Langenau 1 (Miocene of Germany)

Where: Baden-Württemberg, Germany (48.5° N, 10.1° E: paleocoordinates 48.7° N, 8.4° E)

• coordinate stated in text

• outcrop-level geographic resolution

When: Kirchberg beds Member (Brackwater Molasse Formation), Burdigalian (20.4 - 16.0 Ma)

• lithostratigraphy is according to Böttcher (1987, Stuttg. Beitr. Naturk. B 131)

•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: paralic; pebbly, gray, yellow, sandy marl and unlithified, pyritic, black, gray, blue mudstone

• The "sandwiching" of the dark mudstones (the Kirchberg beds proper) between the coarse grained beds (so called "Jura-Nagelfluh") represents the intertonguing of deposits of a brackish water body (the so called "Graupensand Meer", "pearl barley sand sea") with sediments of a gravel bed river which came from NW, from the Swabian Alb (Böttcher, 1987).
• The deepest part of the fossiliferous horizon is composed of yellowish sandy to gravely (limestone gravel, contains fairly large boulders) marls ("Gelbe Schicht", "yellow layer"), overlain by bluish-gray to black unlithified mudstones ("Schwarze Schicht", "black layer") forming gutter- or channel-like structures at their base which cut down into the "yellow layer". Further up-section again yellowish-gray sandy marls with individual gravely layers occur ("Obere Fundstelle", "upper site").

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

• Several thousands of vertebrate remains (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) have been recovered from the three fossiliferous beds. Mammals are mainly represented by large animals (individual teeth and bones, whole skulls and mandibles as well as larger portions of the skeleton, or, in case of Deinotherium, whole skeletons). Numerous remains of micromammals have been obtained by screenwashing of bulk samples (a total of 13,500 kg). Langenau 1 produced a total of:

•3 complete and partial skeletons

•about 90 skulls and jaw fragments

•160 individual teeth of large mammals

•1800 bone remains of large mammals

•1000 teeth and bone remains of small mammals

Collected by SMNS in 1976; reposited in the BSP, SMNS

Collection methods: bulk, sieve,

• The fossils have been recovered during a three-month rescue excavation in the summer of 1976.

Primary reference: E.P.J. Heizmann, L. Ginsburg, and C. Bulot. 1980. Prosansanosmilus peregrinus, ein neuer machairodontider Felide aus dem Miocän Deutschlands und Frankreichs. Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Ser. B. 58:1-27 [L. van den Hoek Ostende/L. van den Hoek Ostende]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 69098: authorized by Lars van den Hoek Ostende, entered by Lars van den Hoek Ostende on 18.02.2007, edited by Mark Uhen, Terri Cleary and David Nicholson

