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The present work deals with the carnivorans found in five Neogene localities in eastern Romania: the Vallesian locality of Păun, the Turolian localities of Pogana 1 and Creţeşti 1, and the Ruscinian localities of Bereşti and Măluşteni. The presented material includes cranial and postcranial specimens, some of which are herein described for the first time. This study includes a re-description and re-depiction of the type material of Lutra rumana Simionescu, 1922 and Promephitis malustenensis Simionescu, 1930, in order to clarify the taxonomic position of these two enigmatic taxa. The carnivoran faunal lists of all five localities are reviewed offering interesting insights into the temporospatial range of the discovered forms. Most localities have only yielded a limited number of species, except for Măluşteni, which shows evidence of at least nine different coexisting forms. Notable occurrences in terms of biostratigraphy include Paludolutra sp. in Pogana 1, Protictitherium crassum (Depéret, 1892) in Creţeşti 1, and a phocid from Măluşteni. This review aims to aid the understanding of the Neogene ecosystems in the north of the Paratethys in terms of faunal contents, biostratigraphy and palaeoecology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extant rhinoceroses are represented only by five species and are characterized by the presence of a nasal horn. In the past, they were much more diverse, with one of the best-known groups being the aceratheriines, i.e., hornless rhinoceroses. Chilotheres are a group of hornless rhinos that inhabited Eurasia during the Late Miocene. Their westernmost geographic range reached Eastern Europe, where overall eight species have been erected. Four of these were described based on material from the Upper Miocene of Samos Island (Greece), two of which are not considered valid anymore. Unfortunately, the type skulls of all four species are lost and there are several issues concerning their taxonomy. Therefore, we herein designate two skulls housed in historical collections from Samos as neotypes for the first two species, Chilotherium schlosseri (Weber, 1905) and Eochilotherium samium (Weber, 1905), and provide detailed comparisons for the separation of the species from each other and from any other chilotheres. Our results prove that the two species are valid and justify their separation on a generic level. Chilotherium schlosseri seems to be more closely affiliated with the other European Chilotherium species, whereas E. samium is more similar to the Chinese 'Chilotherium' wimani and 'Chilotherium' primigenium, based on their more plesiomorphic characters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Palaeogene is a very important time period for mammalian evolution because it documents the first occurrence of many groups. One such group is the enigmatic Ptolemaiida, best known from the Early Oligocene of the Fayum Depression in Egypt, where it is represented by three genera, Ptolemaia , Qarunavus , and Cleopatrodon , including five species. Among these, Qarunavus meyeri is especially rare, as it is only known from two partial juvenile mandibles. Herein, the affinities of this taxon are re-investigated by applying micro-computed tomography (μCT), thus enabling the study and comparison of its unerupted permanent dentition with that of other ptolemaiidans. The μCT analysis confirms that Q. meyeri is a valid species, distinct from all other ptolemaiidans. Both the comparison and a phylogenetic analysis suggest a closer relationship of Qarunavus to the genus Cleopatrodon than to Ptolemaia ; thereby, placing Qarunavus in the family Ptolemaiidae. Furthermore, the μCT analysis enabled the assessment of the dental morphology of Q. meyeri revealing an unusual combination of traits, such as a very small single incisor next to a large canine. The eruption sequence of the permanent dentition in Q. meyeri implies a late dental eruption for the species, which would support the hypothesis of Ptolemaiida belonging to Afrotheria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper deals with new hyaenid material from the locality of Hammerschmiede (Bavaria, Germany). The described specimens are attributed to two forms: most of the specimens belong to the species Thalassictis montadai, whereas one I3 is attributed to a large bone-cracking hyena. The material comes from the layers HAM 5 (11.62 Ma) and HAM 6 (slightly younger than 11.44 Ma) of Hammerschmiede (base of Late Miocene). The species Thalassictis montadai is well-known from late Aragonian and early Vallesian localities of central and southern Europe and west Asia. The presented material enables us to make a short review of the state-of-the-art about the fossil record of this species and to discuss its intraspecific variability. A gradual replacement of Thalassictis montadai, Thalassictis robusta and Hyaenictitherium wongii in Europe is demonstrated, until the arrival of canids during the latest Miocene. Additionally, the upper incisor of the large hyaenid creates some interesting questions concerning the first appearance of the crocutoid hyenas in the fossil record and their dominance over the percrocutoids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pterodactylus from the uppermost Jurassic of southern Germany represents one of the most iconic pterosaurs, due to its status of being the first member of the Pterosauria to have been described and named. During the early phase of pterosaur research, Pterodactylus was a wastebasket taxon containing dozens of sometimes distantly related assigned species. Decades later, a comprehensive revision of the genus significantly reduced the number of species. To date, only one species remains in the genus, Pterodactylus antiquus, although the referral of several specimens to this taxon and the taxonomic relationships of them is still debated. Thus far, the genus has been only reported from the Upper Jurassic Plattenkalk deposits of Bavaria, and