Earliest bison dispersal in Western Palearctic: Insights from the Eobison record from Pietrafitta (Early Pleistocene, central Italy)

Sorbelli, Leonardo; Cherin, Marco; Kostopoulos, Dimitris S.; Sardella, Raffaele; Mecozzi, Beniamino; Plotnikov, Valerii; Prat-Vericat, Maria; Azzarà, Beatrice; Lucenti, Saverio Bartolini; Madurell‐Malapeira, Joan

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2022.107923

Cited by 10 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…The earliest record of bisons in western Eurasia is documented at Dmanisi (~1.8 Ma), while they subsequently dispersed into peri-Mediterranean Europe from ~1.7-1.5 Ma onwards (e.g., Farneta FU, Orce sites, Pirro Nord, Apollonia-1, Sima del Elefante-TE9). The Leptobos-Bison co-existence is relatively rare; apart from TSR, it is recorded in Mygdonia Basin at Krimni-1 and Kalamoto-2, as well as further afield at Trlica 11-10 in Montenegro, the Taurida Cave in Russia and Pietrafitta in Italy [35,67,75,79,80].…”

Section: Biochronologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2021

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Background and scope: The late Villafranchian large mammal age (~2.0–1.2 Ma) of the Early Pleistocene is a crucial interval of time for mammal/hominin migrations and faunal turnovers in western Eurasia. However, an accurate chronological framework for the Balkans and adjacent territories is still missing, preventing pan-European biogeographic correlations and schemes. In this article, we report the first detailed chronological scheme for the late Villafranchian of southeastern Europe through a comprehensive and multidisciplinary dating approach (biochronology, magnetostratigraphy, and cosmogenic radionuclides) of the recently discovered Lower Pleistocene vertebrate site Tsiotra Vryssi (TSR) in the Mygdonia Basin, Greece. Results: The minimum burial ages (1.88 ± 0.16 Ma, 2.10 ± 0.18 Ma, and 1.98 ± 0.18 Ma) provided by the method of cosmogenic radionuclides indicate that the normal magnetic polarity identified below the fossiliferous layer correlates to the Olduvai subchron (1.95–1.78 Ma; C2n). Therefore, an age younger than 1.78 Ma is indicated for the fossiliferous layer, which was deposited during reverse polarity chron C1r. These results are in agreement with the biochronological data, which further point to an upper age limit at ~1.5 Ma. Overall, an age between 1.78 and ~1.5 Ma (i.e., within the first part of the late Villafranchian) is proposed for the TSR fauna. Conclusions: Our results not only provide age constraints for the local mammal faunal succession, thus allowing for a better understanding of faunal changes within the same sedimentary basin, but also contribute to improving correlations on a broader scale, leading to more accurate biogeographic, palaeoecological, and taphonomic interpretations.

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Section: Biochronologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2021

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“…Leptobos etruscus and L. vallisarni are treated together as they are commonly included in the same group or lineage (e.g., [62,63]), as opposite to another group consisting of L. stenometopon, L. elatus, L. merlai, and L. furtivus.…”

Section: Reproductive Strategiesmentioning

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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“…In addition, a sustained trend towards increased aridification and seasonality in Europe throughout the Pleistocene is generally accepted 2 , which forced a progressive transition from tropical-subtropical ecosystems to present-day temperate ones 3 , 4 . In response to the aforementioned changes, the European large mammal assemblages biodiversity recorded an increase in the frequency of species adapted to more open environments, which was coincident with the first hominin dispersal out of Africa 5 – 7 . Moreover, a progressive increase in the amplitude of climate oscillations is documented since 1.4 Ma onwards, including a shift from 41-kyr to ca.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Increase on environmental seasonality through the European Early Pleistocene inferred from dental enamel hypoplasia

Fidalgo,

Rosas,

Bartolini-Lucenti

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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An in-depth study of the Early Pleistocene European remains of Hippopotamus has allowed the first detailed description of the incidence and types of dental alterations related to palaeopathologies and potentially linked to climatic and environmental factors. The results of a long-term qualitative and quantitative assessment highlight the importance of nutrient deficiencies on the development of dental enamel hypoplasia in Hippopotamus. Glacial cyclicity and the resulting changes in humidity and plant community structure conditioned the local environments critical for the survival of this taxon. Two main intervals of putative constrained nutritionally restrictions were detected at ca. 1.8 Ma and ca. 0.86 Ma (i.e., MIS63 and MIS21, respectively). Statistical comparisons show an increase in the frequency of dental hypoplasia between these two chronological periods, thus reinforcing the idea of increased seasonality in the circum-Mediterranean environments during the Early Pleistocene.

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Earliest bison dispersal in Western Palearctic: Insights from the Eobison record from Pietrafitta (Early Pleistocene, central Italy)

Cited by 10 publications

References 54 publications

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

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

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

Increase on environmental seasonality through the European Early Pleistocene inferred from dental enamel hypoplasia

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