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• The locality also yielded many plants and authochthonous invertebrates (e.g. cardiid pelecypods).
unclassified
  -
Amphibia
 Salientia - Ranidae
"Rana ridibunda" = Pelophylax ridibunda3
"Rana ridibunda" = Pelophylax ridibunda3 Pallas 1771 frog
 Salientia -
Latonia gigantea3 Lartet 1851 frog
 Caudata - Urodela
Andrias scheuchzeri3 Tschudi 1837 giant salamander
Chelotriton sp.3 Pomel 1853 newt
Mioproteus caucasicus3 Estes and Darevsky 1978 mudpuppy
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Gliridae
Pseudodryomys sp. de Bruijn 1966 dormouse
Pseudodryomys ibericus3 de Bruijn 1966 dormouse
Miodyromys sp.3 Kretzoi 1943 dormouse
originally entered as "Miodryomys sp."
Bransatoglis sp. Hugueney 1967 dormouse
Glirudinus sp.3 de Bruijn 1966 dormouse
 Rodentia - Sciuridae
Spermophilinus aff. bredai3 von Meyer 1848 squirrel
Heteroxerus sp. Stehlin and Schaub 1951 squirrel
 Rodentia - Eomyidae
Keramidomys cf. thaleri3 Hugueney and Mein 1968 rodent
Ligerimys sp. Schaub 1951 rodent
 Rodentia - Castoridae
Steneofiber sp. Geoffroy 1833 beaver
small form
Steneofiber depereti Mayet 1908 beaver
 Rodentia - Cricetidae
Democricetodon franconicus Fahlbusch 1966 mouse
Democricetodon aff. franconicus3 Fahlbusch 1966 mouse
cf. Megacricetodon sp.3 Fahlbusch 1964 mouse
large form
Melissiodon dominans Dehm 1950 mouse
Eumyarion cf. weinfurteri Schaub and Zapfe 1953 mouse
 Lagomorpha - Ochotonidae
Lagopsis sp. Schlosser 1894 pika
Prolagus sp. Pomel 1853 pika
Prolagus oeningensis3 König 1825 pika
cf. Amphilagus sp.3 Tobien 1974 pika
 Theriamorpha - Dimylidae
Dimylidae indet. Schlosser 1887 placental
 Theriamorpha - Erinaceidae
Galerix sp. Pomel 1848 hedgehog
Galerix cf. symeonidisi3 Doukas 1986 hedgehog
 Theriamorpha - Soricidae
Soricidae indet. Fischer 1814 shrew
Crocidosoricinae indet.3 Reumer 1987 shrew
 Theriamorpha - Plesiosoricidae
Plesiosorex sp. Pomel 1848 placental
Plesiosorex germanicus3 Seemann 1938 placental
 Theriamorpha - Talpidae
Talpidae indet. Fischer de Waldheim 1817 mole
Talpinae indet.3 Fisher von Waldheim 1817 mole
Proscapanus cf. intercedens3 Ziegler 1985 mole
cf. Scaptonyx sp.3 Milne-Edwards 1872 Long-tailed mole
Mygalea cf. antiqua3 Pomel 1848 mole
 Chiroptera - Vespertilionidae
Vespertilionidae indet.3 Gray 1821 vesper bat
cf. Eptesicus aurelianensis3 Ziegler 1993 house bat
 Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
Plesiaceratherium lumiarense3 Antunes and Ginsburg 1983 rhinoceros
Prosantorhinus sp. Heissig 1973 rhinoceros
Prosantorhinus douvillei3 Osborn 1902 rhinoceros
Brachypotherium sp. Roger 1904 rhinoceros
cf. Brachypotherium brachypus3 Lartet 1848 rhinoceros
generic name originally entered as "Brachyptherium"
Aceratherium sp. Kaup 1834 rhinoceros
 Perissodactyla - Equidae
Anchitherium aurelianense Cuvier 1825 anchitheriine horse
 Artiodactyla - Suidae
? Hyotherium sp. von Meyer 1834 pig
cf. Hyotherium sp.3 von Meyer 1834 pig
 Artiodactyla - Cainotheriidae
Cainotherium sp. Bravard 1828 even-toed ungulate
Cainotherium cf. bavaricum3 Berger 1959 even-toed ungulate
 Artiodactyla -
Amphimoschus pontileviensis Bourgeois 1873 ruminant
 Artiodactyla - Tragulidae
Dorcatherium naui3 Kaup 1833 chevrotain
Dorcatherium crassum Lartet 1851 chevrotain
 Artiodactyla - Lagomerycidae
Lagomeryx ruetimeyeri3 Thenius 1949 ruminant
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
Procervulus cf. dichotomus Gervais 1849 deer
Procervulus dichotomus3 Gervais 1849 deer
 Artiodactyla - Bovidae
cf. Eotragus sp. Pilgrim 1939 antelope
Eotragus sp.3 Pilgrim 1939 antelope
 Placentalia -
Carnivora indet.3 Bowdich 1821 carnivoran
 Carnivora - Nimravidae
Prosansanosmilus peregrinus n. sp. Heizmann et al. 1980 false sabre-tooth
Prosansanosmilus peregrinus3 Heizmann et al. 1980 false sabre-tooth
 Carnivora - Felidae
Pseudaelurus romieviensis Roman and Viret 1934 cat
 Carnivora - Hyaenidae
Protictitherium gaillardi Forsyth Major 1903 hyaena
 Carnivora - Amphicyonidae
Amphicyonidae indet.3 Haeckel 1886 bear-dog
Amphicyon sp. Lartet 1836 bear-dog
Amphicyon giganteus Schinz 1825 bear-dog
 Carnivora - Mustelidae
Mustelidae indet.3 Fischer 1817 mustelid carnivore
Ischyrictis sp. Helbing 1930 mustelid carnivore
 Proboscidea - Deinotheriidae
"Deinotherium bavaricum" = Prodeinotherium bavaricum
"Deinotherium bavaricum" = Prodeinotherium bavaricum von Meyer 1831 deinothere
 Proboscidea - Gomphotheriidae
Gomphotherium angustidens Burmeister 1837 gomphothere
 Theriamorpha - Herpetotheriidae
Amphiperatherium frequens3 von Meyer 1846 marsupial
Reptilia
 Testudines - Chelydridae
Chelydropsis sp.3 Peters 1868 turtle
 Testudines - Testudinidae
Geochelone sp.3 Fitzinger 1835 turtle
originally entered as "Geocheone sp."
Testudo sp.3 Linnaeus 1758 turtle
 Testudines - Geoemydidae
Mauremys sarmatica2 Purschke 1885 pond turtle
SMNS 53450, 80002, 80576
Ocadia sp.3 Gray 1870 turtle
 Testudines - Trionychidae
Trionyx sp.3 Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1809 softshell turtle
 Squamata - Crotalidae
Vipera sp.3 Laurenti 1768 pit viper
"'Oriental vipers' complex", specimen figured in Szyndlar & Rage (1999): SMNS 53915
 Squamata - Colubridae
Coluber caspioides3 Szyndlar and Schleich 1993 racer
Palaeonatrix sp.3 Szyndlar 1982 colubrid snake
 Squamata - Lacertidae
Lacerta sp.3 Linnaeus 1758 squamates
 Squamata - Chamaeleonidae
Chamaeleonidae "indet. 1"1 Gray 1825 chameleon
SMNS 80621, fragment of right maxilla and posterior region of left maxilla
Chamaeleo pfeili3 Schleich 1984 chameleon
Chamaeleo cf. caroliquarti3 Moody and Roček 1980 chameleon
 Squamata - Anguidae
Ophisaurus sp.3 Daudin 1803 glass lizard
 Crocodylia -
Diplocynodon sp.3 Pomel 1847 crocodilian
Aves
  -
Aves indet.3 Linnaeus 1758 bird
Actinopteri
 Gobiiformes - Gobiidae
 Acanthomorphata - Sciaenidae
 Acanthomorphata - Ambassidae
 Atheriniformes - Atherinidae
 Anabantiformes - Channidae
Channa elliptica3 von Salis 1967 snakehead
 Cypriniformes - Cyprinidae
Rutilus sp.3 Rafinesque 1820 carp-like fish
 Clupeiformes - Clupeoidei