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The article reviews of the Galliformes fo from the Mátraszőlős 3 site in Hungary from the Middle Miocene. A total of 200 bones have so far been recovered from site at Mátraszőlős 3, of which the identification of 95 bones will be discussed in this article, including anatomical differences between species. Within the fossil record, Palaeocryptonix hungaricus (Jánossy 1991) and three species of Palaeortyx have been identify (P. phasianoides Milne-Edwards, 1869, P. gallica Milne-Edwards, 1869 and P. brevipes Milne-Edwards, 1869). Only one bone of P. brevipes was recovered. As the appearance of the members of the family can be traced back to the early Oligocene, while the majority of the species are of Neogene origin, the study contributes to a better understanding of the distribution of extinct pheasant speciesin the Carpathian Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Newly collected Early Badenian (Middle Miocene) Conorbidae and Conidae assemblages are presented from three localities in the Hungarian part of the Pannonian Basin. Ten species - among others Pseudonoduloconus wagneri (Boettger) - are recorded for the first time in the region, others show extended geographical distribution. A new species, Monteiroconus strauszi n. sp. is designated. With 67 figures and 1 table. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comprehensive study of the flying squirrel Albanensia finds of the two countries is given. The smallest and earliest representative of the genus is the species Albanensia sansaniensis. It has been recently found in the Badenian (Middle Miocene) fauna of Szentendre. Some sporadic Albanensia sp. and Albanensia albanensis finds were described from Sarmatian localities. Significant Albanensia grimmi materials are known from the late Sarmatian fauna of Felsőtárkány 3/2 and the early Pannonian fauna of Rudabánya. This latter sample has some special characters, which differ from typical A. grimmi finds from Felsőtárkány 3/2, Götzendorf, Richardhof, and Hammerschmiede. With 27 figures and 8 tables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early Badenian (Middle Miocene) Conidae specimens that were collected from three SW Romanian localities (Coşteiu de Sus, Lăpugiu de Sus, Nemeşeşti), and deposited in the collection of the Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, are revisited. 41 species are described and figured. The material shows affinity with assemblages known from the Börzsöny Mts (Hungary), from the Vienna Basin, and from northern Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Palaeoenvironmental changes in the upper Middle Miocene Central Paratethys were reconstructed by using qualitative and quantitative palaeontological analyses of foraminifera and ostracods, coupled with trace elemental (Mg/Ca) and stable isotope (δ18O and δ13C) analyses of their carbonate skeletons and of gastropod shells. Mean annual air temperatures were estimated using the oxygen isotope composition of contemporaneous rodent teeth. The studied aquatic fossils come from two boreholes in the Zsámbék Basin (northern central Hungary), while the terrestrial ones are from localities in NE Hungary and E Romania. In the studied Sarmatian successions, three zones could be distinguished, based on palaeontological and geochemical results. At the Badenian/Sarmatian boundary, faunal diversity decreased markedly. In the lower zone a transgressive event culminated in a seawater incursion into the semi-open basin system of the Central Paratethys. Stable bottom-water temperature (∼ 15 °C) and variable salinities (20-32 ‰) are estimated for the Early Sarmatian Sea. The faunal changes (notably a strong reduction in biodiversity) occurring at the boundary between the lower and the middle zone can be explained by a sea-level highstand with dysoxic conditions. A relative sea-level fall is documented at the end of this middle zone. After a short regressive event, a marine connection between the Paratethys and the Mediterranean was established at the beginning of the upper zone. This is indicated by an increased microfaunal diversity and the re-appearance of marine Badenian ostracods and foraminifera, which are completely absent from the older Sarmatian series. During the upper zone, the temperatures and salinities are estimated to have fluctuated from 15 °C to 21 °C and from 15‰to 43 ‰, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The marine sediments of the Badenian (Middle Miocene) of Hungary (Pannonian Basin, Central Paratethys) are composed of abundant bryozoan skeletal grains. Seventy-one bulk samples collected at 18 localities (outcrops and boreholes) yielded a total number of 238 bryozoan species. In order to reconstruct the Badenian palaeoenvironments, the present study investigates the composition of this very diverse fauna using a combination of statistical and palaeoecological methods. The statistical analyses make use of Cluster Analysis and Non-metric Multi-Dimensional Scaling. The palaeoecological approaches are based on the known ecological requirements of the bryozoan colonial growth forms and of the numerous extant species. Five facies have first been differentiated on the basis of sedimentological and palaeontological features: coral buildups, coralline algal limestones, biocalcarenites, sands, and marls. Each of them is characterized by the abundance, the diversity and the types of growth forms of the bryozoans. The palaeoecological, statistical and facies analyses further permitted to identify four depositional settings: carbonate platform (distal and proximal), terrigenous platform, slope, and basin. These environments developed at depths between 0 to about 300 m in a mixed carbonate–siliciclastic depositional system. Skeletal production and spatial distribution of carbonate factories were predominantly controlled by terrigenous input. This resulted in a complex mosaic of facies/habitats where rich bryozoan faunas could thrive. Many warm-water organisms, among them foraminifers, zooxanthellate corals, molluscs, bryozoans, and echinoids, were recorded from the study sites. The coexistence of coralgal and bryomol carbonate skeletal assemblages in this subtropical setting is explained mostly by variations in the productivity of surface waters. Periods of nutrient enrichment and increased benthic eutrophication affected coral diversity and abundance in favour of bryozoans. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The palynological analysis in the Karpatian–Sarmatian (late Early-Middle Miocene) interval of the cores Tengelic-2 and Hidas-53 (Hungary) reveals the existence of a forest organized in altitudinal belts, developed in a subtropical–warm temperate humid climate, reflecting the so-called Miocene climatic optimum. Pollen changes from the late early Miocene to the late middle Miocene have been observed and are related to climatic changes. The vegetation during the Burdigalian and the Langhian was dominated by thermophilous elements such as evergreen trees and Engelhardia, typical of a present day rain and evergreen forest at low altitudes (i.e. SE China). During the Serravallian several thermophilous elements strongly decreased, and some of them disappeared from the central European area. Thus, the rain and evergreen–deciduous mixed forest suffered a great transformation due to the loss and decrease in the abundance of several evergreen plants. This kind of vegetation was progressively substituted by deciduous and mesothermic plants such as deciduous Quercus, and Fagus, Alnus, Acer, Carpinus, Ulmus, Zelkova, etc. At the same time, the presence of altitude coniferous trees increased. This climatic cooling is correlated with global and regional climatic changes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]