This week, the Big Bend Ancient DNA research conducted by CBBS Director Dr. Bryon Schroeder in collaboration with Dr. Meredith Snow and Tre Blohm from the University of Montana is featured on Marfa Public Radio’s Nature Notes. This research was published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports in January 2021 and found Spirit Eye Cave was used by descendants with the DNA haplotype: B2a4a1. The results allowed the team of researchers to trace the ancestry of Spirit Eye Cave with groups across present-day Mexico, the prehistoric site of Paquimé, in Chihuahua, Mexico, and the Big Bend Region of Texas.
Snow is available to visit with Big Bend residents interested in the DNA work. She can be reached by email, at Meradeth.Snow@umontana.edu.
Listen to or read the story on Marfa Public Radio’s webpage, or follow this link.