Renzidong: Early/Lower Pleistocene, China

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
unclassified
Beremandia fissidens
Cromeromys cf. gansunicus
Borsodia sp.
Vernaya sp.
Wushanomys cf. hypsodontus
Reptilia - Colubridae
cf. Elaphe sp. Wagler 1833
Mead et al. 2016
IVPP V20308. Most of a snake skeleton. The articulated snake skeleton contains 122 undamaged to nearly complete vertebrae, most with ribs set in life position (beginning with vertebra number 5).
Mammalia - Chiroptera - Hipposideridae
Hipposideros sp. Gray 1831
Mammalia - Chiroptera - Rhinolophidae
Rhinolophus cf. ferrumequinum (Schreber 1774)
Mammalia - Chiroptera - Vespertilionidae
Murina cf. aurata
Myotis sp. Kaup 1829
Mammalia - Proboscidea - Mammutidae
Sinomastodon intermedius Wang 2014
recombined as Sinomammut intermedius
Mammalia - Carnivora - Ursidae
Ailuropoda microta Pei 1962
Ursus cf. microdontus
Mammalia - Carnivora - Mustelidae
Mustela cf. altaica Pallas 1811
Martes pachygnatha
Martes anderssoni
Meles chiai
Mammalia - Carnivora - Canidae
Nyctereutes sp. Temminck 1839
Nyctereutes cf. sinensis Schlosser 1903
Mammalia - Carnivora - Hyaenidae
? Pachycrocuta licenti (Pei 1934)
Mammalia - Carnivora - Felidae
Megantereon sp. Croizet and Jobert 1828
    = Megantereon cf. megantereon Croizet and Jobert 1828
Liu 2005
Homotherium crenatidens Fabrini 1890
Paramachairodus sp. (Pilgrim 1913)
original and current combination Paramachaerodus
Felis cf. microtis
Lynx sp. Kerr 1792
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Equidae
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Chalicotheriidae
Nestoritherium sp. Kaup 1859
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
Dicerorhinus sp. Gloger 1841
Rhinoceros sinensis Owen 1870
see also Tong et al. 2002
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Tapiridae
Tapirus sanyuanensis Huang and Fang 1991
Mammalia - Suidae
Sus peii
Mammalia - Moschidae
Moschus sp. Linnaeus 1758
Mammalia - Cervidae
Metacervulus capreolinus
Cervavitus ultimus (Lin et al. 1978)
Cervus cf. philisi Mennecart et al. 2017
recombined as Metacervocerus philisi
Muntiacus nanus Teilhard de Chardin and Trassaert 1937
Cervus unicolor Kerr 1792
subgenus Rusa
Mammalia - Bovidae
Bibos sp. Hodgson 1837
Mammalia - Talpidae
Scaptochirus cf. primitivus
Talpa sp. Linnaeus 1758
Mammalia - Soricidae
Chimarrogale cf. himalayica
Soriculus cf. parva
Soriculus sp. Blyth 1845
more than one additional species
Anourosorex quadratidens
Sorex sp. Linnaeus 1758
more than one species
Blarinella cf. quadraticauda (Milne-Edwards 1972)
original and current combination Sorex quadraticauda
Mammalia - Lagomorpha - Leporidae
Hypolagus brachypus
Mammalia - Rodentia - Hystricidae
Hystrix magna
Mammalia - Rodentia
Typhlomys cf. intermedius
Mammalia - Rodentia - Spalacidae
Brachyrhizomys cf. shansius
Mammalia - Rodentia - Cricetidae
Kowalskia sp. Fahlbusch 1969
synonym of Neocricetodon
Cricetulus sp. Milne-Edwards 1867
Allocricetus ehiki
Mimomys cf. peii
Mammalia - Rodentia - Muridae
Chiropodomys sp. Peters 1868
Hapalomys sp. Blyth 1859
Micromys cf. minutis
Rattus cf. bowersi
Rattus sp. Fischer 1803
Apodemus cf. sylvaticus (Linnaeus 1758)
original and current combination Mus sylvaticus
Leopoldamys edwardsioides
Niviventer preconfuciannus
? Niviventer fulvescens
Apodemus dominans
Mammalia - Rodentia - Sciuridae
Trogopterus sp. Heude 1898
Petaurista cf. brachyodus
Sciurotamias cf. praecox
Mammalia - Primates - Cercopithecidae
Procynocephalus sp. Schlosser 1924
see common names

