Pietrafitta, Perugia (Pleistocene of Italy)

Where: Italy (43.0° N, 12.3° E: paleocoordinates 42.9° N, 12.2° E)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

When: Early/Lower Pleistocene (2.6 - 0.8 Ma)

• Early Pleistocene, Early Biharian, Farneta faunal unit, Latest Villafranchian. There are three separate lignite mine workings, but the levels are thought to be the roughly the same date based on the macro- and micromammalian remains.

Environment/lithology: mire or swamp; lignite

• swampy environment.

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Preservation: bone collector

Collection methods: quarrying,

• The specimens were collcetd from an active lignite mine, as and when they were found. The material is stored in a small museum on the site.

Primary reference: S. Gentili, L. Abbazzi, F. Masini, P. Ambrosetti, P. Argenti and D. Torre. 1996. Voles from the Early Pleistocene of Pietrafitta (central Italy, Perugia). Acta Zoologica Cracovensia 39(1):185-199 [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/H. O'Regan]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 42867: authorized by Alan Turner, entered by Hannah O'Regan on 06.08.2004

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• The dominance of arvicolids nay suggest an environment chracaterised locally by open areas with a cold climate. This hypothesis is further strengthened by the presence of the giant deer Megaceroides obscurus. Mimomys savini has been reported previously, but this is thought to have been the mis-identification of a large Mimomys chalinei upper M1.
unclassified
  -
Angiospermae
 Poales - Cyperaceae
Cyperaceae indet. Jussieu 1789 sedge
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Castoridae
Castor fiber Linnaeus 1758 Eurasian beaver
 Rodentia - Cricetidae
 Lagomorpha - Leporidae
 Primates - Cercopithecidae
Macaca florentina Cocchi 1872 macaque
Macaca sylvana-florentina
 Theriamorpha - Soricidae
Sorex cf. minutus Eurasian pygmy shrew
small species.
 Theriamorpha - Talpidae
Talpa sp. Linnaeus 1758 mole
not listed in Kotsakis et al. 2003.
 Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
Stephanorhinus cf. hundsheimensis Toula 1902 rhinoceros
 Perissodactyla - Equidae
Equus sp. Linnaeus 1758 horse
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
Megaloceros obscurus, "Pseudodama farnetensis" = Metacervocerus
"Pseudodama farnetensis" = Metacervocerus deer
 Artiodactyla - Bovidae
 Carnivora - Felidae
Panthera gombaszoegensis Kretzoi 1938 cat
 Carnivora - Mustelidae
Pannonictis nestii Martelli 1906 mustelid carnivore
 Carnivora - Ursidae
Ursus etruscus Cuvier 1823 bear
 Proboscidea - Elephantidae
Mammuthus meridionalis Nesti 1825 mammoth
Mammuthus meridionalis vestinus. Some skeletons.
Aves
 Anseriformes - Anatidae
Somateria sp. Leach 1819 eider