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The late Oligocene faunas from central France are often rich and provide crucial information for understanding the evolution of mammals during the Oligocene-Miocene transition. The locality of Coderet-Bransat, where Amphechinus arvernensis was so far the only known hedgehog, yielded new specimens hitherto identified as Galerix minor and Amphechinus pomeli. The new specimen of Amphechinus pomeli, together with a new study of the type specimens from Peublanc, confirm the previously questioned validity of this species, the smallest of all hedgehogs. The similarities between the faunal lists of Coderet-Bransat and Peublanc indicate a very close age (MP30), whereas some aquatic taxa only found in Peublanc suggest a slightly different palaeoenvironmental context compared to Coderet-Bransat.

Publication: Costeur et al. 2019 "Le gisement oligocène de Murs, une histoire centenaire culminant sur des fouilles prometteuses". Courrier scientifique du Parc naturel régional du Luberon et de la Réserve de biosphère Luberon-Lure, n° 15 - 2019, p. 58 à 69

Maridet O., Rauber G., Rochat M., Roch R., Tissier J., Anquetin J., Becker D. (2019). 3D surface scan of the type specimen of Molassitherium delemontense Becker and Antoine, 2013: use of a 3D model for research and conservation issues. MorphoMuseuM 5(2)-e82. https://dx.doi.org/10.18563/journal.m3.82

Background. Wischberg is a Swiss locality in Bern Canton which has yielded numerous vertebrates remains from the earliest Miocene (= MN1). It has a very rich faunal diversity, one of the richest in Switzerland for this age. Among all the mammals reported in the original faunal list 70 years ago, three rhinocerotid species were identified. The material consists of two fragmentary skulls, cranial fragments, several mandibles, teeth and postcranial bones, in a rather good state of preservation. Results. After reexamination of the material from this locality (curated in three different Swiss museums), and comparison with holotype specimens, we show that all rhinocerotid specimens from Wischberg can be referred to just two species. Most of the material can be attributed to the large size teleoceratine Diaceratherium lemanense, while only a few specimens, including a skull and mandible, belong to the much smaller sized Pleuroceros pleuroceros. We describe and illustrate for the first time most of these fossil remains. However, the systematics of the genus Diaceratherium is currently controversial, and we attempt to elucidate it based on our new observations, though a large-scale phylogenetic study should be done in the future to resolve it. The rhinocerotid association found in Wischberg is nonetheless typical of the MN1 biozone, which results from a faunal renewal occurring just before the end of the Oligocene.

Postprint of the publication Maridet, O, Hugueney, M, Costeur, L, 2019 "Aubenas-les-Alpes (S-E France).Part III – Las and final part of the mammalian assemblage with some comments on the palaeoenvironment and palaeobiogeography" in Annales de Paléontologie, doi:10.1016/j.annpal.2019.03.001

Postprint of the manuscript published in Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments: Prieto, J., Lu, X.-Y., Maridet, O., Becker, D., Pirkenseer, C., Rauber, G., Peláez-Campomanes, P., 2019. New data on the Miocene dormouse Simplomys García-Paredes, 2009 from the peri-alpin basins of Switzerland and Germany: palaeodiversity of a rare genus in Central Europe. Palaeobio Palaeoenv 99, 527–543. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12549-018-0339-y