New remains of Late Pleistocene mammals from the Chuí Creek, Southern Brazil

Abstract

The Chui Creek, located in the southernmost Brazil, is a fossiliferous outcrop known since the late 1960s, which bears important records of late Pleistocene mammals, other vertebrates and invertebrate fossils. The presence of some taxa (e.g. Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris Linnaeus, Tapirus terrestris Linnaeus, Ozotoceros bezoarticus Linneaus), although mentioned on the literature, is still to be confirmed. Specimens from Chui Creek belonging to several collections are reexamined and new excavations and geological surveys in the area are being conducted. The new records include isolated teeth of cf. Ursidae and Rodentia (Myocastor cf. M. coypus Molina); a complete and articulated skull and jaw of a tayassuid, Catagonus Ameghino, as well as a left dentary of a juvenile ground sloth, Eremotherium cf. E. laurillardi Lund. The ongoing systematic revision led to the confirmation of the presence of the glyptodont Doedicurus Burmeister, represented by a portion of the carapace; the cervid genera Antifer Ameghino and Morenelaphus Carette; and the equids Equus Linnaeus and Hippidion Owen, represented by cranial and dental remains. These findings expand the knowledge on the diversity of the extinct fauna found in the Chui Creek, and have biogeographic, biostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental implications, which are herein discussed.