MAMMALS OF LAKE IROQUOIS AGE

Remains of single individuals of a juvenile gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), an eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus), and a meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) have been recovered from a buried soil horizon at Scarborough Bluffs, Toronto, Ontario. These have been dated on associated charcoal fragments at 5550 ± 70 C14 years ago. The charcoal has been identified as being derived from white pine (Pinus strobus), hard maple (either Acer saccharum or A. nigrum), and probably beech (Fagus grandifolia). This faunal evidence is considered approximately contemporaneous with a fauna from Hamilton Bay containing the pine vole (Pitymys pinetorum) and the presence of the pine vole and gray fox is adduced as support for a climatic optimum some 5000 years ago. Remains of the muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) have also been recovered from the Hamilton Bay faunal site, adding another mammal to this faunal list.