ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the impact of the Plinian eruption that produced the Upper Toluca Pumice (UTP), or Tripartite Pumice, one of the main tephra markers produced by the Nevado de Toluca volcano on Paleoindian and megafaunal communities in the Basin of Mexico at around 10,500 BP. With its fertile soils and plentiful water resources, the Basin of Mexio has been an attractive place for animals and humans alike since the end of the Pleistocene. In the Late Pleistocene and the Early Holocene, this region experienced major environmental change associated with volcanic processes. These included major Plinian eruptions from the Tlaloc/Telapon, Popocatpetl, and the Nevado de Toluca volcanoes, which produced pyroclastic flows, lahars, and ash falls. Together, the volcanic and climatic changes affected the development of geomorphological processes and landforms, vegetation, and soil processes. Embarcadero, Chimalhuacan, State of Mexico, in association with bone tools and obsidian flakes, but there are no published records of the stratigraphy associated with the find.
