208 



University of California Publications. 



[Geology 



Introduction. 



In the recent work of exploration of the limestone eaves ,of 

 Shasta County, California, by Dr. J. C. Merriam, Dr. Wm. J. Sin- 

 clair and Mr. E. L. Furlong, the primary object was the investi- 

 gation of the vertebrate faunas, but specimens of other forms, 

 including a few myriopods, were obtained from both eaves. Dur- 

 ing investigations in the asphalt beds near Los Angeles two beetles 

 and several myriopods were found by Mr. Furlong, previous to 

 Ueceniber 1906, when the author joined Dr. Merriam and Mr. 

 Furlong, and succeeded in making a small, but interesting collec- 

 tion of Coleoptera and Myriopoda from the vicinity of the bones 

 in the asphalt. The author is greatly indebted to Dr. Merriam 

 for the opportunity of studying this material, as well as the cave 

 specimens from Shasta County. 



Samwel Cave and Potter Creek Cave are located on the Mc- 

 Cloud river in Shasta county. Samwel Cave 1 is fifteen miles 

 above Baird. It lies in the belt of Carboniferous limestone ex- 

 posed along the lower McCloud river. There are recognized in 

 the deposits on the floor of this cave twenty species of vertebrates 

 of which eight are extinct. The species from the different 

 chambers are in some cases distinct, suggesting slightly different 

 ages. 



Potter Creek Cave'- is situated on the McCloud river near 

 Baird. It contains, so far as recognized, fifty-two species of ver- 

 tebrates, of which twenty-one are extinct. Dr. Sinclair considers 

 the fauna of Potter Creek Cave to represent the middle or later 

 Quaternary; that of Samwel Cave is Quaternary, but later than 

 that of Potter Creek Cave. The Myriopods from Potter Creek 

 Cave surely indicate an earlier formation. Mr. Furlong has ex- 

 plored Samwel Cave and Dr. Sinclair has explored Potter Creek 

 Cave, and the notes here given are taken from their papers. Dr. 

 Merriam has compared the ages of the different caves of Shasta 

 county, in a recent paper.' 5 



1 Furlong, E. L. The Exploration of Samwel Cave. American Journal 

 of Science, XXII, 1906, pp. 235-247. 



2 Sinclair, Wm. J. The Exploration of the Potter Creek Cave. Univ. 

 Calif. Publ. Amer. Arch, and Ethn., Vol. II, No. 1, 1904. 



s Merriam, J. C. Recent Cave Explorations in California. American 

 Anthropologist (n.s.), S, No. 2, 1906. 