Geography
Country:China State/province:Anhui County:Fanchang
Coordinates: 31.1° North, 118.1° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:31.1° North, 117.8° East
Basis of coordinate:stated in text
Altitude:142 meters
Geographic resolution:small collection
Time
Period:Quaternary Epoch:Pleistocene
10 m.y. bin:Cenozoic 6
Key time interval:Early/Lower Pleistocene
Age range of interval:2.58000 - 0.77400 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Stratigraphic resolution:member
Stratigraphy comments: "The deposits in the cave measure more than 40 meters and can be divided in to two parts and 8 layers. Layers 1 - 7, which form the upper part, are mostly collapsed sediments from the walls and roof of the cave. The fossils were all found in these layers." (fossils are actually present in 2 - 7 but absent in 1; total thickness of 2 - 7 is 16.2 m)
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology:brown,red claystone
Secondary lithology: conglomeratic "limestone"
Lithology description: most layers are dark or reddish "brown mild clay" with "brecciated limestone gravel"; layers 6 and 7 are "Brownish maroon sandy clay" with "brecciated limestone"
Environment:cave
Geology comments: "formed in a large karstic fissure... collapses... (happened at least three times), there also occasional, seasonal abrupt floods."
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body
Size of fossils:macrofossils,mesofossils
Collection methods and comments
Collection methods:selective quarrying,field collection
Collection size:5000 specimens
Reason for describing collection:general faunal/floral analysis
Museum repositories:IVPP
Collection method comments: "more than 1500 pieces of vertebrate fossils" collected in 1998 and "more than 3000 pieces" in 1999, for a total of "more than 5000 specimens"
Taxonomic list comments:"turtles, snakes, birds" are omitted
Metadata
Also known as:Renzi Cave; Huaguoshandong
Database number:68380
Authorizer:J. Alroy, G. Benevento Enterer:J. Alroy, G. Benevento
Modifier:J. Alroy Research group:vertebrate
Created:2007-01-18 17:35:38 Last modified:2007-01-19 00:02:52
Access level:the public Released:2007-01-18 17:35:38
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:
19685. C. Jin, W. Dong, J.-y. Liu, G.-b. Wei, Q.-q. Xu, J.-j. Zheng, L.-t. Zheng, L.-g. Han, and F.-z. Wang. 2000. A preliminary study of the early Pleistocene deposits and the mammalian fauna from the Renzi Cave, Fancheng, Anhui, China. Acta Anthropologica Sinica 19(supplement):235-245 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy]

Secondary references:

19684 C. Jin, L. Zheng, W. Dong, J. Liu, Q. Xu and L. Han. 2000. The early Pleistocene deposits and mammalian fauna from Renzidong, Fanchang, Anhui Province, China. Acta Anthropologica Sinica 19(3):184-198 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy]
19687 J.-Y. Liu. 2005. Megantereon fossil remains from Renzidong Cave, Fanchang County, Anhui Province. Vertebrata PalAsiatica 43(2):122-134 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy/J. Alroy]
70716 J. I. Mead, D. Moscato, B. W. Schubert, C. Jin, G. Wei, C. Sun, and L. Zheng. 2016. Early Pleistocene snake (Squamata, Reptilia) skeleton from Renzidong Cave, Anhui, China. Historical Biology 28(1-2):208-214 [G. Benevento/G. Benevento]
196865% 58540H. Tong, J. Liu, and L. Han. 2002. On fossil remains of Early Pleistocene tapir (Perissodactyla, Mammalia) from Fanchang, Anhui. Chinese Science Bulletin 47(7):586-590 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy/J. Alroy]