First discovery of fossil Nesolagus (Leporidae, Lagomorpha) from Southeast Asia

Abstract

A new leporid species, Nesolagus sinensis sp. nov., is described here representing the only leporid member of the Early Pleistocene Gigantopithecus fauna from Sanhe Cave, Chongzuo, Guangxi, South China and also the first fossil taxon of the Southeast Asian genus Nesolagus. Compared with two extant Nesolagus species from Indonesia and Vietnam and other related leprids, the new species has a relatively small size and an extraordinarily weak anterior internal reentrant (AIR) on p3, but it also retains the simplified paedomorphic pattern during the ontogenetic process as in extant species, which suggests that the new species is more primitive than and probably directly ancestral to extant Nesolagus species. The new species seems closely related to Alilepus longisinuosus from the Late Miocene strata of Lufeng, Yunnan, and probably diverged from a leporid similar to its ancestral form. It also indicates that Nesolagus originated in Southwest China.Guangxi of China, Early Pleistocene, Nesolagus sinensis sp. nov., Gigantopithecus fauna Citation:

New Late Miocene Alilepus (Lagomorpha, Mammalia) from Eastern Europe - a new light on the evolution of the earliest Old World Leporinae

“…Kormos 1934, Gureev 1964, Daxner & Fejfar 1967, López Martínez 1976, Qiu & Han 1986, Jin 2004, Lungu et al 2007, Jin et al 2010) must be regarded as incorrect (Article 33.3 of ICZN 1999). Figure 3B1-C Type series.…”

“…e.g. White 1991, Voorhies & Timperley 1997, Jin et al 2010. Voorhies & Timperley (1997, p. 736) suggested that Hypolagus parviplicatus Dawson, 1958, or a closely related species, likely gave rise to the Leporinae clade.…”

“…The relationships of descendant taxa proposed by White (1991) and Voorhies & Timperley (1997) are more convincing and are supported here. The clade derived from P. albus comprises P. apachensis (Gazin, 1930) White 1991, Jin et al 2010 for details). It is noteworthy that White (1991) assumed that Alilepus, Nekrolagus, Pratilepus and Aztlanolagus had similar development of postero-internal structures, following the sequence mesoflexid => mesofossettid => long hypoflexid (as proposed Hibbard 1963).…”

“…The oldest Asian Leporinae are limited exclusively to Alilepus and evolved there in several phenotypic/evolutionary groups, each one corresponding to a presumed palaeobiogeographic path of dispersal: 1) First, a Far East group, is characterized by the reduction of the connection between trigonid and talonid, and the subsequent confluence of mesofossettid and hypoflexid (i.e., PR1/A0 => PR4/A0). The clade is represented by A. longisinuosus, which evolved into Nesolagus (Qiu & Han 1986 followed by Jin et al 2010).…”

“…According to Jin et al 2010, this clade was derived from A. lii and evolved into Pliopentalagus huainanensis (PR2/A1/Pa1). Pliopentalagus huainanensis probably gave rise to three branches with different development of the mesofossettid: (a) a lineage leading to other Pliopen-talagus species (PR2/A1/Pa1 => PR1/A1/Pa1); (b) a lineage leading to Poelagus and Caprolagus (PR2/A1/Pa1=> PR3/A1/Pa1); and (c) a lineage leading to Aztlanolagus (PR2/A1/Pa1 retained).…”