Search

Tayassu pecariis widely distributed across the Neotropical region, from northern Argentina to south-eastern Mexico. However, its fossil record is scarce; it is recorded since the middle Pleistocene to Holocene in Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. This paper aims to: (1) update the systematic synonymy of this species; (2) review and update its geographic chronologic distribution and provide a new Lujanian record ofTayassu pecariin Buenos Aires Province and (3) discuss the paleoenvironmental and paleobiogeographical implications of this record. Considering the quantitative analysis performed, the fossil here recorded clearly integrates the group ofTayassu pecari.This specimen corresponds to the first record ofTayassu pecariin the central-northern region of the Buenos Aires Province. During Late Pleistocene,Tayassu pecariwas distributed southern to its recent range, probably evidencing different paleoenvironment conditions. This species is the better adapted peccary to tropical and subtropical rainforests, but may also be present in arid environments. Consequently,Tayassuby itself is insufficient to infer the prevailing environmental conditions. However, according to the fauna associated with the specimen described here, it is possible to infer an open or semi-open and arid or semi-arid environment for the central-northern Buenos Aires region by Late Pleistocene times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]