Eggingen-Mittelhart 3 (Miocene of Germany)

Where: Baden-Württemberg, Germany (48.4° N, 9.9° E: paleocoordinates 48.5° N, 8.2° E)

• coordinate estimated from map

• small collection-level geographic resolution

When: Grimmelfinger Schichten Member (Brackwater Molasse Formation), Burdigalian (20.4 - 16.0 Ma)

• basal Grimmelfingen beds ("Grimmelfinger Graupensande"), late Early Miocene, Middle Orleanian (Sach & Heizmann, 2001)

•Pippèrr et al. 2007: Biostratigraphical studies based on otoliths and small mammals suggest that the Upper Brackish Molasse is Late Ottnangian in age (e.g. ZIEGLER & FAHLBUSCH 1986; REICHENBACHER et al. 2004). Adding support to this age estimate is the positive correlation of the Upper Brackish Molasse with the sediments in Switzerland and the Rzehakia Beds of the Central Paratethys (SENES 1973; REICHENBACHER et al. 1998).

• group of beds-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: estuary or bay; unlithified, fine-grained, coarse, sandy gravel and poorly lithified, black, brown, calcareous, carbonaceous mudstone

• the Grimmelfingen beds are interpreted as tidally influenced estuarine deposit (other authors, however, regard the Grimmelfingen beds as entirely fluvial) and thus as the basal unit of the transgression of the Upper Freshwater Molasse Sea (Sach & Heizmann, 2001)
• Fine to coarse sandy gravel, cutting down into deep black to dark brown marls ("chocolate marls") of the Lower Freshwater Molasse.

•The fossils are exclusively from the gravely beds.

Size class: macrofossils

Preservation: original phosphate

Reposited in the SMNS

Collection methods: sieve

• the sand pit was active in the 1970s and 1980s; fossil collecting must have taken place in this period

•the fossiliferous layer is not accessible anymore

•additional institution housing material from Egg.-Mh. 3: Museum des Mineralien- u. Fossilien-Vereins Gerstetten (MFVG)

Primary reference: G. Pilleri. 1986. The Cetacea of the Western Paratethys 1-70 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen/M. Uhen]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 49102: authorized by Mark Uhen, entered by Mark Uhen on 08.04.2005

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Gastropoda
 Architaenioglossa - Viviparidae
Viviparus suevicus Wenz 1919 snail
 Stylommatophora - Helicidae
Cepaea sp. Held 1838 slug
Bivalvia
 Unionida - Unionidae
cf. Unio sp. Philipsson 1788 freshwater mussel
Chondrichthyes
 Carcharhiniformes - Hemigaleidae
Hemipristis serra Agassiz 1835 ground shark
 Carcharhiniformes - Galeocerdidae
Galeocerdo aduncus Agassiz 1835 tiger shark
 Lamniformes - Odontaspididae
"Carcharias cuspidatus" = Araloselachus cuspidatus
"Carcharias cuspidatus" = Araloselachus cuspidatus Agassiz 1843 sand tiger shark
 Lamniformes - Carchariidae
Carcharias acutissimus Agassiz 1843 sand shark
 Lamniformes - Lamnidae
"Isurus hastalis" = Carcharodon hastalis
"Isurus hastalis" = Carcharodon hastalis Agassiz 1838 white shark
Amphibia
 Caudata - Urodela
Andrias scheuchzeri Tschudi 1837 giant salamander
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Castoridae
Steneofiber depereti Mayet 1908 beaver
 Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
Plesiaceratherium lumiarense Antunes and Ginsburg 1983 rhinoceros
Prosantorhinus cf. douvillei Osborn 1902 rhinoceros
cf. Prosantorhinus germanicus Wang 1929 rhinoceros
cf. Diaceratherium aurelianense Nouel 1866 rhinoceros
 Perissodactyla - Tapiridae
Paratapirus cf. intermedius Filhol 1885 tapir
 Artiodactyla - Suidae
Hyotherium cf. meissneri von Meyer 1850 pig
reworked from Lower Freshwater Molasse deposits
Hyotherium soemmeringi von Meyer 1834 pig
 Artiodactyla - Anthracotheriidae
Elomeryx borbonicus Geais 1934 anthracothere
reworked from Lower Freshwater Molasse deposits
 Cetacea -
Odontoceti indet. Flower 1867 toothed whale
 Cetacea - Squalodontidae
Squalodontidae indet. Brandt 1873 toothed whale
 Cetacea - Physeteridae
Physeteridae indet. Gray 1821 sperm whale
 Cetacea -
Scaldicetus sp. Du Bus 1867 toothed whale
 Cetacea - Acrodelphinidae
"Acrodelphidae indet." = Acrodelphinidae
"Acrodelphidae indet." = Acrodelphinidae Abel 1905 toothed whale
 Artiodactyla -
Amphimoschus pontileviensis Bourgeois 1873 ruminant
 Artiodactyla - Tragulidae
cf. Dorcatherium guntianum von Meyer 1846 chevrotain
Dorcatherium vindobonense von Meyer 1846 chevrotain
Dorcatherium naui Kaup 1833 chevrotain
 Artiodactyla - Palaeomerycidae
Palaeomeryx kaupi von Meyer 1834 ruminant
 Artiodactyla - Lagomerycidae
cf. Ligeromeryx praestans Stehlin 1937 ruminant
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
Procervulus cf. dichotomus Gervais 1849 deer
 Creodonta - Hyainailouridae
Hyainailouros sulzeri Biedermann 1863 creodont
 Carnivora - Felidae
"Pseudaelurus cf. lorteti" = Miopanthera lorteti
"Pseudaelurus cf. lorteti" = Miopanthera lorteti Gaillard 1899 cat
 Carnivora - Amphicyonidae
Amphicyonidae indet. Haeckel 1886 bear-dog
originally entered as "Amphycyonidae indet."
Amphicyon cf. major De Blainville 1841 bear-dog
originally entered as "Amphicon cf. major"
Cynelos cf. helbingi Dehm 1950 bear-dog
Thaumastocyoninae indet. Hurzeller 1940 bear-dog
 Carnivora - Mustelidae
Mustelidae indet. Fischer 1817 mustelid carnivore
 Sirenia - Dugongidae
Metaxytherium cf. medium Desmarest 1822 dugong
 Proboscidea - Deinotheriidae
"Deinotherium bavaricum" = Prodeinotherium bavaricum
"Deinotherium bavaricum" = Prodeinotherium bavaricum von Meyer 1831 deinothere
 Proboscidea - Gomphotheriidae
Gomphotherium cf. angustidens Burmeister 1837 gomphothere
Reptilia
 Testudines - Testudinidae
Geochelone sp. Fitzinger 1835 turtle
Testudo sp. Linnaeus 1758 turtle
 Testudines - Geoemydidae
Ptychogaster sp. Pomel 1847 turtle
 Testudines - Trionychidae
Trionyx sp. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1809 softshell turtle
 Crocodylia -
Gavialosuchus sp. Toula and Kail 1885 crocodilian
Actinopteri
 Spariformes - Sparidae
Sparidae indet. Cuvier 1817
 Teleostei -
Perciformes indet. Bleeker 1859 perch-like fish