Oberdorf lignite mine, horizon O3 (Miocene of Austria)

Also known as Oberdorf 3

Where: Styria, Austria (47.1° N, 15.2° E: paleocoordinates 46.4° N, 14.7° E)

• coordinate estimated from map

• small collection-level geographic resolution

When: MN 4 (16.9 - 16.0 Ma)

• The fossiliferous bed belongs to the hanging wall succession ("Hangendabfolge") of the Ottnangian (late Early Miocene) Oberdorf section. Apparently, no formational name exists for these beds.

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: mire or swamp; carbonaceous claystone

• The particular environment of bed O3 ist given as "back swamp". The clays in the "Hangendabfolge" are interpreted as gley soils that developed under anoxic conditions. Forming of iron concretions with concentric structure and presence of dolomitic precipitate indicates a tropical to subtropical climate with temporary drier periods. (Daxner-Höck et al., 1998b, Ann. Nat. Hist. Mus. Wien 99A, 195-224).
• "The fossiliferous bed (lignitic clays containing bones as well as wood, seeds and gastropods) are interpreted as palaeosol." (de Bruijn, 1998). According to Daxner-Höck et al. (1998a), the bed in question forms the clayey base of a thin lignite seam and belongs to a sequence of distal floodplain deposits. (TL)

Size class: mesofossils

Collected by H. de Bruijn, G. Daxner-Höck, et al. in 1990-1993; reposited in the NHMW

Collection methods: bulk, mechanical, sieve,

• From Daxner-Höck et al. (1998a, p. 4): The sampling was conducted within an interval of 30 cm and within a lateral section of about 5 m. The samples have been dried on-site and, in part, were left exposed to frost splitting over winter. After that they have been pre-washed on-site by means of a transportable washing plant (mesh sizes: 5 mm, 2.5 mm and 0.5 mm) and thus were reduced in volume by 50%. Due to the high clay content, further treatment in a lab was necessary before the fossil remains could be picked out.

Primary reference: H. de Bruijn. 1998. Vertebrates from the Early Miocene lignite deposits of the opencast mine Oberdorf (Western Styrian Basin, Austria): 6. Rodentia 1 (Mammalia). Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien, Serie A: Mineralogie, Petrologie, Geologie, Paläontologie, Archäozoologie, Anthropologie, Prähistorie 99:99-137 [L. van den Hoek Ostende/L. van den Hoek Ostende/T. Liebrecht]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 74538: authorized by Lars van den Hoek Ostende, entered by Lars van den Hoek Ostende on 10.08.2007, edited by Terri Cleary, Matthew Carrano and Matthew Clapham

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Gastropoda
 Heterostropha - Planorbidae
Planorbarius cornu1 Brongniart 1810 snail
 Stylommatophora - Helicidae
Helicigona sp.1 Risso 1826 slug
 Stylommatophora - Oxychilidae
"Helicellinae indet." = Oxychilinae1
"Helicellinae indet." = Oxychilinae1 Hesse 1927 slug
 Cycloneritida - Helicinidae
Tropidomphalus rotundus1 Binder 2004 snail
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Sciuridae
Hylopetes hoeckarum n. sp. de Bruijn 1998 squirrel
Palaeosciurus sutteri Ziegler and Fahlbusch 1986 squirrel
Miopetaurista dehmi de Bruijn et al. 1980 squirrel
Spermophilinus besanus Cuenca 1988 squirrel
Blackia miocaenica Mein 1970 squirrel
 Rodentia - Gliridae
Bransatoglis cf. astaracensis Baudelot 1970 dormouse
Bransatoglis fugax Hugueney 1967 dormouse
Peridyromys murinus Pomel 1853 dormouse
Seorsumuscardinus alpinus de Bruijn 1998 dormouse
Glirulus (Paraglirulus) sp. Thomas 1906 Japanese dormouse
Glirulus (Glirulus) lissiensis Hugueney and Mein 1965 Japanese dormouse
Glirudinus minutus Wu 1993 dormouse
Glis minor Kowalski 1963 dormouse
ssp. complicatus
Microdyromys cf. hildebrandti Werner 1994 dormouse
Microdyromys cf. legidensis Daams 1981 dormouse
Reptilia
 Squamata -
Squamata "indet. 2"2 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/0038-40, three osteoderms, paper says "Oberdorf 3 and 4" but doesn't specify which specimen is from where, so they are entered in both
Squamata "indet. 3"2 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/0041, right pelvis
 Squamata - Cordylidae
Cordylidae indet.2 Gray 1837 spinytail lizard
NHMW 2016/0028/0015, right dentary
 Squamata - Scincidae
? Scincidae indet.2 Gray 1825 skink
NHMW 2016/0028/0010, right frontal
Chalcides augei3 Čerňanský et al. 2019 skink
NHMW 2016/0028/0019, left dentary
Chalcides augei3 Čerňanský et al. 2019 skink
NHMW 2016/0028/0036-37, two right frontals
 Squamata - Chamaeleonidae
? Chamaeleonidae indet.2 Gray 1825 chameleon
NHMW 2016/0028/0002, jaw fragment
 Squamata - Lacertidae
Lacertidae indet.2 Bonaparte 1831 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/0008, anterior portion of right frontal; NHMW 2016/0028/0009, parietal
Lacerta sp.2 Linnaeus 1758 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/0004, right maxilla; NHMW 2016/0028/0005, left dentary
Lacerta cf. poncenatensis2 Müller 1996 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/0003, right dentary
 Squamata -
Gekkota indet.2 Cuvier 1817 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/001, right maxilla
 Squamata - Anguidae
Anguidae indet.2 Gray 1825 squamates
NHMW 2016/0028/0030-32, three osteoderms, paper says "Oberdorf 3 and 4" but doesn't specify which specimen is from where, so they are entered in both
Amphibia
 Temnospondyli - Albanerpetontidae
Albanerpeton inexpectatum4 Estes and Hoffstetter 1976 tetrapod