  location in New Caledonia | |
| Location | Népoui Peninsula, north-west coast of Grande Terre |
|---|---|
| Region | New Caledonia |
| Coordinates | 21°21′S164°58′E / 21.350°S 164.967°E |
The Pindai Caves of New Caledonia are an archaeological and palaeontological site important for the study of prehistoric human settlement as well as of the Holocene fauna of the island. The Pindai area has been occupied by humans for varying periods over the last 2,800 years. [1]
The site comprises six caves, in coral limestone upraised about 5 m (16 ft), at the seaward tip of the Népoui Peninsula on the north-west coast of Grande Terre, about 240 km (149.1 mi) north-west of Noumea. Two of the caves have easy walk-in access; they contain the richest cultural material and the fewest fossils. The other four caves are sinkholes capable of trapping animals, especially ground-dwelling and flightless birds, and contain the most fossils. All the caves broaden from their entrances into large underground chambers. [1] [2]
Numerous subfossils of extinct fauna have been found in the caves, including the endemic terrestrial crocodile Mekosuchus , the giant horned turtle Meiolania , and numerous bird taxa, with remains of the giant flightless Sylviornis being especially common. [1]
Moa are an extinct group of flightless birds formerly endemic to New Zealand. During the Late Pleistocene-Holocene, there were nine species. The two largest species, Dinornis robustus and Dinornis novaezelandiae, reached about 3.6 metres (12 ft) in height with neck outstretched, and weighed about 230 kilograms (510 lb) while the smallest, the bush moa, was around the size of a turkey. Estimates of the moa population when Polynesians settled New Zealand circa 1300 vary between 58,000 and approximately 2.5 million.
Struthionidae is a family of flightless birds, containing the extant ostriches and their extinct relatives. The two extant species of ostrich are the common ostrich and Somali ostrich, both in the genus Struthio, which also contains several species known from Holocene fossils such as the Asian ostrich. The common ostrich is the more widespread of the two living species, and is the largest living bird species. The extinct genus Pachystruthio from the Late Pliocene-Early Pleistocene of Eurasia is one of the largest birds ever.
Genyornis newtoni, also known as the newton's mihirung, newton's thunder bird or mihirung paringmal, is an extinct species of large, flightless bird that lived in Australia during the Pleistocene Epoch until around 50,000 years ago. Over two metres in height, they were likely herbivorous. Many other species of Australian megafauna became extinct in Australia around that time, coinciding with the arrival of humans. It is the last known member of the extinct flightless bird family Dromornithidae which had been part of the fauna of the Australian continent for over 30 million years. They are not closely related to ratites such as emus, and their closest living relatives are thought to be fowl.
Dromornis is a genus of large to enormous prehistoric birds native to Australia during the Oligocene to Pliocene epochs. The species were flightless, possessing greatly reduced wing structures but with large legs, similar to the modern ostrich or emu. They were likely to have been predominantly, if not exclusively, herbivorous browsers. The male of the largest species, Dromornis stirtoni, is a contender for the tallest and heaviest bird, and possibly exhibited aggressive territorial behaviour. They belong to the family Dromornithidae, extinct flightless birds known as mihirungs.
Sylviornis is an extinct genus of large, flightless bird that was endemic to the islands of New Caledonia in the Western Pacific. It is considered to constitute one of two genera in the extinct family Sylviornithidae, alongside Megavitiornis from Fiji, which are related to the Galliformes, the group containing the turkeys, chickens, quails and pheasants. Sylviornis was never encountered alive by scientists, but it is known from many thousands of subfossil bones found in deposits, some of them from the Holocene, on New Caledonia and the adjacent Île des Pins. It was likely hunted to extinction shortly after the first human arrival to New Caledonia around 1500 BC.
Devil's Lair is a single-chamber cave with a floor area of around 200 m2 (2,200 sq ft) that formed in a Quaternary dune limestone of the Leeuwin–Naturaliste Ridge, 5 km (3.1 mi) from the modern coastline of Western Australia. The stratigraphic sequence in the cave floor deposit consists of 660 cm (260 in) of sandy sediments, with more than 100 distinct layers, intercalated with flowstone and other indurated deposits. Excavations have been made in several areas of the cave floor. Since 1973, excavations have been concentrated in the middle of the cave, where 10 trenches have been dug. Archaeological evidence for intermittent human occupation extends down about 350 cm (140 in) to layer 30, with hearths, bone, and stone artefacts found throughout. The site provides evidence of human habitation of Southwest Australia 50,000 years before the present day.
The New Caledonian gallinule was a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It was endemic to New Caledonia and probably became extinct due to hunting, habitat loss and the presence of invasive species following human settlement of the island. However a passage from an 1860 article refers to birds the size of turkeys being present in marshy areas of New Caledone, suggesting that it may have survived into historic times. The native name n'dino is thought to refer to this bird.
