Miocene Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

m1 Cricetodon aliveriensis was first described by Hofmeijer and de Bruijn in 1988. It is a small rodent from the Early Miocene (MN 4) of Greece. The type locality of the species is the fossiliferous locality of Aliveri on the Greek Island of Evia which does not exist anymore. The subject of this study is to record and describe the material of this genus from the Greek locality of Karydia and to prove whether it belongs to the same species.

- by and +1
- •
- Greece, Miocene, Cricetodon, Micromammals

The newly collected shark and ray tooth fossils from the marine sediments of the Upper Marine Molasse close to Allerding (4.8 km SE of Schärding, Austria) allow for a review of the hitherto known diversity comprising a taxonomic update and the documentation of additional taxa. Besides ten taxa already known from the area, the following taxa were collected for the first time from the site:

- by Jürgen Pollerspöck and +1
- •
- Fossil Fish, Sharks, Elasmobranchs, Miocene
- by Terry Harrison
- •
- Evolutionary Biology, Paleobiology, Paleoanthropology, Paleontology
- by Yuji TAKAKUWA
- •
- Shark, Fossil Shark, Fossil Fish, Vertebrate taphonomy

Typology and internal texture analyses were performed on detrital zircons obtained from the Miocene sandstones of the Ladrilleros-Juanchaco sedimentary sequence (Colombia, Equatorial Pacific). This analysis was complemented with zircon U/Pb dating to identify typology-age associations as indicators of sediment provenance. Our results show that zircons with S and P dominant typologies have internal structures/zoning indicative of igneous, and potentially also metamorphic, origins. Morphometric results suggest limited transport from source areas. Both typology and U/Pb data point to the Western Cordillera as the principal source of detrital materials for this sedimentary sequence. A paleogeographic reconstruction shows that, during the Late Miocene, significant portions of the Western Cordillera were uplifted and actively eroding, thereby forming a fluvio-topographic barrier that prevented sediments from the Central Cordillera reaching the Pacific basins. Exhumed Miocene plutons located along the axis of the Western Cordillera may also have played a role as geomorphologically active massifs. This study demonstrates that typologic analysis on detrital zircon grains is a useful tool for establishing provenance and paleogeography in complex litho-tectonic areas where overlapping U/Pb signatures can lead to contradictory results..

- by Geologica Acta and +1
- •
- Sedimentology, Colombia, Provenance, Zircon U-Pb Geochronology

In this study, a new evidence of Neogastropods of the family Costellariidae MacDonald, 1860 from the Miocene of Central Paratethys is presented. The finds of fossil shells of the genus Vexillum Röding, 1798 derives from the middle Miocene (Serravallian) marine deposits from the eastern margin of the Vienna Basin (Western Carpathians, Slovakia), which belongs to the north-west Central Paratethys realm. The studied gastropods were discovered at the locality Rohožník – Konopiská, in the basinal pelitic facies and organodetritic corallinacean marls of the Studienka Formation of late Badenian age (Bulimina-Bolivina Biozone). The material studied here includes two new species: Vexillum svagrovskyi sp. nov. and Vexillum pseudoschafferi sp. nov. The affinity and comparison of both species with other similar costellariids from the Neogene of European Eastern Atlantic, Proto-Mediterranean and Paratethyan regions are discussed. From a paleoecological point of view, the results suggest that V. svagrovskyi was adapted to a moderately deep, circalittoral environment with occasional worsening of the paleoecological conditions (low bottom water oxygenation), whereas species V. pseudoschafferi preferred a shallow-water infralittoral environment.

- by Radoslav Biskupič
- •
- Paleontology, Paleoecology, Gastropoda, Miocene
- by Friðgeir Grímsson and +1
- •
- Stratigraphy, Climate Change, Palynology, Tectonics
- by George Konidaris
- •
- Vertebrate Paleontology, Mammalian Paleontology, Proboscidea, Late Miocene

The Plains zebra (Equus burchellii Gray 1824) is a widespread equid species, inhabiting a continuous range throughout sub-Saharan Africa. This study investigates geographic and temporal variability in members of E. burchellii from East Africa versus those from southern Africa. Modern variability in cranial and dental morphologies is first assessed by examining metric variation between specimens from the two geographical regions. Second, a comparison is made between modern and fossil equid specimens attributed to E. burchellii from East and southern African Pleistocene (1.8 – 0.01 Ma) sites. Results show that modern southern E. burchellii is larger in overall cranial and dental dimensions than living East African conspecifics, but East African fossils are far larger than modern counterparts living in the same region. Morphological differences observed between fossil
and modern East African E. burchellii may reflect changes in climate in this region, while southern Africa experienced little change in conditions over the last 1.8 million years.

