Dating of the Lower Pleistocene Vertebrate Site of Tsiotra Vryssi (Mygdonia Basin, Greece): Biochronology, Magnetostratigraphy, and Cosmogenic Radionuclides

Konidaris, George E.; Kostopoulos, Dimitris S.; Maron, Matteo; Schaller, Mirjam; Ehlers, Todd A.; Aidona, Elina; Marini, Mattia; Tourloukis, Vangelis; Muttoni, Giovanni; Koufos, George D.; Harvati, Katerina

doi:10.3390/quat4010001

Cited by 14 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…Although Canis is recorded only in GER LFA, we suggest it is part of this association, and its absence from VSL is due to the limited material from this LFA. Both GER and VSL belong to the same stratigraphic levels of Mygdonia Basin, below the TSR LFA which provided a maximum age of 1.78 Ma [66]. Hence, we estimate an age of about 2.0 Ma for this faunal group, confirmed by the common presence of Pliocrocuta and Pachycrocuta in GER.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 66%

“…The faunal assemblage is characterized by the co-occurrence of Mammuthus + Equus + Stephanorhinus + Hippopotamus + Dama-like deer and, although not present in every single LFA, by Canis + Pachycrocuta and the coexistence of Leptobos and Eobison. Based on TSR [66], this cluster of LFAs is dated between 1.78 and ca. 1.5 Ma.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Tsiotra Vryssi FU follows at about 1.8-1.6 Ma, represented only by the homonymous LFA from Mygdonia Basin (e.g., [63,66]). The faunal assemblage incorporates most taxa that first occurred in the previous GFU but also includes the FLOs of Stephanorhinus hundsheimensis, Equus ex.…”

Section: Establishment Of the Greek Faunal Unitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Late Pliocene–Middle Pleistocene Large Mammal Faunal Units of Greece

Konidaris,

Kostopoulos

2024

Quaternary

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Located at the eastern corner of Mediterranean Europe, Greece occupies a critical position for mammal dispersals to/from Europe, Asia, and Africa and constitutes a potential passageway towards Western Europe. During recent decades, numerous fieldwork campaigns in several Pliocene–Pleistocene sites have greatly enriched the fossil record and provided valuable taxonomic and biostratigraphic data. However, a fully developed reference biochronological unit scheme for the Greek record that could contribute to correlations at a continental scale is still pending. In this article, we provide the updated Late Pliocene to Middle Pleistocene large mammal succession, and we introduce the Faunal Units (FUs) of Greece. We define eight FUs, the Milia, Dafnero, Gerakarou, Tsiotra Vryssi, Krimni, Apollonia, Marathousa, and Apidima FUs (from the oldest to the youngest), which are determined by a set of first and last local occurrences. The results form the basis for discussion of already set turnovers, dispersals, and extinction/immigration events and showcase the importance of the local record for the investigation of the European terrestrial ecosystems. By developing the first detailed biochronological scheme for the Pliocene–Pleistocene of Southeastern Europe, this study comprises the basis for an expanded Balkan faunal unit scale and a reference framework for future investigations.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 66%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Late Pliocene–Middle Pleistocene Large Mammal Faunal Units of Greece

Konidaris,

Kostopoulos

2024

Quaternary

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“…The geographical distribution of E. apolloniensis seems to be rather limited in southeastern Europe (Eastern Mediterranean), with the possible first occurrence in Tsiotra Vryssi, Greece (1.78-1.5 Ma, [31,107]), Platanochori-1 [31] and Alykes (~1.6 Ma, [54]). A similar form is also reported from the Homo erectus bearing Kocabaş-Denizli mammal locality (1.3-1.1 Ma; [108,109]).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reconsidering the Equids from the Early Pleistocene Fauna of Apollonia 1 (Mygdonia Basin, Greece)

