Griesbeckerzell 1a (Miocene of Germany)

Where: Bavaria, Germany (48.4° N, 11.0° E: paleocoordinates 48.7° N, 9.7° E)

• coordinate stated in text

When: OSM F mammal zone, Fluviatile Untere Serie Member (Upper Freshwater Molasse Formation), Langhian (16.0 - 13.8 Ma)

• Brock horizon of the Fluviatile Untere Serie, Middle part of the Upper Freshwater Molasse (OSM), Early Badenian (Langhian).

•"Fossil localities of the Brock horizon lacking fossils of the large-sized lineage of Megacricetodon Fahlbusch, 1964 are placed at the beginning of [the regional] unit OSM F (Heissig 1989, 1997; Böhme et al. 2001; Abdul Aziz et al. 2008). [...] According to the new palaeomagnetic and radiometric dating of the Ries impact event (Abdul Aziz et al. 2008), Griesbeckerzell 1a probably is approximately 14.77 Ma (14.88 ± 0.11 Ma for the Ries impact and chron C5ADr for sediments containing the Brock horizon) in age [...]" (Ivanov & Böhme, 2011).

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: fine channel fill; poorly lithified, calcareous breccia and poorly lithified sandstone

• The Brock horizon is a "limestone boulder horizon, originating from the Ries meteoritic impact" (Ivanov & Böhme, 2011). The fossils are, however, said to come from "channel-fill sands" (ibidem), apparently associated with the limestone boulders.

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Reposited in the BSP

Primary reference: M. Ivanov and M. Böhme. 2011. Snakes from Griesbeckerzell (Langhian, Early Badenian), North Alpine Foreland Basin (Germany), with comments on the evolution of snake faunas in Central Europe during the Miocene Climatic Optimum. Geodiversitas 33(3):411-449 [J. Mueller/T. Liebrecht]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 134954: authorized by Johannes Mueller, entered by Torsten Liebrecht on 19.10.2012, edited by Terri Cleary

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• "Interesting is the presence of a dental and a frontal bone of a possible cordylid lizard. This thermophilous family is quite common in the late Early Miocene (Roček 1984; Böhme 2002, 2010), but was not previously reported from Middle Miocene deposits of Europe." (Ivanov & Böhme, 2011)

•Also, there may be mammal taxa present in the Griesbeckerzell fauna.

Amphibia
 Salientia - Pelobatidae
Pelobates sp. Wagler 1830 spadefoot toad
Eopelobates sp. Parker 1929 spadefoot toad
 Salientia - Ranidae
Pelophylax sp. Fitzinger 1843 frog
 Salientia - Bufonidae
Bufo cf. viridis Laurenti 1768 European green toad
 Salientia -
Latonia gigantea Lartet 1851 frog
 Caudata - Urodela
Salamandra sansaniensis Lartet 1851 salamander
Chelotriton sp. Pomel 1853 newt
Mioproteus caucasicus Estes and Darevsky 1978 mudpuppy
Reptilia
 Crocodylia -
"Diplocynodon styriacus" = Diplocynodon ungeri
"Diplocynodon styriacus" = Diplocynodon ungeri Prangner 1845 crocodilian
 Squamata - Colubridae
Colubridae indet. Oppel 1811 colubrid snake
26 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 616-641)
Colubrinae indet. Oppel 1811 colubrid snake
14 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 555-568)
"Coluber" sp. Linnaeus 1758 racer
3 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 551-553)
"Coluber" cf. caspioides Szyndlar and Schleich 1993 racer
21 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 519-539)
Coluber hungaricus Bolkay 1913 racer
10 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 541-550)
Texasophis cf. meini Rage and Holman 1984 colubrid snake
1 vertebra (BSPG 1997 XIII 554)
Natricinae indet. Bonaparte 1838 colubrid snake
16 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 600-615)
Natrix sp. Laurenti 1768 water snake
30 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 570-599)
 Squamata - Crotalidae
Vipera "sp. (“Oriental vipers” group)" Laurenti 1768 pit viper
10 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 649-658)
Vipera "sp. (“European vipers” group: “Vipera aspis complex”)" Laurenti 1768 pit viper
1 vertebra (BSPG 1997 XIII 659)
 Squamata - Elapidae
Elapidae indet. Boié 1827 snake
3 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 643-645)
Micrurus cf. gallicus Rage and Holman 1984 coral snake
1 vertebra (BSPG 1997 XIII 642)
 Squamata - Boidae
Boidae indet. Gray 1825 boa
5 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 514-518); "The gracile cranial margin of the zygosphene in one trunk vertebra may suggest affinities with Bavarioboa."
cf. Bavarioboa sp. Szyndlar and Schleich 1993 boa
5 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 502-506)
Bavarioboa aff. hermi Szyndlar and Schleich 1993 boa
3 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 499-501)
Python sp. Daudin 1803 boa
6 vertebrae (BSPG 1997 XIII 507-512)
 Squamata - Cordylidae
? Cordylidae indet. Gray 1837 spinytail lizard
dental and frontal bone
 Squamata - Scincidae
Scincidae indet. Gray 1825 skink
 Squamata - Lacertidae
Lacerta sp. Linnaeus 1758 squamates
Edlartetia sansaniensis Augé and Rage 2000 squamates
 Squamata - Anguidae
Ophisaurus sp. Daudin 1803 glass lizard
Ophisaurus feifari Klembara 1979 glass lizard
BSPG 1997 XVI 466, parietal
Pseudopus laurillardi Lartet 1851 legless lizard
Maxilla, BSPG 1997 XIII 467–468, 470, 472–473, 475–476; Dentary, BSPG 1997 XIII 477, 479–482, 486
 Testudines - Testudinidae
Geochelone sp. Fitzinger 1835 turtle
Testudo sp. Linnaeus 1758 turtle
 Testudines - Geoemydidae
Mauremys sp. Gray 1870 pond turtle
 Testudines - Trionychidae
Trionyx sp. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1809 softshell turtle
Actinopteri
 Acanthomorphata - Moronidae
Morone sp. Mitchill 1814 temperate bass
 Anabantiformes - Channidae
Channa spp. Scopoli 1770 snakehead
 Cypriniformes - Cyprinidae
Palaeoleuciscus "sp. A" Obrhelová 1969 carp-like fish
Barbus "sp. B" Cuvier and Cloquet 1816 carp-like fish