Dental remains of Plio-Pleistocene Cercopithecidae (Mammalia: Primates) from Romania.
J Hum Evol
; 193: 103544, 2024 Aug.
Article
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| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38954897
ABSTRACT
The superfamily Cercopithecoidea had a broad spatial distribution and occupied a wide variety of habitats across Europe from the Late Miocene until the Middle Pleistocene. Cercopithecines, such as macaques, showed more flexibility in habitat preferences, whereas colobines tended to be more sensitive to environmental differences. In Romania, only a few Pliocene and Pleistocene fossil sites have yielded primate remains. In this paper, we revise selected specimens previously listed in site reviews, and we describe several unpublished specimens from the Plio-Pleistocene fossil localities of BereÈti (Mammal Neogene [MN], MN14-MN15), MaluÈteni (MN14), Ciuperceni-2 (MN15b), and Betfia (MN18). For each, we provide detailed descriptions, comparisons to other relevant material, and updated taxonomic assignments. We also present an updated biochronology and provide a paleoenvironmental reconstruction based on the taxonomic composition of the faunal assemblages described from these primate localities. The colobine monkey Dolichopithecus ruscinensis, from BereÈti, MaluÈteni, and Ciuperceni-2, was present during the Early Pliocene in Romania. Mesopithecus monspessulanus is also known from MaluÈteni, as is Paradolichopithecus sp. The Early Pleistocene site Betfia yielded a molar germ (in crypt; Betfia-XIII) and a deciduous premolar (Betfia-IX), both belonging to a Macaca sylvanus subspecies. Macaca sylvanus ssp. occurrences from Betfia-XIII and Betfia-IX offer an important perspective for understanding the chronostratigraphic range and geographic distribution of this species during the Early Pleistocene. The paleoenvironmental descriptions from Ciuperceni-2 show that primates were distributed in a mosaic habitat, with open and forested areas and a warm Mediterranean climate. This differs from MaluÈteni, BereÈti, and Betfia, where a dry continental phase with an open landscape is inferred. Our review of paleoenvironmental conditions of Romanian primate localities provides a paleoecological framework for understanding the habitat preferences of extinct primates.
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Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Fósiles
Límite:
Animals
País como asunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article