Musteloid carnivores from the upper Miocene of South-Western Bulgaria, and the phylogeny of the Mephitidae

Geraads, Denis; Spassov, Nikolaï

doi:10.5252/g2016n4a5

Cited by 12 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Data for certain characters were also gathered from the literature if not discernible in the specimens available to us. Those concerning the internal cranial anatomy were inferred from video files of CT scans spanning the different axes of the cranium (from www.digimorph.org) and the literature (Ahrens, 2014;Geraads and Spassov, 2016;Grohé et al, 2016).…”

Section: Morphological Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

A Total Evidence Phylogenetic Analysis of Pinniped Phylogeny and the Possibility of Parallel Evolution Within a Monophyletic Framework

et al. 2020

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In the present study, a series of phylogenetic analyses of morphological, molecular, and combined morphological-molecular datasets were conducted to investigate the relationships of 23 extant and 44 fossil caniforme genera, in order to test the phylogenetic position of putative stem pinniped Puijila within a comprehensive evolutionary framework. With Canis as an outgroup, a Bayesian Inference analysis employing tip-dating of a combined molecular-morphological (i.e., Total Evidence) dataset recovered a topology in which musteloids are the sister group to a monophyletic pinniped clade, to the exclusion of ursids, and recovered Puijila and Potamotherium along the stem of Pinnipedia. A similar topology was recovered in a parsimony analysis of the same dataset. These results suggest the pinniped stem may be expanded to include additional fossil arctoid taxa, including Puijila, Potamotherium, and Kolponomos. The tip-dating analysis suggested a divergence time between pinnipeds and musteloids of ∼45.16 million years ago (Ma), though a basal split between otarioids and phocids is not estimated to occur until ∼26.52 Ma. These results provide further support for prolonged freshwater and nearshore phases in the evolution of pinnipeds, prior to the evolution of the extreme level of aquatic adaptation displayed by extant taxa. Ancestral character state reconstruction was used to investigate character evolution, to determine the frequency of reversals and parallelisms characterizing the three extant clades within Pinnipedia. Although the phylogenetic analyses did not directly provide any evidence of parallel evolution within the pinniped extant families, it is apparent from the inspection of previously-proposed pinniped synapomorphies, within the context of a molecular-based phylogenetic framework, that many traits shared between extant pinnipeds have arisen independently in the three clades. Notably, those traits relating to homodonty and limb-bone specialization for aquatic locomotion appear to have multiple origins within the crown group, as suggested by the retention of the plesiomorphic conditions in early-diverging fossil members of the three extant families. Thus, while the present analysis identifies a new suite of morphological synapomorphies for Pinnipedia, the frequency of reversals and other homoplasies within the clade limit their diagnostic value.

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Section: Morphological Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

A Total Evidence Phylogenetic Analysis of Pinniped Phylogeny and the Possibility of Parallel Evolution Within a Monophyletic Framework

et al. 2020

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“…They were widespread in Late Miocene of Eurasia and survived till the Pliocene in Asia. The genus includes about ten species with some of them being poorly defi ned thus leading to an ongoing discussion on the taxonomic composition of the genus (Wang and Qiu 2004, Koufos 2006, Geraads and Spassov 2016. Werdelin (1996) recognised four species among European Promephitis: P. pristinidens, P. maeotica, P. lartetii, and P. brevirostris.…”

Section: Hipparion Aff Gromovae Gabunia 1959mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally they recognized only three species in the Turolian of Western Eurasia: the largest being P. maeotica from Novoelizavetovka (Ukraine) (MN 12), the slightly smaller P. lartetii (= P. hootoni) from Pikermi, Perivolaki (Greece), Küçükyozgat, Akkaşdaği (Turkey), Hadjidimovo, and Kalimantsi (Bulgaria) ( , and the notably smaller P. majori from Samos (Greece) and Hadjidimovo (Bulgaria) ( . Thanks to the new fi nds from Greece and Bulgaria, the cranial-based distinctions between P. lartetii and P. maeotica fi nally excluded their synonymy (Koufos 2006, Geraads andSpassov 2016). The important derived feature of P. maeotica from different stratigraphical levels of Turolian is the long m1.…”

Section: Hipparion Aff Gromovae Gabunia 1959mentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Miocene (Early Turolian) vertebrate faunas and associated biotic record of the Northern Caucasus: Geology, palaeoenvironment, biochronology