- by Sally Reynolds
- •
- Human Evolution, Climate Change, Palaeoenvironment, Climate Change Adaptation

2013.11 These maps (rectilinear projection) are from the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas for ArcGIS (Scotese, 2013a-f). This is a digital atlas of plate tectonic, paleogeographic, and paleoclimatic reconstructions designed for use with the GIS software, ArcMap (ESRI). Table 1 lists the various types of maps that comprise the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas. The maps included in this folio are highlighted in bold text (Table 1).
The last map in each folio is a rectilinear graticule that can be overlain on the maps to provide a geographic reference frame. A rectilinear projection was used because it can be easily georeferenced in ArcMap and transformed into a variety of other map projections. The rectilinear, or plate caree map projection can also be directly “wrapped” onto a spherical projection, like the oneused by Google Earth. A set of Google Earth paleoglobes has made from the maps in this folio. These Google Earth paleoglobes can be downloaded at: www.globalgeology.com.
If the map you need is missing, or if there doesn’t seem to be a map folio for the exact time interval of interest, please contact me (cscotese@gmail.com). Table 2 lists all the time intervals that comprise the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas for ArcGIS. The PaleoAtlas contains one map for every stage in the Phanerozoic, as well as 6 maps for the late Precambrian. Eventually, Map Folios, like this one, will be published for every time interval in the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas. The following section is a brief description of the maps that makeup the Map Folio.

- by Christopher Scotese
- •
- Geology, Climatology, Tectonics, Plate Tectonics

Život v zanikajícím oceánu Thetys Xiphactinus žil v období křídy před více než 80 miliony lety, tedy v době, kdy pevninu ovládali dinosauři. Tento až šest metrů dlouhý a tunu vážící predátor byl králem podvodního světa, přestože oceán obývaly i větší obludy. Příkladem může být osmimetrový žralok Cretoxyrhina. Xiphactinus však disponoval bojovým arsenálem v podobě zubů ostrých jak meče, jejichž čepele byly i 30 centimetrů dlouhé. Největší známá ryba, která žila na naší planetě, dostala, jméno Leedsichthys a žila v období jury. Zkameněliny tohoto neuvěřitelného tvora, který se živil převážně planktonem, byly poprvé objeveny u britského Peterborough v roce 1886. Obří prehistorická ryba mohla vážit až 45 tun a měřila okolo třiceti metrů na délku. V období třetihor, a to v oligocénu, bylo na území dnešní Moravy moře. V sedimentech z tohoto období-v tzv. menilitovém souvrství, lze nalézt řadu fosilních pozůstatků rybovitých obratlovců, a to jak žraloků (Selachii). Jenže pro ty byste museli s prutem až kamsi k Brnu.

- by Lukáš Hanzl
- •
- Paleontology, Miocene, Oligocene, Thetis

Sixteen fossil shark teeth were found in close contact with a balaenopterid-whale skeleton of the Late Miocene Pisco Formation in Peru, South America. This whale skeleton (GMNH-PV 1599 was excavated in Aguada de Lomas of western Arequipa in 1990, and exhibited in Gunma Museum of Natural History, Japan, after 1996. All teeth have relatively large and triangular shaped crowns. The cutting edge is smooth and almost straight in profile. Their roots are bulky and stout with long or expanded lobes. These characteristics indicate that all teeth are identified to fossil 'mako' shark ("Isurus”
hastalis). And the variety of the shape in each tooth implies difference of tooth position in its jaw. The duplication of the teeth at two positions (anterior tooth and intermediate tooth) and the difference of the crown size of anterior teeth suggest that the minimum number of shark individuals which had preyed on the whale is two. And one of them might be smaller than the other one. In addition, it is recognized that one of the sharks sank its upper lateral tooth into the whale skull bone.

- by Yuji TAKAKUWA
- •
- Vertebrate Paleontology, Sharks, Fossil sharks, Fossil Fishes

