The European Paromomyidae (Primates, Mammalia): taxonomy, phylogeny, and biogeographic implications

Abstract

AbstractPlesiadapiforms represent the first radiation of Primates, appearing near the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary. Eleven families of plesiadapiforms are recognized, including the Paromomyidae. Four species of paromomyids from the early Eocene have been reported from Europe:Arcius fuscusRussell et al., 1967,Arcius lapparentiRussell et al., 1967, andArcius rougieriGodinot, 1984 from France andArcius zbyszewskiiEstravís, 2000 from Portugal. OtherArciusspecimens from the early Eocene are known from Masia de l’Hereuet (Spain), Abbey Wood (England), and Sotteville-sur-Mer (Normandy, France). A cladistic analysis of the European paromomyids has never previously been published. A total of 53 dental characters were analyzed for the fourArciusspecies and the specimens from Spain, England, and Normandy. The results of a parsimony analysis using TNT agree with previous conceptions ofA. zbyszewskiias the most primitive member of the genus. Consistent with existing hypotheses,Arcius rougieriis positioned as the sister taxon ofA. fuscusandA. lapparenti, and the results suggest that the fossil from Normandy isA. zbyszewskii. However, the English fossil pertains to a primitive lineage, rather than grouping withA. lapparentias had been suggested; as such it is recognized here as a distinct species (Arcius hookerinew species). The Spanish fossils cluster together with the French species but do not show the previously proposed special relationship withA. lapparentiand are sufficiently distinct to be placed in a new species (Arcius ilerdensis).Arciusis recovered as monophyletic, which is consistent with a single migration event from North America to Europe around the earliest Eocene through the Greenland land bridge.UUID:http://zoobank.org/f4aac438-82d2-4a25-887b-3e0c072d87f6