Tesakov¹,

Титов²,

Симакова³

et al. 2017

Fossil Imprint

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Abstract Late Miocene continental deposits overlying the Khersonian marine sediments near the city of Maikop bordering the Belaya River (North Caucasus) yielded a diverse biotic record including palynology, ostracods, fresh-water and terrestrial molluscs, fishes, amphibians and reptiles, birds, and mammals. The obtained data indicate predominantly wooded landscapes along the banks of a large fresh-water estuarine or lagoonal basin with occasional connection with the sea. The basin existed in a warm temperate to subtropical climate with a high humidity and an estimated mean annual precipitation above 800 mm. The mammalian assemblage with Hipparion spp., Alilepus sp., Paraglirulus schultzi, Eozapus intermedius, Parapodemus lugdunensis, Collimys caucasicus sp. nov., Neocricetodon cf. progressus, etc. is referable to the early Turolian, MN 11. The data regarding composition and stage of evolution of the small mammal content combined with mostly normal polarity of the fossiliferous deposits, and the age estimates of the upper Khersonian boundary as between 8.6 and 7.9 Ma indicate a plausible correlation with Chron C4n and an age range between 8.1–7.6 Ma.

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“…Within the musteloids, mephitids have the shortest records despite its stem position indicating otherwise. Definitive skunks occur in the Late Miocene of North America (Wang et al, 2005b) and Eurasia (Wang and Qiu, 2004; Geraads and Spassov, 2016). True relationships of some alleged mephitids, such as Palaeomephitis (Wolsan, 1999), Miomephitis , and Proputorius , are in dispute due to a lack of commonly agreed upon synapomorphies for the clade (Geraads and Spassov, 2016).…”

Section: Zoogeography and Origins Of Arctoid Familiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Definitive skunks occur in the Late Miocene of North America (Wang et al, 2005b) and Eurasia (Wang and Qiu, 2004; Geraads and Spassov, 2016). True relationships of some alleged mephitids, such as Palaeomephitis (Wolsan, 1999), Miomephitis , and Proputorius , are in dispute due to a lack of commonly agreed upon synapomorphies for the clade (Geraads and Spassov, 2016). The presence of a highly divergent living mephitid, Mydaus , suggests a long (hidden) history in Southeast Asia, where an early center of divergence is a distinct possibility.…”

Section: Zoogeography and Origins Of Arctoid Familiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

An exquisitely preserved skeleton of Eoarctos vorax (nov. gen. et sp.) from Fitterer Ranch, North Dakota (early Oligocene) and systematics and phylogeny of North American early arctoids (Carnivora, Caniformia)

Wang

Emry

Boyd

et al. 2022

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology

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An exquisitely preserved male skeleton of an early arctoid, Eoarctos vorax new genus and species, provides a unique window into the origin and early divergence of Carnivora. Recovered from the Fitterer Ranch locality in the early Oligocene (Orellan to Whitneyan North American Land Mammal ages) Brule Formation of southwestern North Dakota (∼32 Ma), the new arctoid offers an opportunity to evaluate the fundamental relationships of the caniform (dog-like) carnivorans. Eoarctos vorax possesses a suite of plesiomorphic characters inherited from its miacid ancestors, making it an ideal model for ancestral arctoids. We present a comprehensive treatment of E. vorax, combining traditional description with photographic documentation, microCT, laser scans, and photogrammetry. Showing its plesiomorphic morphology, Eoarctos vorax is scansorial, somewhat like a modern raccoon, retaining the ability to climb trees and lacking cursorial adaptations present in the early canid Hesperocyon. However, E. vorax shows clear signs of durophagous cranio-dental morphology, presumably for an obligatory diet of mollusks, with frequent damage to shell-crushing premolars, plus associated dental infections. We review several other key North American early arctoids and present total-evidence (nuclear DNA and discrete morphological characters) Bayesian and parsimony analyses of Caniformia phylogeny, including extinct stem taxa plus a living member of all modern families. We recognize an endemic North American ursoid clade, Subparictidae, which includes Eoarctos vorax. We demonstrate the importance of North America as an early cradle of evolution for caniform carnivorans, including early precursors of Canidae, Amphicyonidae, Ursidae, and Pinnipedia. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:86C85C7A-9DDF-410E-ACA6-F5B913093E2D SUPPLEMENTARY FILES-Supplementary files are available for this article for free at www.tandfonline.com/UJVP.

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Musteloid carnivores from the upper Miocene of South-Western Bulgaria, and the phylogeny of the Mephitidae

Abstract: ABSTRACT

Cited by 12 publications

References 28 publications

A Total Evidence Phylogenetic Analysis of Pinniped Phylogeny and the Possibility of Parallel Evolution Within a Monophyletic Framework

A Total Evidence Phylogenetic Analysis of Pinniped Phylogeny and the Possibility of Parallel Evolution Within a Monophyletic Framework

Late Miocene (Early Turolian) vertebrate faunas and associated biotic record of the Northern Caucasus: Geology, palaeoenvironment, biochronology

An exquisitely preserved skeleton of Eoarctos vorax (nov. gen. et sp.) from Fitterer Ranch, North Dakota (early Oligocene) and systematics and phylogeny of North American early arctoids (Carnivora, Caniformia)

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