A fully cored sequence of Hesse Clay, Port Campbell Limestone and uppermost Gellibrand Marl in the onshore Otway Basin, southeastern Australia, offers new insight into the evolution of the mid-dle Miocene Port Campbell Limestone. The Port Campbell Limestone comprises grey unconsoli-dated to semi-consolidated and rarely lithified bioclastic muddy carbonate sands in a stack of thin repetitive cycles within cycles of predominantly shoaling-upward character. A glauconitic band with a distinctive mollusc–echinoderm–bryozoan fauna provides a distinctive marker interval in the sequence. In mineralogy, the Port Campbell Limestone is predominantly calcite with traces of rem-nant aragonite in muddier low-permeability sands, and with dolomitic zones in permeable inter-vals. The small non-carbonate component of the Port Campbell Limestone is between 3 and 15 wt% and comprises quartz silt with minor clay, feldspar and mica. Dissolution overprints are prominent throughout the carbonate sequence. Three distinct geochemical signatures of proven-ance are evident in the Port Campbell Limestone sequence, including possible volcanogenic contri-butions with felsic sources. Foraminifera are common and generally well preserved. Foraminiferal data suggest a depositional transition from outer shelf conditions in the Gellibrand Marl at ca 15 Ma to middle shelf environments in the lower part of the Port Campbell Limestone during the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (MMCO) at ca 14.24 Ma. Shallowing after 14 Ma indicates vari-able paleodepths of <70 m during and following the end of the Middle Miocene Climatic Transition (MMCT) at ca 13.2 Ma when the sequence was emergent for a brief but undetermined period, corresponding with sharp changes in geochemical ratios. Observed cyclicity in these mid-shelfal, cold-water carbonates is strongly correlated with orbital forcings—eccentricity and obli-quity. Sedimentation rates determined from cyclostratigraphic analysis indicate 4–6 cm/kyr at the end of the MMCO, diminishing to 1.5–3 cm/kyr during the MMCT and the subsequent accumula-tion of the Port Campbell Limestone.

- by Stephen Gallagher
- •
- Miocene, Limestone

The Lower Miocene Libyan Giraffe (Zarafa zelteni Hamilton, 1973) Fossils from Gaza City, State of Palestine. By: Sharif Prof. Dr. Sc. Norman Ali Bassam Ali Taher Mohammad Ahmad Ahmad Mostafa Abdallah Mohammad Khalaf-Prinz Sakerfalke von... more

- by Norman Khalaf
- •
- Palestine, Giraffe, Libya, Fossils
- by Mark Beech
- •
- Paleontology, Vertebrate Paleontology, United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi

Fossil Crocodylia are taxonomically diverse in South America, particularly in the Upper Miocene Urumaco Formation (Venezuela). Among them is the giant alligatoroid Purussaurus, previously known from the upper Miocene Solim˜oes Formation in Brasil (P. brasiliensis) and the middle Miocene of La Venta in Colombia (P. neivensis). New specimens of Crocodylia from the Urumaco Formation are described and a new species, Purussaurus mirandai, erected. This is characterised by a large, elongate and extremely flat skull, a very large narial opening comprising almost 60% of rostral length and a large incisive foramen that extends anteriorly between the fossae for the first mandibulary teeth. Purussaurus mirandai sp. nov. was the largest predator in the swampy environments and represented the top trophic level in the Urumaco assemblage. A phylogenetic analysis of 164 characters in 68 ingroup crocodile taxa supported the association of P. neivensis and P. mirandai with five synapomorphies and confirmed the sister-group relationship of the genus with the Nettosuchidae

- by Douglas Riff
- •
- Paleontology, Crocodylians, Venezuela, Miocene
- by Karen Black
- •
- Australia, Evolution, Wildlife Conservation, Vertebrate Paleontology
- by Terry Harrison
- •
- Paleontology, Vertebrate Paleontology, Miocene, Primate Evolution

L’étude de deux coupes lithologiques à Djebel Aoud Sma (Monts des Ouled Ali, Bordure Sud du bassin du Bas Chélif) a permis d’étudier la série messinienne complète de ce secteur. Les diatomites du Djebel Aoud Sma ont été subdivisées lithologiquement en deux membres. Les résultats ichnologiques ont permis de les placer au sommet du premier membre diatomitique du bassin du Bas Chélif. Les calcaires sus-jacents ont été subdivisés également en unité pré-récifale et unité récifale. Ils ont été le siège d’apports détritiques périodiques, qui ont atteint leur maximum dans l’unité récifale. L’Halimeda-rich beds ; un faciès qui pourrait constituer un niveau index, connu dans toutes les plates-formes carbonatées messiniennes de la Méditerranée occidentale, a été mis en évidence aussi, où il a été découvert pour la première fois dans la plate-forme carbonatée de la bordure Sud du bassin du Bas Chélif (Tessala-Béni Chougrane). L’étude microfaciologique a permis d’interpréter le milieu de dépôt des deux unités carbonatées. L’unité pré-récifale correspond à une plate-forme carbonatée peu profonde, envasée et relativement calme, tandis que l’unité récifale s’est déposée dans un milieu peu profond également, relativement agité, présentant un talus (pente récifale). Aussi, les résultats de la géochimie ont permis d’étudier la composition en éléments majeurs de tous les faciès rencontrés dans les marnes grises, les diatomites et les calcaires. Les diatomites pures peuvent constituer un bon gisement à exploiter, et c’est ainsi pour les calcaires qui peuvent faire une bonne matière première pour la fabrication du ciment gris et blanc.