2021

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The remains of equids are abundant in the Early Pleistocene faunas of Greece. “Apollonia-1” is one of the richest localities from the latest Villafranchian, providing eight skulls, mandibular remains and plenty of postcranial material during several field campaigns. This study focuses mainly on the skulls, mandibular remains and metapodials from the old and new collection described in detail. The specimens are compared with equids from several Greek and European fossiliferous localities dating from the late Villafranchian to the middle Galerian. The systematic position of Equus apolloniensis is also discussed. Based on its basicranial proportions, E. apolloniensis is considered a true Equus. A second species has also been identified recently, here referred to as Equus sp.; it is poorly represented, and it is even larger and more robust than E. apolloniensis based on a single metacarpal and third phalanges. The presence of two equid species in Apollonia 1 validates its Epivillafranchian (=latest Villafranchian) age.

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“…The two sites with suid remains recently reported by Kostopoulos et al [56] from the area of Krimni (Krimni-1 and Krimni-3) are, according to the authors, different spots likely belonging to the same fossiliferous level. The deposits are placed in the upper part of the Gerakarou Formation and the fauna has been biochronologically placed between those of Tsiotra Vryssi (~1.8-1.5 Ma) and Apollonia 1 (~1.2-1.0 Ma) [120,121].…”

Section: Fossil Localities and The "Suid Gap"mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Occurrence of Suids in the Post-Olduvai to Pre-Jaramillo Pleistocene of Europe and Implications for Late Villafranchian Biochronology and Faunal Dynamics

Iannucci

2024

Quaternary

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It has been proposed that suids were absent from Europe during the post-Olduvai to pre-Jaramillo Early Pleistocene (from less than 1.8 to more than 1.2 Ma) and that their “re-appearance” in the late Early Pleistocene would mark the end of the late Villafranchian and the beginning of the Epivillafranchian. Arguments enumerated in favor of this “suid gap” are the lack of suid remains from extensively sampled fossil localities of this age and the high reproductive potential (r-strategy) of suids, which would translate in a high commonness of their remains in the fossil record. However, here it shown that while suids’ reproductive potential is certainly exceptional within artiodactyls, there is no direct relationship between the reproductive strategy and preservation rate of a taxon in the fossil record. In Early Pleistocene localities of Europe and adjoining areas, where suids are present in a fossil assemblage, they are always rare. In terms of number of occurrences (frequency), suids range from being moderately common (~2.0–1.8 Ma) to moderately rare (~1.1–1.0 Ma). Suid material is also described herein from Peyrolles (Issoire, France; reference locality for MNQ 19), a site dated at 1.47 Ma, providing direct evidence for the presence of suids within the purported “suid gap”. The case of suids underlines an important source of caveat in inferring faunal dynamics of the late Early Pleistocene of western Europe—including the dispersal of hominins—i.e., the unequal geographical distribution of the paleontological sites of post-Olduvai to pre-Jaramillo age. Indeed, Peyrolles is the only large mammal site in western Europe located outside the Iberian and Italian Peninsulas reliably dated around 1.5 Ma. In the post-Olduvai to pre-Jaramillo period, there is a paucity of radiometric estimates (or they have too coarse a resolution) and of paleomagnetic excursions detectable in continental deposits. Basically, for this time span, there is a high dependence on biochronological correlations, although, at the same time, these correlations are less reliable—because these are based on a few sites not covering the entire spectrum of environments present in Europe and the sites are not independently dated with methods that outperform biochronology—than those for other periods.

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Dating of the Lower Pleistocene Vertebrate Site of Tsiotra Vryssi (Mygdonia Basin, Greece): Biochronology, Magnetostratigraphy, and Cosmogenic Radionuclides

Cited by 14 publications

References 68 publications

The Late Pliocene–Middle Pleistocene Large Mammal Faunal Units of Greece

The Late Pliocene–Middle Pleistocene Large Mammal Faunal Units of Greece

Reconsidering the Equids from the Early Pleistocene Fauna of Apollonia 1 (Mygdonia Basin, Greece)

The Occurrence of Suids in the Post-Olduvai to Pre-Jaramillo Pleistocene of Europe and Implications for Late Villafranchian Biochronology and Faunal Dynamics

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