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The Pleistocene peccary Platygonus vetus from
Poorfarm Cave, Pocahontas County, WV.

Ray Garton, Curator, WV Geological Survey , Morgantown, WV

Fredrick Grady, Arlington, VA

Marshall G Homes, Snow Shoe, WV

ABSTRACT as published in West Virginia Academy of Science Proceedings

A virtually complete, articulated skeleton of the extinct peccary Platygonus vetus has been recovered from an obscure passage in Poorfarm Cave, Pocahontas County, West Virginia. Platygonus vetus dates from the early to middle Pleistocene at about 0.4 to 1.5 million years. Based on other associated fauna the Poorfarm specimen probably dates at the younger part of this time span. Platygonus vetus is much less frequently found than its younger and smaller relative Platygonus compressus. The Poorfarm skeleton is only the second relatively complete skeleton of Platygonus vetus ever found in the United States. Platygonus vetus has also been found in other West Virginia caves such as Rennick Quarry Cave, Greenbrier County, Hamilton and Elias Davis Caves in Pendleton County, and possibly Bowden Cave in Randolph County. This display shows only the main body of the skeleton after the hard matrix has been removed. The photo shows the skeleton as found and before preparation was started. When preparation is completed the entire skeleton will be on display in the WVGES Museum.