The pile-builder megapode is an extinct species of megapode. The subfossil remains were found by Jean-Christophe Balouet and Storrs L. Olson in the Pindai Caves of New Caledonia. Its remains have also been found on Tonga.
Pachystruthio is a genus of extinct bird which lived in Eurasia from the Late Pliocene to the Middle Pleistocene. Its fossils have been found in Hungary, Greece Crimea, Georgia, and China. The genus contains three species: P. pannonicus, P. dmanisensis, and P. transcaucasicus, which were all formerly placed with the ostrich genus, Struthio. An incomplete femur from the Nihewan Formation (China) has been assigned to Pachystruthio indet. P. dmanisensis has been estimated standing 3.5 meters tall and weighing up to 450 kg (990 lb), making it much larger than the modern ostrich and one of the largest known birds.
The kagu or cagou is a crested, long-legged, and bluish-grey bird endemic to the dense mountain forests of New Caledonia. It is the only surviving member of the genus Rhynochetos and the family Rhynochetidae, although a second species has been described from the fossil record.
The Makauwahi Cave is the largest limestone cave found in Hawaii. It lies on the south coast of the island of Kauaʻi, in the Māhāʻulepū Valley close to Māhāʻulepū Beach, and is important for its paleoecological and archaeological values. It is reached via a sinkhole and has been described as “…maybe the richest fossil site in the Hawaiian Islands, perhaps in the entire Pacific Island region”.
The Kanaka pigeon, also known as the great green pigeon or greater maned pigeon, is an extinct species of pigeon. It was probably hunted to extinction by the early settlers of New Caledonia and Tonga around 2,500 years ago. It was described from subfossil remains found at the Pindai Caves of New Caledonia. The specific epithet is a Latinisation of kanaka, the name of the native Melanesian people of New Caledonia. It was about 25% larger than its closest living relative, the Nicobar pigeon.
Lovelock Cave (NV-Ch-18) is a North American archaeological site previously known as Sunset Guano Cave, Horseshoe Cave, and Loud Site 18. The cave is about 150 feet (46 m) long and 35 feet (11 m) wide. Lovelock Cave is one of the most important classic sites of the Great Basin region because the conditions of the cave are conducive to the preservation of organic and inorganic material. The cave was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 24, 1984. It was the first major cave in the Great Basin to be excavated, and the Lovelock Cave people are part of the University of California Archaeological Community's Lovelock Cave Station.
Megavitiornis altirostris is an extinct, flightless, giant stem-galliform bird that was endemic to Fiji, it is the only known species in the genus Megavitiornis. Originally thought to be a megapode, more recent morphological studies indicate a close relationship with Sylviornis of New Caledonia, with both genera belonging to the family Sylviornithidae outside of the Galliformes crown group. It is likely that it became extinct through overhunting shortly after the colonisation of the Fiji Islands by humans.
The powerful goshawk, also referred to as the greater New Caledonian goshawk, is an extinct species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It was endemic to the island of New Caledonia in Melanesia in the southwest Pacific region. It was described from subfossil bones found at the Pindai Caves paleontological site on the west coast of Grande Terre. The Latin specific epithet efficax means "powerful".
The gracile goshawk is an extinct species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It was endemic to the island of New Caledonia in Melanesia in the southwest Pacific region. It was described from subfossil bones found at the Pindai Caves paleontological site on the west coast of Grande Terre. The Latin specific epithet quartus means "fourth"; it was the fourth Accipiter species recorded from New Caledonia. The gracile goshawk was smaller and much less robust than its contemporary congener the powerful goshawk, remains of which were also found at the same site.
The New Caledonian ground dove is a large, extinct species of Pampusana ground dove in the pigeon family, and the largest member of its genus. It was endemic to the island of New Caledonia in Melanesia in the south-west Pacific region. It was described from subfossil bones found at the Pindai Caves paleontological site on the west coast of Grande Terre. The specific epithet refers to the slender and elongated tarsometatarsus, or lower leg bone, of the species.
The New Caledonian barn owl, also referred to as Letocart's barn owl, is an extinct species of owl in the barn owl family. It was endemic to the island of New Caledonia in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific region. It was described from Holocene aged subfossil bones found at the Gilles Cave paleontological site on the west coast of Grande Terre. The holotype is a complete adult left femur, held by the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle in Paris. The owl was described as Tyto? letocarti, indicating uncertainty as to generic placement at the time. The specific epithet honours Yves Letocart of New Caledonia's Water and Forest Service, who was active in bird conservation and paleontological work on the island.
The lowland kagu is a large, extinct species of kagu. It was endemic to the island of New Caledonia in Melanesia in the south-west Pacific region. It was described from subfossil bones found at the Pindai Caves paleontological site on the west coast of Grande Terre. The holotype is a right tibiotarsus, held by the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle in Paris. The specific epithet comes from the Latin orarius from its presumed lowland distribution, as opposed to its congener the living kagu R. jubatus.
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