all of these occurrences are Tithonian in age. Here we describe the first record of Pterodactylus from the Torleite Formation near Painten (Bavaria), which represents the first occurrence of the genus from the Kimmeridgian. The specimen is a complete, articulated and exquisitely preserved skeleton of a small-sized individual. Aside from its old geological age, it is a typical representative of the genus, greatly resembling other specimens from younger strata. Certain characters, such as the overall size, skull length, relative orbit size, and phalangeal formula indicate that the specimen from Painten represents a juvenile to young subadult individual, an ontogenetic stage rarely found among Pterodactylus specimens. The find significantly expands the temporal range of the taxon and represents one of the best-preserved specimens of the genus reported so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chilotherium represents one of the most characteristic rhinocerotid genera during the late Miocene of Eurasia. In Europe, it is restricted to the eastern parts of the continent (Balkan Peninsula and Peri-Pontic region). In total, eight Chilotherium species have been described from European material, with Samos (Greece) representing the type locality of four of them. Herein, the type material of 'Chilotherium wegneri' is revisited. The type cranium is considered lost for the past half-century, but the associated mandible is still housed in the collections of the Geomuseum Münster (Germany). The 'C. wegneri' type mandible is redescribed and, taking into account the original illustration of the type cranium, compared to other chilotheres from Europe and Asia. Accordingly, the previously proposed synonymy of 'C. wegneri' and Chilotherium schlosseri, which was also initially described from the late Miocene of Samos, is further supported. Lastly, an overview of the late Miocene record of Chilotherium in Europe is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remains of the fossil aardvark Amphiorycteropus gaudryi (Orycteropodidae, Tubulidentata) from the late Miocene locality of Kerassia in Greece are here described and compared with material of other orycteropodid species. The studied material includes a partially preserved skull, two mandibular fragments, two lumbar vertebrae, the first rather complete sacrum of the species and some appendicular skeletal remains. The new material reveals noteworthy information on the diagnostic characteristics of the species, such as the variable morphology of the foramen magnum. Furthermore, we comment on some ecomorphological features associated with the fossorial habits of A. gaudryi and discuss its tail length. Lastly, the biogeographical distribution of the species is examined. Emphasis is given to its noticeable absence in the classical locality of Pikermi (Attica) and its presence on Samos Island, at a slightly younger age. In Kerassia, A. gaudryi does not occur in the lower fossiliferous horizon, but only in the stratigraphically younger, upper horizon. Since A. gaudryi is known from MN11 to MN13, its exclusive occurrence in the upper fossiliferous horizon of Kerassia could be connected to spatial and temporal environmental changes of the Eastern Mediterranean during the late Miocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study describes an almost complete cervical region of the fossil ostrich Struthio karatheodoris from the Turolian locality of Kerassia (Euboea, Greece). The material comes from two distinct fossiliferous horizons and consists of twelve cervical vertebrae, ten of which belong to the same individual. These specimens are the first remains of a large flightless bird from Kerassia and represent some of the very few findings of the genus Struthio in the sub-Paratethyan (Balkan-Iranian) bioprovince from the late Miocene. The morphology of the cervical vertebrae implies that the neck of S. karatheodoris had similar biomechanical properties to that of extant ostriches, pointing to similar ecological adaptations, relating to food procurement. However, it probably had a more flexible and stronger neck, which might indicate a somewhat different ecology. Furthermore, considerable intraspecific size and morphological variation of the cervical vertebrae of S. karatheodoris is observed. This signifies that S. karatheodoris was not necessarily larger than S. camelus as previously suspected, but their size ranges in fact overlap significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper deals with the ecomorphological characteristics of two sympatric species of ictitheres: Ictitherium viverrinum Roth & Wagner, 1854 and Hyaenictitherium wongii (Zdansky, 1924) from the Late Miocene of the Eastern Mediterranean. These two species represent different taxonomic groups with allegedly distinct ecological roles. The values of 11 ecomorphological proxies were calculated using cranial and dental elements, in order to make an extensive comparison between them (body mass, bite force, canines' and incisors' bending strength, endocranial volume, relative rostral width, dental mesowear, intercuspid notches and carnassial vs grinding surfaces). The proxies show similar results for both species, pointing out that they had a similar ecological niche in the Late Miocene ecosystems. Carnivorans are usually in the top of the food chain, so the existence of two ecologically similar species in the same spatiotemporal range results in interspecific competition. This explains the geographical distinction of the two species with several localities being dominated by only one of the two (e.g. Samos for Hyaenictitherium Kretzoi, 1938 and Pikermi for Ictitherium Wagner, 1848). The reason for the prevalence of each genus can be associated with their postcranial morphology, as Hyaenictitherium has been proposed to be better adapted to chase hunting, because of its longer limbs, while Ictitherium is characterized by shorter and stouter limbs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]