- by Mohammed Nadir Naimi
- •
- Coral Reefs, Carbonate Sedimentology, Algeria, Miocene

We present the first comprehensive systematic-faunistic account on a Messinian gastropod assemblage from the Moncucco Torinese site in the Tertiary Piedmont Basin in Italy. In total, the samples yielded 53 gastropod species comprising 40 terrestrial and 13 aquatic species. The assemblage reflects a predominantly dry, rather open and stony landscape mixed with restricted wooded areas with some deadwood and leaf litter. Freshwater settings were present as well but may have been largely restricted to ephemeral puddles and ponds. The assemblage is outstanding in evolutionary aspects as it represents an example of the earliest post-evaporitic gastropod fauna, which has passed the Messinian Salinity Crisis. Indeed, the composition of the terrestrial Moncucco Torinese fauna suggests a biochronologic transition from Late Miocene to Pliocene faunas, supporting the dating based on mammals as late Turolian (MN 13). About 15% of the species have been known so far only from the European Miocene, 40% were described from the Pliocene and were unknown from older strata and about 42% are only known from the Late Messinian of Moncucco Torinese. This suggests that the Pliocene continental gastropod fauna is partly rooted in Messinian faunas, pointing to a rather low turnover at the Miocene/Pliocene boundary. In terms of biogeography, no evolutionary relation to coeval Pannonian-Pontian faunas of Lake Pannon or the Dacian Basin are documented for the Lago-Mare gastropods. Hydrocena moncuccoensis Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp., Saccoia globosa Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp., Acicula giuntellii Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp., Platyla manganellii Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp., Cochlicopa fassabortoloi Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp., Lucilla miocaenica Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp., and ?Helicopsis piedmontanica Harzhauser, Neubauer & Esu n. sp. are described as new species. Possible further new taxa are described in open nomenclature, because the poor preservation of the material does not allow formal species to be established.

- by Thomas A. Neubauer and +3
- •
- Systematics (Taxonomy), Paleontology, Diversity, Land Snails
- by Miriam Belmaker
- •
- Climate Change, Palynology, Pleistocene, Pliocene

The upper Miocene mollusc collection from Monti Livornesi, Italy, collected more than a century ago, is confronted with new collections coming from the same localities of Popogna and Quarata. The study concerns the comparison of abundance data of three distinct fossil assemblages from the three vertically-stacked stratigraphic units called Luppiano, Rosignano and Raquese, of upper Tortonian-early Messinian age. Literature and museological data allowed to attribute most museum specimens to one and only one fossil assemblage. Museum collections preserve roughly the same dominant species, with similar ranks as the new quantitative field collections. Significant differences are however evident in the Luppiano assemblage from brackish-water, shallow subtidal bottoms, because new samples yield many species of small size, some of which with high dominance, that are completely lacking in museum collections, suggesting a bias due to size sorting and hinting at the overwhelming contribution of small-sized species to global mollusc diversity. On the other hand the Raquese assemblage, from an open marine shelf setting, can be similarly interpreted from the study of either the museum or new collection, yielding a similar species list and rank. The Rosignano mollusc assemblage, from a bioclastic bottom near a coral patch reef and characterised by fossils with a distinct taphonomic signature, is insufficiently represented in both historical and new collections. The systematics of the three assemblages are revised. The study contributes to the growing literature on museum "dark data" by showing that museum collections may yield abundance data significant for paleobiological analysis.

- by Stefano Dominici and +1
- •
- Museum Studies, History of Museums, Paleoecology, Bivalves
- by Karen Black and +1
- •
- Australia, Biostratigraphy, Vertebrate Palaeontology, Vertebrate Paleontology

This contribution, the third part of a monographic series, deals with the biogeography of the Tethys and Paratethys sea basins in the Late Oligocène and Early Miocene and includes reviews of the stratigraphy and paleogeography of the Paratethys, descriptions of the biogeographic distribution of planktonic foraminifers, nanno-and organic-walled phytoplankton, benthos (benthic foraminifers, ostracodes, and mollusks), and the ich-thyofauna, and provides biogeographic zonation based on these groups. The final section deals with the evolution of the main biochores in the western Eurasian basins during the second half of the Paleogene and Miocene.

