Taphonomy of Beringian Karstic Sites: A Case Study from Bluefish Cave III, Yukon, Canada

A recent analysis of the mammal bone assemblages from Bluefish Caves I and II suggests that humans hunted horses and caribou in the northern Yukon Territory of Canada as early as 23,500 years ago. Here we use a taphonomic approach to test whether humans were also active at Cave III. We identify several species of herbivores and carnivores – including the American cheetah – and suggest that carnivores were the principal agent responsible for the assemblage of mammal bones in the rockshelter. We observe no signs of human activity and posit that Cave III was ignored by humans in favor of Caves I and II, which offered better views of former glacial Lake Old Crow. We compare Bluefish Caves with other karstic sites in Alaska and conclude that cave use by humans was opportunistic and episodic, shaped by seasonal prey availability, carnivore occupation cycles, and the strategic advantages of elevated karstic settings.