VERTEBRATES FROM MIOCENE, PLIOCENE AND PLEISTOCENE. IOI 
THE PLEISTOCENE VERTEBRATES. 
Of the many Pleistocene localities in Florida containing verte¬ 
brate fossils, the best known, perhaps, is the Peace Creek Beds 
near Arcadia, in DeSoto County. The history of this locality dates 
back to 1881, when Captain J. F. LeBaron, while employed in mak¬ 
ing a survey for a proposed ship canal across Florida, was at¬ 
tracted by phosphate pebble and water worn bones found in the 
bed of Peace Creek. A considerable amount of this material in¬ 
cluding, it is said, several barrels, was taken from the river and 
shipped to the Smithsonian Institution. In 1888 active mining of 
phosphate began on Peace Creek and many additional fossils were 
thus brought to light. During 1888 Mr. Joseph Willcox visited 
Peace Creek and obtained at that time an important collection 
taken chiefly from the bed of the river brought up by the dredge 
in the course of phosphate mining. 
Peace Creek. —During Pleistocene time Peace Creek was cut¬ 
ting its channel through Pliocene and into Oligiocene beds both of 
which hold vertebrate fossils. As a fesult the Pleistocene beds of 
Peace Creek contain not only the fauna natural to them, but also 
inclusions from both the Pliocene and, the Oligocene. At the pres¬ 
ent time the stream is cutting through Pleistocene, Pliocene and 
into the Oligocene. It has thus come about that fossils collected 
along Peace Creek, either from recent sand-bars or from the Pleis¬ 
tocene beds, present a mixture of materials, from which has re¬ 
sulted not a little confusion in the literature as to the range of 
species in the Florida Pliocene and Pleistocene. 
Among the fossils from Peace Creek that may with reason be 
regarded as Pleistocene, since they are found in undoubted Pleis¬ 
tocene elsewhere, are the following: 
PLEISTOCENE VERTEBRATES FROM PEACE CREEK. 
Elephas coiumbi. 
Tapirus Jiaysii. 
Manimat americanum. 
Odocoileas sp. 
Bison sp. 
Eqnns leidyi. 
Equus lit tor alis. 
Chlamytherium septentrionalis ( C. humbbldtii). Coll. Wag¬ 
ner Free Institute. 