- by Sergey Popov
- •
- Miocene, Oligocene, Palaeogeography of Eastern Paratethys

2013.13 These maps (rectilinear projection) are from the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas for ArcGIS (Scotese, 2013a-f). This is a digital atlas of plate tectonic, paleogeographic, and paleoclimatic reconstructions designed for use with the GIS software, ArcMap (ESRI). Table 1 lists the various types of maps that comprise the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas. The maps included in this folio are highlighted in bold text (Table 1).
The last map in each folio is a rectilinear graticule that can be overlain on the maps to provide a geographic reference frame. A rectilinear projection was used because it can be easily georeferenced in ArcMap and transformed into a variety of other map projections. The rectilinear, or plate caree map projection can also be directly “wrapped” onto a spherical projection, like the oneused by Google Earth. A set of Google Earth paleoglobes has made from the maps in this folio. These Google Earth paleoglobes can be downloaded at: www.globalgeology.com.
If the map you need is missing, or if there doesn’t seem to be a map folio for the exact time interval of interest, please contact me (cscotese@gmail.com). Table 2 lists all the time intervals that comprise the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas for ArcGIS. The PaleoAtlas contains one map for every stage in the Phanerozoic, as well as 6 maps for the late Precambrian. Eventually, Map Folios, like this one, will be published for every time interval in the PALEOMAP PaleoAtlas. The following section is a brief description of the maps that makeup the Map Folio.

- by Christopher Scotese
- •
- Geology, Tectonics, Paleoclimate, Plate Tectonics

The Miocene elephantoid Choerolophodon from SE Europe-SW Asia is studied, based on the Greek localities of Thymiana, Axios Valley, Pikermi, Samos and Nikiti-2. Although this genus is well documented in Greece, there is no recent taxonomic study and its biostratigraphy and palaeoecology had never been examined in detail. Three choerolophodont species are recognized in SE Europe–SW Asia: the Middle Miocene C. chioticus (late Orleanian, MN 5), and the Late Miocene C. anatolicus (early Vallesian, MN 9) and C. pentelici (late Vallesian–Turolian, MN 10–MN 13). The latter species is divided into a primitive morph, dated to the late Vallesian and possibly earliest Turolian, and an advanced morph from the Turolian. At the end of the Miocene Choerolophodon disappeared. With respect to the geographical distribution of Choerolophodon, the genus is very well documented in SE Europe–SW Asia but it is unknown from Central, Western and Northern Europe, a fact which is attributed to ecological factors. The phylogenetic relationships of all known choerolophodont species from the Miocene of the Old World are examined using a cladistic analysis, and their proposed biogeography is discussed. Finally, the palaeoecology of Late Miocene Choerolophodon from Northern Greece is studied through a dental microwear analysis, revealing that Choerolophodon foraged mainly on grasses, a type of vegetation widespread in open environments. These palaeoecological results are in agreement with previous environmental reconstructions for the Late Miocene of Greece.

- by George Konidaris and +2
- •
- Biostratigraphy, Vertebrate Palaeontology, Palaeoecology, Vertebrate Paleontology

I nuovi esemplari presentati ampliano il range della variabilità morfologica della specie e sono di interesse del trend di riduzione di taglia corporea rispetto alla probabile specie ancestrale Metaxytherium medium ed alla possibile specie derivata M. subappenninum. Secondo Domning & Thomas (1978), infatti, in Europa il genere Metaxytherium segue un'unica linea filetica da M. krahuletzi (Miocene superiore) a M. medium (Miocene medio) a M. serresii (Miocene superiore-Pliocene inferiore) a M. subappenninum (Pliocene medio).

- by Giuseppe Carone
- •
- Vertebrate Palaeontology, Calabria, Miocene
- by Anita Bartakovics
- •
- Miocene, Foraminifera, Vienna Basin
- by Karen Black
- •
- Australia, Biostratigraphy, Evolution, Vertebrate Palaeontology

