Vialette, Haute Loire (Pliocene of France)

Where: France (45.1° N, 3.9° E)

• Paleocoordinates: 44.6° N, 4.3° E (Wright 2013)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

When: MN 16 (3.2 - 2.6 Ma)

• Villanyian, Villafranchian.

Environment/lithology:

Size class: macrofossils

Collection methods: Tapir remains are held in Paris, Lyon and Basle, etc. Rhinoceros specimens held in Basle, Musee Crozatier in Puy-en-Velay, MNHN, Paris and Lyon.

Primary reference: E. Heintz, C. Guerin, R. Martin and F. Prat. 1974. Principaux gisements villafranchiens de France: Listes fauniques et biostratigraphie. Memoires du Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres 78(1):169-182 [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/H. O'Regan]more details

Purpose of describing collection: biostratigraphic analysis

PaleoDB collection 47099: authorized by Alan Turner, entered by Hannah O'Regan on 08.02.2005, edited by Evangelos Vlachos

Creative Commons license: CC0 (CC0)

Taxonomic list

• This paper contains a revised faunal list. Where the information is available the previous identification of the specimens has also been entered.

•Earlier reports of Equus stenonis or Hipparion from the site are likely to be due to poorly provenanced specimens in museum collections, later excavations have not recovered any specimens and the authors therefore did not include these identfications in this list.

•Four specimens in Bale Museum are marked as bovid, (2 phalanges, a calcaneum and a maxilla fragemnt) but are again poorly provenanced.

Show authors, comments, and common names
Mammalia
 Proboscidea - Mammutidae
Zygolophodon borsoni
 Proboscidea - Gomphotheriidae
Anancus arvernensis
Anancus arvernensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 gomphothere
 Carnivora - Ursidae
Ursus sp.1
Ursus sp.1 Linnaeus 1758 bear
1 canine (Vt 94, Museum of Bale)
 Carnivora - Hyaenidae
? Pliocrocuta perrieri2
? Pliocrocuta perrieri2 Kretzoi 1938 hyaena
1 cubitus in Puy and 2 lower teeth (V 151 and 152, in Lyon Museum whose attribution to Vialette is not absolutely certain).
 Carnivora - Felidae
Lynx issiodorensis
Lynx issiodorensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 lynx
1 mandible in Puy.
 Carnivora - Canidae
Canis sp.1
Canis sp.1 Linnaeus 1758 canine
at least 1 mandible in Puy en Velay.
 Perissodactyla - Tapiridae
Tapirus arvernensis
Tapirus arvernensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 tapir
 Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
Stephanorhinus jeanvireti2
Stephanorhinus jeanvireti2 Guérin 1972 rhinoceros
Many specimens including a skeleton in Lyon and a mandible in Le Puy en Velay.
 Perissodactyla - Equidae
Equus sp.1
Equus sp.1 Linnaeus 1758 horse
Crozatier collection
 Artiodactyla - Bovidae
Gazella cf. borbonica1, Pliotragus ardeus
Gazella cf. borbonica1 gazelle
Crozatier collection
Pliotragus ardeus Deperet 1883 antelope
1 upper molar (3502, Faculty of Sciences Lyon) and 1 right calcaneum (5306, MNHN, Paris).
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
""Cervus" cusanus" = Procapreolus cusanus, Croizetoceros ramosus, cf. Eucladoceros sp.1, Arvernoceros ardei, ""Cervus" pardinensis" = Metacervocerus pardinensis, ""Cervus" perrieri" = Praeelaphus perrieri
""Cervus" cusanus" = Procapreolus cusanus Croizet and Jobert 1928 deer
Croizetoceros ramosus Croizet and Jobert 1828 deer
Croizetoceros ramosus ramosus
cf. Eucladoceros sp.1 Falconer 1868 deer
Crozatier collection
Arvernoceros ardei Croizet and Jobert 1828 deer
""Cervus" pardinensis" = Metacervocerus pardinensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 deer
""Cervus" perrieri" = Praeelaphus perrieri Croizet and Jobert 1828 deer
 Primates - Cercopithecidae
"Dolichopithecus" cf. arvernensis
"Dolichopithecus" cf. arvernensis Depéret 1929 monkey
1 upper molar (Vt 326, Museum of Bale).
1Lacombat et al. 2008; 2O'Regan 2003