled with invertebrate fossil and pollen analyses show that at this time the area was free of ice and that parkland vegetation was well established in Southern Alberta. The pebble chopper found in association with the skeleton points to human occupation of the area at that time.