We describe an early middle Miocene (late Langhian) terrestrial mollusc fauna from Nowa Wieś Królewska at Opole in Silesia (Poland). This survey is based on the rich collection stored in the Natural History Museum in Vienna and represents the first revision of this classical fauna. The assemblage is extraordinarily diverse and comprises 82 gastropod species and one bivalve species. About 56% of the taxa are known so far only from Nowa Wieś Królewska, emphasizing the preeminent position of this fauna within the European Neogene. The fauna reveals taxonomic affinities with early and early middle Miocene faunas. Stratigraphic overlap of several species and genera would suggest a correlation with the mammal biozone MN 5; integrating mammal data, however, indicates correlation with the biozone MN 6. This discrepancy is explained best by the lack of other adequately revised European MN 6 mollusc faunas. Consequently, the fauna from Nowa Wieś Królewska is proposed here as type of a MN 6 mollusc fauna in Central Europe. As such, this fauna represents the best-documented terrestrial mollusc fauna from the late Miocene Climate Optimum. Semi-quantitative abundance data of the terrestrial gastropods suggests the presence of ephemeral ponds and fens that formed on Cret-aceous limestones, surrounded by forested environments with leaf litter and dead wood. Occidentina gen. nov., Mennoia gen. nov., Neubertella gen. nov. and Eurocystina gen. nov. are described as new genera. Martinietta kadolskyi sp. nov., Carychium stworzewiczae sp. nov., Gastrocopta (Albinula) polonica sp. nov., Leiostyla piserai sp. nov., Vertigo antipygmaea sp. nov., Mennoia sculpturata sp. nov., Neubertella pulchra sp. nov., Aegopinella depressula sp. nov., Eurocystina nordsiecki sp. nov. and Vitrea angustaeumbilicata sp. nov. are introduced as new species. •

- by Thomas A. Neubauer
- •
- Paleontology, Stratigraphy, Paleoenvironment, Biostratigraphy
- by NIKOLAOS SKARPELIS
- •
- Geology, Mineralogy, Tectonics, Greece
- by Terry Harrison
- •
- Paleobiology, Vertebrate Paleontology, Miocene, Primate Evolution

"The mid-third millennium is marked by unprecedented urban growth from Egypt and the Levantine coast to the Iranian plateau and the Indus valley. Although urbanization in the southern Mesopotamian alluvium is reasonably well understood, details of the emergence of cities in other regions remains sketchy.
When did cities first appear on the dry-farming plains of Syria and Mesopotamia and what accounts for their development? How might northern urbanization be a response to southern Mesopotamian developments or in what ways might urbanization in the two regions reflect independent social and economic processes?
Recent excavations provide new data that force reconsideration of ancient urbanization within the dry-farming zone along the interior of the Zagros-Taurus arc in Syria and Iraq. The essays in this volume, which grew out of a symposium hosted by the American Schools of Oriental Research in Chicago in December 1984, specifically treat third-millennium urbanization in the dry-farming zones of Syria and Iraq. The contrast of north and south informs each essay, and this focus points to additional issues and problems likely to dominate future archaeological research agendas."

- by Harvey Weiss
- •
- Near Eastern Archaeology, Climate Change, Mesopotamian Archaeology, State Formation

Here, we present the continental aquatic and terrestrial gastropods found in samples of 11 new boreholes in the Molasse Basin, southern Germany. The samples come from the Lower Freshwater Molasse (USM), the Upper Brackish Molasse (OBM; Grimmelfingen and Kirchberg Formations) and the Upper Freshwater Molasse (OSM). The studied segments of these lithostratigraphical units represent the beginning of the lower Miocene (USM), and the uppermost lower Miocene (OBM, OSM). Twenty-four species of terrestrial and freshwater gastropods are reported here, belonging to the families Neritidae, Melanopsidae, Pachychilidae, Bithyniidae, Hydrobiidae, Truncatellidae(?), Viviparidae, Valvatidae(?), Lymnaeidae, Planorbidae, Carychiidae, Zonitidae, Helicidae, Hygromiidae and Discidae(?). We provide remarks on the taxonomy of some of the studied species, including a revision of Theodoxus cyrtocelis, T. obstusangula and T. sparsus (the latter can be considered a synonym of T. cyrtocelis). Finally, we present a paleoecological interpretation for the USM, OBM and OSM based on the gastropod fauna.

- by Rodrigo B . Salvador
- •
- Land Snails, Paleoecology, Invertebrate Paleontology, Miocene

Archaeological, geoarchaeological, and geomorphological investigations were conducted at the Harleigh Knoll Site in Talbot County, Maryland. The site is located at the headwaters of a small tidal tributary that drains into Trippe Creek. The site and the associated knoll had evidence of prior human occupation on the surface of the forest floor. The evidence included a scatter of shell, some lithic stone tool manufacture debris, and several anomalous rounded river cobbles or boulders. Soils analysis revealed that the knoll is an aeolian landform or wind deposited dune. The knoll was created as a result of sand erosion from the creek bed located north of the site being reworked by intense northerly winds. The reworked sands were redeposited south of two converging streams over many millennia building the topographically elevated knoll. Archaeological testing revealed stratified prehistoric deposits associated with the Early Archaic, Late Archaic, and Late Woodland periods. These investigations also revealed that the knoll was used as an historic 17th century period cemetery.

