Unlike most of the country, Palawan is
biogeographically part of
Sundaland, with a fauna and flora related to those in
Borneo.
Prehistory Two articulated
phalanx bones of a
tiger, besides another phalanx piece, were found amidst an assemblage of other animal bones and
stone tools in
Ille Cave near the village of New Ibajay. The other animal fossils were ascribed to
macaques,
deer,
bearded pigs, small mammals, lizards, snakes and turtles. From the stone tools, besides the evidence for cuts on the bones, and the use of fire, it would appear that early humans had accumulated the bones. Using the work of Von den Driesch, all chosen anatomical features of appendicular elements' anatomical features which were chosen, besides molars, were measured to distinguish between
taxa that had close relationships, and see morphometric changes over ages, though not for
pigs or deer. For the latter two,
cranial and
mandibular elements, besides teeth of deer from Ille Cave were compared with samples of the
Philippine brown deer (
Cervus mariannus),
Calamian hog deer (
Axis calamianensis), and
Visayan spotted deer (
Cervus alfredi), and thus two taxa of deer have been identified from the fossils:
Axis and
Cervus. Remains of pigs were compared with the
Eurasian (Sus scrofa) and
Palawanese wild boar (Sus ahoenobarbus). It is known that the Eurasian wild boar was imported as a domesticate to the islands from
Mainland Southeast Asia to the islands during the Terminal
Holocene. Throughout deposits of the Terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene and Terminal Pleistocene at Ille Cave, elements of deer skeletons are regular, gradually becoming less before vanishing in the Terminal Holocene. One 'large' and one 'small' taxon can be easily differentiated by the significant change in size observed in the postcranial elements and dentition. As for the 'large' taxon of deer found in the Palawan fossils, the
Philippine brown deer from Luzon appears to be closely matched to them, from dental biometric comparisons which are similar between the latter and extant members of the
genus Cervus or
Rusa, particularly the Philippine brown deer (
C. mariannus) and
spotted deer (C. alfredi). However, the Philippine brown deer shows significant variation across its range, with populations on
Mindanao Island being smaller than those of
Luzon. Thus, it is possible that the overlap between the Luzon brown deer and the archaeological material is coincidental, and that the fossils could belonged to another species of
Cervus that had occurred in Palawan, with the taxonomic classification being unresolved. The Philippine brown deer from Luzon appears to be closely matched to the 'large' taxon of deer found in the Palawan fossils, from dental biometric comparisons which are similar between the latter and extant members of the
genus Cervus or
Rusa, particularly the Philippine brown deer (
C. mariannus) and
spotted deer (C. alfredi). However, the Philippine brown deer shows significant variation across its range, with populations on
Mindanao Island being smaller than those of
Luzon. Thus, it is possible that the overlap between the Luzon brown deer and the archaeological material is coincidental, and that the fossils could belonged to another species of
Cervus that had occurred in Palawan, with the taxonomic classification being unresolved. Otherwise, members of the genus
Cervus are no longer seen in the region of Palawan. ==History==