Biostratigraphy, palaeogeography and palaeoenvironmental significance of Sorex runtonensis Hinton, 1911 (Mammalia, Soricidae): First record from the Iberian Peninsula

Rofes, Juan ; Moya-Costa, Raquel (Universidad de Zaragoza) ; Bennàsar, Maria ; Blain, Hugues-Alexandre ; Cuenca-Bescós, Gloria (Universidad de Zaragoza)

Resumen: Sorex runtonensis (Mammalia, Soricidae) is a well-known Pleistocene taxon with a broad distribution in Europe. However, no record of the species had been reported from the Iberian Peninsula up to now. Here we present nearly two hundred specimens of S. runtonensis recovered from the Lower Red Unit (levels TE7–14) of Sima del Elefante (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain), dated to ~ 1.1–1.5 Ma. Rigorous morphometrical and morphological analyses allowed the assignation of the items from Sima del Elefante confidently to this taxon, distinguishing them from the several other Pleistocene species of similar size that inhabited Europe. Sorex runtonensis survived all through the Pleistocene (and maybe more), but the remains from Sima del Elefante exhibit some traits that appear to be particular to the Early Pleistocene, which agrees with the pre-Jaramillo chronology inferred for the lower levels of the site. Western Palearctic S. runtonensis has been regarded as a proxy of patchy and relatively arid, open past biotopes due to its similarity to recent Eastern Palearctic S. tundrensis. In light of this fact, and given the high relative quantities of this taxon at the site, previous palaeoenvironmental reconstructions proposed for the lowermost unit of Sima del Elefante should be revised to present a more ecologically diverse scenario than previously thought.

Idioma: Inglés

DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.07.021

Año: 2016

Publicado en: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 459 (2016), 508-517
ISSN: 0031-0182

Factor impacto JCR: 2.578 (2016)

Categ. JCR: PALEONTOLOGY rank: 5 / 53 = 0.094 (2016) - Q1 - T1
Categ. JCR: GEOGRAPHY, PHYSICAL rank: 18 / 49 = 0.367 (2016) - Q2 - T2
Categ. JCR: GEOSCIENCES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY rank: 53 / 188 = 0.282 (2016) - Q2 - T1

Factor impacto SCIMAGO: 1.33 - Earth-Surface Processes (Q1) - Paleontology (Q1) - Oceanography (Q1) - Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics (Q1)

Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7/629604/EU/Post-glacial recolonisation and Holocene anthropization impact on populations of shrews and hedgehogs from Western Europe inferred from zooarchaeology, historical biogeography and ecological modeling/SMALL_MAM_RECOL
Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MEC/FPU14-05528
Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/CGL2009-12703-C03-03
Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/CGL2012-38434-C03-01

Tipo y forma: Article (PostPrint)

Área (Departamento): Área Paleontología (Dpto. Ciencias de la Tierra)