- by Darrin Lowery
- •
- Prehistoric Archaeology, Geology, Pedology, Historical Archaeology
- by K Milankumar Sharma
- •
- Palaeogeography, Palaeoenvironment, Shark, Fossils
- by Terry Harrison
- •
- Paleobiology, Paleoanthropology, Human Evolution, Vertebrate Paleontology

In this paper, we describe a non-marine mollusk fauna deriving from late middle Miocene (late Serravallian; Sarmatian) deposits of western Serbia. The assemblage encompasses a diverse land snail fauna with twenty-four species, along with four species of freshwater pulmonate gastropods and one bivalve species. While the aquatic snails are ubiquitous elements in Europe during the middle Miocene, the terrestrial gastropod fauna, consisting of both common and rare species, offers the first comprehensive insight into land snail diversity on the Balkan Peninsula during that time and permits conclusions on regional biogeography. The fauna shows high affinities to the middle Miocene faunas of central Europe and shares only few elements with western and eastern European and Anatolian assemblages. Ecologically, the freshwater mollusks point to a standing or slowing moving, probably highly vegetated, lacustrine environment. The land snails indicate the presence of humid forests around Lake Vračević, which is in line with current climatic reconstruction for the Sarmatian of southeastern Europe. ?Vertigo vracevicensis Neubauer & Harzhauser sp. nov. and Pisidium mionicense Neubauer, Harzhauser & Mandic sp. nov. are introduced as new species. Discus costatus (Gottschick, 1911) is shown to be a junior objective synonym of Discus solarioides (Sandberger, 1872). •

- by Thomas A. Neubauer
- •
- Systematics (Taxonomy), Taxonomy, Systematics, Paleobiogeography
- by Federico Famiani
- •
- Paleontology, Sedimentology, Climate Change, Palynology
- by Ranjeev Epa
- •
- Biostratigraphy, Miocene, Foraminifera, Index Fossil
- by CLUZAUD Alain
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- Systematics, Miocene, Oligocene
- by Terry Harrison
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- Paleobiology, Paleontology, Biogeography, Vertebrate Paleontology

"The Miocene to Pliocene Purisima Formation crops out in multiple transform fault bounded structural blocks in central California. As a result of poor exposure, strike slip fault offset, and uncertain intraformational correlations, some exposures of the Purisima Formation are not well dated. The San Gregorio section of the Purisima Formation occurs in the Pigeon Point
Block, west of the San Gregorio Fault, along the coast of southern Halfmoon Bay. Ages based on invertebrate and diatom biostratigraphy support a Late Miocene to Early Pliocene age,
while ash correlations indicate a much younger Middle to Late Pliocene (3.3-2.5 Ma) age. Abundant remains of marine vertebrates occur in the Purisima Formation. Recent fieldwork
in the San Gregorio section identified a modest assemblage of 26 taxa, including sharks (Carcharodon carcharias, Carcharodon sp., Cetorhinus maximus, cf. Hexanchus, Isurus oxyrinchus,
Pristiophorus sp., Squatina sp., and Sphyrna sp.), skates (Raja sp., cf. R. binoculata), bony fish (Paralichthys sp., Thunnus sp.), birds (Mancalla diegensis, Morus sp.), and 13 marine
mammal taxa, including several new records for the Purisima Formation. The nonmammalian vertebrates of this assemblage are described herein. The vertebrate assemblage is utilized to evaluate previous biostratigraphic and tephrochronologic age determinations for the San Gregorio section. The stratigraphic range of Carcharodon carcharias, Raja sp., cf. R. binoculata, Mancalla diegensis, and some of the marine mammals strongly indicate a Middle to Late Pliocene age for the upper and middle parts of the section, while a Late Miocene or Early Pliocene age is probable for the base of the section.
"

During the Neogene, northern South America maintained a very diverse reptilian fauna. Especially crocodyliforms were diverse, with almost 30 species and a disparity of morphotypes greater than that seen in any other crocodylian fauna, extant or otherwise. Our knowledge of the impressive Neotropical South American Cenozoic record of reptiles is based largely on three units: the Middle Miocene Honda Group of Colombia and the Upper Miocene Solimões and Urumaco Formations, respectively of Brazil and Venezuela. Additional insight into the Neotropical reptilian fossil record derives from several smaller or lesser-known Upper Oligocene to Lower Pliocene deposits in several countries on the continent. In this chapter we review turtle and crocodyliform faunas found in these deposits. The Miocene development of the faunas in Amazonia corresponds to a shift from lake-dominated to fluvial-dominated ecosystems in the Late Miocene. They also show that full marine conditions at the time were limited to coastal areas around the continent and apparently did not extend into the contintent’s interior.

