Early Miocene marsupialiforms, gymnures, and hedgehogs from Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin (Spain)

Abstract

AbstractMaterials from the localities of Araia d'Alcora in the Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin (Spain, early Miocene, Biozone C, MN4) have yielded an assemblage of erinaceids and metatherians, relatively rich for an Iberian site. The most common erinaceid is the gymnureGalerix symeonidisiDoukas, 1986, present in almost all of the studied sites. Other erinaceids in the faunal list are possibly an indeterminate species of the generaLantanotheriumFilhol, 1888 andAtelerixPomel, 1848, in what constitutes one of their oldest occurrences in Europe. Metatherians are represented by the herpetotheriidAmphiperatherium frequens erkertshofense(Koenigswald, 1970). The material described here was partially published by Furió and colleagues in 2012. We complete it with new material from the known localities and with material from new sites. We describe for the first time the lower dentition of this taxon in this basin, thus increasing knowledge of the high variability of its decidual molars. In addition, the climatic preferences of the speciesA. frequens(von Meyer, 1846), which was probably less strict in its humidity requirements than previously thought, are also discussed.