New skull material of Pleistocene dwarf deer from Crete (Greece)

Ann-Marie Schilling,Gertrud E Rössner

doi:10.5852/cr-palevol2021v20a9

Abstract

In the Pleistocene faunas of the island of Crete, Cervidae was one of the most abundant taxa. Respective species vary in body size, including dwarfs, and skeletal morphology; however, the number of species and the identity of the mainland ancestor(s) are still debated. In this paper, we morphologically and morphometrically describe and analyze eight skulls of Cretan deer from a so far little known fossil site near Gerani, Rethymnon, Greece. The recorded character suite allows for affiliation to dwarfed Candiacervus Kuss, 1975, Candiacervus ropalophorus de Vos, 1984 and C. reumeri van der Geer, 2018. It comprises previously unknown unique traits, some of them hinting to sexual dimorphism. Comparisons of the Candiacervus skulls presented here with those of cervids belonging to Megalocerotini Brooke, 1828, s.s. and s.l. stress certain similarities; yet more material is needed to reconstruct Candiacervus’ phylogenetic position. The newly detected craniodental specifics allow for more insights into island adaptation of Candiacervus; at the same time, they blur the morphological heritage of their mainland ancestors.

Highlights

Pleistocene fossils from the Mediterranean island of Crete provide a fascinating view into island evolution
Mammals colonized this island during the early Pleistocene, probably by sweepstake route, i.e., swimming, floating, or rafting (Simpson 1940) and the fossil record indicates that the Pleistocene faunas of Crete were highly unbalanced, as typical for island faunas (Carlquist 1974; Losos & Ricklefs 2009)
We describe some exquisitely preserved new skull remains of smaller-sized Cretan deer, i.e., Candiacervus ropalophorus de Vos, 1984 (= size 1, de Vos 1984), Candi acervus reumeri van der Geer, 2018 (= size 2, de Vos 1984), and Candiacervus sp

Summary

Introduction

Pleistocene fossils from the Mediterranean island of Crete provide a fascinating view into island evolution. Mammals colonized this island during the early Pleistocene, probably by sweepstake route, i.e., swimming, floating, or rafting (Simpson 1940) and the fossil record indicates that the Pleistocene faunas of Crete were highly unbalanced (de Vos 1984), as typical for island faunas (Carlquist 1974; Losos & Ricklefs 2009). Typically referred to as Candiacervus, are one of the most abundant taxa (Sondaar 1971) in Cretan Pleistocene faunas. Post-cranial and cranial remains, including antlers, as well as dental remains have been obtained from these sites (see references given above and Simonelli 1908; Kuss 1965, 1975; de Vos 1979; Capasso Barbato & Petronio 1986), and were dated to the late Pleistocene

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