- by Douglas Riff
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- Paleontology, Crocodylians, Amazonia, Turtle

The early Burdigalian (MN3) plant assemblage of the Güvem area (northwestern Central Anatolia) is preserved in lacustrine sediments of the Dereköy pyroclastics. Its age is well constrained by radiometric dates of basaltic rocks bracketing the pyroclastics, making the Güvem flora one of the extremely few precisely dated early Miocene floras in the Mediterranean region. The rich assemblage of impression fossils comprises ferns and fern allies (2 species), gymnosperms (12 spp.) and angiosperms (129 spp.). Ilex miodipyrena sp. nov. is described as a new fossil-species. The most diverse families in the assemblage are the Fagaceae with 12 taxa and the Fabaceae with 12 leaf morphotypes and one fruit taxon. Aquatic plants are represented by seven taxa, riparian (including palms) and swamp forest elements by >35 taxa, and lianas by three taxa (Smilax spp., Chaneya). The relatively large number of aquatic and riparian/swamp elements is congruent with the rich fish, amphibian and reptile record of the Güvem area. Another characteristic feature of the plant assemblage is the presence of various lobed leaves which show similarities with modern species of different families (e.g. Alangium, various Malvales). Trees and shrubs growing on well-drained soils and forming closed-canopy and open-canopy forests are the most diversified group (>70 taxa). In terms of number of specimens in the collection and based on field observations, by far the most abundant leaf fossils belong to evergreen oaks of Quercus drymeja and Q. mediter-ranea and to various types of foliage that cannot be assigned to a particular extant or extinct genus of Fagaceae. These sclerophyllous trees must have covered vast areas surrounding the wetlands that developed during the early Miocene in the Güvem Basin. Based on a recent reassessment of the ecology and taxonomic affinity of these trees, they are considered to reflect humid temperate climatic conditions but with a brief drier season during the winter months. These forests are more similar to the laurel forests of the southeastern United States and those stretching in a narrow belt south of the Himalayas to eastern central China. The large number of Fabaceae may indicate the presence of warm subtropical environments but this is difficult to assess, as they are known for having wide ecological ranges today and in the past. All in all, a larger part of the plant taxa point to forested vegetation. This is in agreement with previous palynological studies which detected only small amounts of her-baceous and grass pollen. Open patches of vegetation may have been restricted to river banks and to rocky areas in a volcanic landscape. The biogeographic patterns detected for the early Miocene of the Güvem assemblage are manifold; most taxa are widespread Northern Hemispheric elements. A substantial part of the species migrated from Asia into Europe during the (late) Paleogene and reached Anatolia during the early Miocene (Fagus, Paliu-rus, Chaneya, Ailanthus, Quercus kubinyii, Davallia haidingeri, Acer angustilobum, A. palaeosaccharinum). Fewer taxa may have been in Anatolia before they migrated to Europe (e.g. Nerium, Smilax miohavanensis, Quercus sosnowskyi). Finally, very few taxa are Anatolian endemics (e.g. Ilex miodipyrena).

- by Johannes Martin Bouchal and +3
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- Botany, Paleontology, Palaeoecology, Biogeography

A new fossil gharial Gryposuchus species is described from the Upper Miocene Urumaco Formation, Venezuela. Gryposuchus croizati new species can be distinguished from the other gavialoids, including Gryposuchus colombianus and Gryposuchus neoageus, by the following combination of diagnostic characters: 1) slenderness of the parietal interfenestral bar; 2) dental formula, mainly the lesser number of maxillary teeth, with four premaxillary, 19 maxillary and 22 mandibular teeth; 3) large width of palatines between the reduced palatine fenestrae; 4) medial hemicondyle of the quadrate smaller but detached and much more posteriorly elongated than the lateral one and projected ventromedially; 5) pterygoid morphology, with two posterior vacuities. The polymorphism in the contour of the external naris in Gryposuchus was evaluated for taxonomic significance. The body size of G. croizati n. sp. was estimated in 10.15m (9.67-10.67 m) using the dorsal skull length and the estimation of the body mass was 1,745 kg (1,280-2,379 kg) based in the braincase length. These maximal values place G. croizati n. sp. among the world's largest gharial and even Crocodyliformes as a whole.

- by Douglas Riff
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- Paleontology, Crocodylians, Venezuela, Crocodyliformes