Under Foot: The Paleontology of Mammoth Cave

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the fossils of vertebrates (animals with backbones) found in the caves of Mammoth Cave National Park. Bat remains are the most ubiquitous kind of fossil, but several extinct animals have been identified. The Pleistocene is well-represented. The oldest radiocarbon-dated remains are a deposit from the Sangamon Interglacial Episode. In order to orient the casual reader to the paleontology of Mammoth Cave, the following background is provided:

• brief overview of some basic principles of geology,

• common types of fossils located in the limestone in which the cave is formed,

• vertebrate fossils found outside the boundaries of the park, and

• methods used by cave paleontologists.

The vertebrate fossils are summarized from the first scientific discovery in 1959 to the most recent studies in 2015. The bulk of the evidence is from multi-year paleontological studies of Mammoth Cave conducted from the mid-1990s to the early 2000s. First, the vertebrate fossils are presented by sections of the cave that a visitor might tour. Then, the significant discoveries are presented chronologically in a discussion of Pleistocene environmental change in the central Kentucky region.

Paleontologists’ dream

entering

the egress

the paleosearchers

crawl through the twilight

crawling as daylight turns to night

light turns to dark and darkness to light

searching searching

crawling onward

quietly under slumbering bats

searching the dark void

for signs of the past

hoping to discover enlightenment

before exiting the entrance to daylight