Villafranchian

Recently collected fossil material in the Villafranchian locality of Sésklo, as well as a re-evaluation of a pre-existing, partly-published museum collection, allow the recognition of a lower faunal level in the locality, older than the main Equus-dominated fossil assemblage, dated in the Early Pleistocene (MNQ17). The lower level yielded, instead, an advanced hipparion, referred to the species Plesiohipparion cf. shanxiense, and a small number of associated taxa: an ostrich (Struthio cf. chersonensis), an unidentified proboscidean, the pig Sus arvernensis, two antelopes (Gazella cf. bouvrainae and Gazellospira torticornis), a large bovid (Bovini indet.), and a rhinoceros (Stephanorhinus sp.). The lower-level fauna is dated in the latest Pliocene (MN16) and indicates a rather open and dry palaeoenvironment. The faunal sequence in Sésklo shows that the hipparion did not co-occur with the stenonid horse, at least in this region. Previous reports on sympatry of these taxa may result from faunal mixing, requiring re-examination of the available samples.

The peri-Mediterranean and western Asian Plio-Pleistocene faunas are characterised by the sporadic presence of a palaeotragine taxon with a complex nomenclatural history, usually referred to the genus Mitilanotherium. Due to its rarity, its morphological characters are incompletely known. Recently excavated giraffid material in the Lower Pleistocene locality of Sésklo (Thessaly, Greece) includes an almost complete skull that provides a better knowledge of the taxon's morphology. The skull is long with a proportionally elongate postor-bital part. Dorsally it is very wide, and has a markedly flat cranial roof. The long ossicones emerge supraorbitally and are widely separated. The dentition is brachyodont with short premolar section with regard to other palaeotragines. A stratigraphically associated atlas is very large and robust, implying a very powerful neck. As indicated by the comparisons based on the new material, the samples previously referred to Mitilanotherium and related genera form a homogeneous conspecific group, similar to the Late Miocene palaeotragine species, especially those of the genus Palaeotragus. The main common features include the presence of simple supraorbital cranial appendages, the long postorbital part of the skull, and the long and slender metapodials. The implied close phylogenetic relationship between Mitilanotherium and Palaeotragus points to the synonymy between them, extending the stratigraphic range of Palaeotragus into the Pleistocene. Palaeotragus is a long lived, morpholo-gically conservative genus spanning from about 10–11 to almost 1 million years ago. The Plio-Pleistocene species, P. inexspectatus, was adapted to open and dry habitats of the peri-Mediterranean and SW Asian region.

The equid material from the late Pliocene locality of Sésklo (Thessaly, Greece) is described and compared in this article. It belongs to a large and fairly stout Equus stenonis form, which shares many morphological characters with the species samples from Saint-Vallier, La Puebla de Valverde and Olivola, as well as with already known Equus stenonis samples from other Greek localities (Dafneró, Vólax). Its main features are the big skull and
limbs, the short protocones and the very simple enamel plication in the teeth. Large sized and relatively robust stenonid horses are common elements of the late Pliocene faunas of Greece.

Three cervical vertebrae of a large primate have been identified in the revision of the faunal assemblage collected during the late '70s from fissure fillings in the area known as Pirro Nord in southern Italy. By size the three vertebrae are comparable to the large fossil species Theropithecus oswaldi, however we prefer here to attribute the remains to Theropithecus sp. The Pirro Nord Theropithecus represents the second finding outside of Africa of this genus in association with Megantereon whitei, after the site of ‘Ubeidiya. The biochronology of Pirro Nord faunal assemblage demonstrates that the arrival into Europe of Theropithecus occurred earlier than thought: in the range of approx 1.6–1.3 Ma. The identification of an European “African assemblage” (Theropithecus associated with Megantereon whitei) has consequences for interpretation of an “out of Africa” (genus Homo) event around the Plio-Pleistocene transition.

The dietary morphological methods of mesowear and microwear were applied to ungulates of the Late Pliocene fauna of Sésklo (Thessaly, Greece). The results provide evidence for the predominance of open grassland in the area, as the most common species, Equus stenonis, was a strict grazer. The rare cervid cf. Croizetoceros ramosus was the only browser. The antelopes (genera Gazella and Gazellospira) yielded discrepant microwear and mesowear results. This is interpreted as an indication of regional or seasonal dietary resource differentiation, inferring that the antelopes were probably mixed feeders that grazed occasionally or periodically.

Fossil remains of Mammuthus meridionalis were found in 2016 at Tasso, near Terranuova Bracciolini (Province of Arezzo, Italy) in Early Pleistocene deposits of the second depositional phase of the Upper Valdarno. The interest in this new find derives from its clear stratigraphic position, at the top of the so-called “Sabbie e Limi del  Torrente Oreno” (sand and silt deposits typical of the Oreno Creek), close to the transition to the marginal alluvial fan deposits. The excavations yielded the remains of a skull of Mammuthus meridionalis still preserving part of its tusks, and an ulna, likely of the same individual. The fossils were found at the base of a fluvial channel infilled with sediments from the Pratomagno Ridge. Over time the channel was subjected to channel bank collapse and was infilled with sand deposited during small- to middle-scale flooding. The elephant skull, which is deformed due to sediment loading and partially eroded, belongs to a relatively large individual, presumably a male. The channel deposits provided also other small fossil remains of Equus stenonis, Pseudodama nestii and Pachy crocuta brevirostris. These late Villafranchian taxa suggest more or less open steppe/forested savannah landscapes in response to the glacial/interglacial cycles of that time period.

ABSTRACT - A very rich faunal assemblage referred to the early Late Villafranchian (Olivola/Tasso Faunal Unit) has been found at the Early Pleistocene site of Pantalla (Perugia, central Italy). The assemblage contains a number of carnivores, including several specimens of the Etruscan wolf Canis etruscus Forsyth Major, 1877. Canis etruscus appeared in Europe about 2 Ma. This species is regarded as an important taxon for biochronology: its first occurrence (the so-called “wolf event”) has been used to define one of the Villafranchian faunal turnovers. The Late Villafranchian assemblage from Pantalla provides  valuable information about the Early Pleistocene carnivore guild in Italy. Together with the Etruscan wolf (probably a cooperative species hunting in packs) and Vulpes sp., the Pantalla faunal assemblage also records the occurrence of two felids, Lynx issiodorensis (Croizet & Jobert, 1828) and the giant cheetah Acinonyx pardinensis (Croizet & Jobert, 1828). Despite the excellent preservation and richness of fossils discovered, the Pantalla fauna seems to lack some important elements of the Late Villafranchian carnivore paleoguild, possibly reflecting a reduced biomass and/or diversity of preys in respect to other Italian sites.

) 1, Martine Faure 2, 3, Claude Guérin 2, Luca Aprile, Jacqueline Argant 4, Bonnie AB Blackwell, Evelyne Debard, Will Harcourt-Smith, Elvira Martin-Suarez, Angélique Monguillon 2, Fabio Parenti, Jean. François Pastre, Sevket Sen, Anne R. Skinner, Carl C. Swisher Iii, ...