New craniodental remains of Trocharion Albanense Major, 1903 (Carnivora, Mustelidae), from the Vallès-Penedès Basin (middle to late Miocene, Barcelona, Spain)

Abstract

ABSTRACT Cranial and dentognathic remains of Trocharion albanense (Carnivora, Mustelidae, Leptarctinae) from the Vallès-Penedès Basin (Barcelona, Spain), ranging from the middle to the late Miocene, are described. Most of the newly described material comes from several sites of the Abocador de Can Mata (ACM) section (in the municipal term of els Hostalets de Pierola), but remains from other Catalan localities (Sant Quirze, Castell de Barberà, and Can Llobateres) are also described. The material from ACM includes two partial crania and several mandibles. This enables description of several aspects of craniodental morphology previously unknown for this taxon, such as the presence of first upper premolars, as well as the presence of a conspicuous and rhomboid double temporal crest. Accordingly, an emended diagnosis of the genus Trocharion is provided, together with a differential diagnosis with respect to other leptarctine genera. A cladistic analysis based on craniodental features is consistent with Trocharion being the basalmost member of the Leptarctinae, and suggests that the carnassial notch (still present in this taxon) was independently lost in leptarctines and in other mustelids.