Based on the topographic map # 6327-3 created by the Hydrographic Department of Japan Coast Guard
Shitsukari-Abe Cave (Abe site) is a limestone cave located five kilometers south of Cape Shiriya, which is at the northeastern tip of the Shimokita Peninsula in Aomori. The entrance to the cave is at the southern foot of Mt. Kuwabata (ca. 400 m above sea level). It is on a marine terrace facing the Pacific Ocean. Today the mouth of the cave is about 150 m from the shoreline and roughly 33 m above sea level. The cave measures at 3.3 m wide, 2.0 m high, and 2.5 m deep. Therefore, it can be classified as a rock shelter based on its morphology. Limestone mining in the surrounding area has revealed fossils of animals such as Naumann’s elephant (Paleoloxodon naumani) and Yabe’s giant deer (Sinomegaceros yabei). In addition to the Abe site, other Paleolithic sites are found in this area, namely, the Monomidai 1 site, backed knife industry, and Nakano 1 site, microblade industry. Many scholoars look forward to the results of the Shitsukari-Abe Cave site because the lithic artifacts and faunal remains allow us to study Pleistocene human hunting activity and faunal resource utilization through an interdisciplinary approach.