Les Alleveys (Eocene of Switzerland)

Where: Canton de Vaud, Switzerland (46.7° N, 6.5° E: paleocoordinates 44.7° N, 2.5° E)

• coordinate estimated from map

• small collection-level geographic resolution

When: MP 16 other zone, Bartonian (41.3 - 38.0 Ma)

• "In terms of Paleogene Mammalian Reference Levels (MP), Les Alleveys is slightly older than Robiac, the reference locality for MP16. In practice, all Bartonian (although not all Robiacian) European mammal localities are regularly referred to MP16"

Environment/lithology: fissure fill; limestone

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Collected by M. Weidmann in 1986

Collection methods: bulk, sieve,

• In 1852, S. Chavannes and A. Morlot discovered and collected from a horizontal karstic fissure in the quarry (...) It was from these coarse layers that almost all the fossils were collected (...) This fauna, referred to as “Les Alleveys 1852”, was revised by Hooker & Weidmann (2000).

•In 1986, in what we judge to be a continuation of the 1852 fissure, close to the original site, one of us (MW) extracted nearly 500 kg of sediment from the fissure (Fig. 1e), emptying it completely (...) It is this fauna, referred to here as “Les Alleveys 1986”, the study of whose rodents forms the subject matter of this paper.(From Hooker & Weidmann, 2007)

Primary reference: J. J. Hooker and M. Weidmann. 2007. A diverse rodent fauna from the middle Bartonian (Eocene) of Les Alleveys, Switzerland: snapshot of the early theridomyid radiation. Swiss journal of Geosciences 100:469-493 [R. Butler/J. Benito Moreno]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 182607: authorized by Richard Butler, entered by Juan Benito Moreno on 10.11.2016, edited by Philip Mannion

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

unclassified
  -
Amphibia
 Salientia -
Thaumastosaurus bottii2 De Stefano 1903 frog
MGL specimens
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Theridomyidae
Remys major1 Comte et al. 2012 rodent
Two right M1/2s (MGL.47601, 47472) from Les Alleveys 1986.
Pseudoltinomys aff. crebrum Peláez-Campomanes 1996 rodent
Right P4 (MGL.47591); doubtfully left P4 (MGL.47560); right M3 (MGL.47552); 2 left M1/2s (MGL.47437, 47434), from Les Alleveys 1986.
Paradelomys sp. Thaler 1966 rodent
4 right P4s (MGL.47486, 47550, 47594, 47608), 9 M1/2s (MGL.47399, 47428, 47435, 47497, 47547, 47556, 47562, 47574, 47618), 3 M3s (MGL.47565, 47571, 47575), 2 P4s (MGL.47436, 47598), 9 M1/2s (MGL.47439, 47483, 47546, 47549, 47559, 47570, 47588, 47592, 47609), 2 left M3s (MGL.47561, 47604), from Les Alleveys 1986.
Estellomys ibericus Thaler 1966 rodent
3 P4s (MGL.47558, 47619, 47623), 7 M1/2s (MGL. 47473, 47569, 47578, 47589, 47590, 47593, 47616), 4 M3s (MGL.47499, 47551, 47555, 47614), right P4 (MGL.47418), 7 M1/2s (MGL.47431, 47462, 47545, 47553, 47577, 47613, 47620), M3 (MGL.47404); from Les Alleveys 1986.
Tardenomys chartreuvensis1 Comte et al. 2012 rodent
two right M1/2 s (MGL.47599, 47557); right M3 (MGL.47624); from Les Alleveys 1986.
Elfomys tobieni1 Thaler 1966 rodent
Elfomys engesseri n. sp. Hooker and Weidmann 2007 rodent
Holotype. – Right M1/2 (MGL.47580) from Les Alleveys 1986. Paratypes. – Right DP4 (MGL.47500); 3 P4s (MGL.47392, 47405, 47595); 12 M1/2s (MGL.47425, 47438, 47491, 47494, 47504, 47554, 47579, 47582, 47584, 47587, 47607, 47617); 2 M3s (MGL.47466, 47600); 5 P4s (MGL.47501, 47564, 47585, 47597, 47621); left dentary fragment with M1-3 (MGL.47440); 12 M1/2s (MGL.47403, 47422, 47432, 47455, 47474, 47493, 47498, 47563, 47567, 47568, 47576, 47586); 3 M3s (MGL.47470, 47581, 47622); from Les Alleveys 1986.
Suevosciurus ? sp. Dehm 1937 rodent
Right M3 (MGL.47572); right M1/2 (MGL.47469); from Les Alleveys 1986
Theridomyinae indet. Alston 1876 rodent
Right P4 (MGL.47419) from Les Alleveys 1986.
Patriotheridomys ? sp. Vianey-Liaud 1974 rodent
Left DP4 (MGL.47402) from Les Alleveys 1986.
 Rodentia - Pseudosciuridae
Sciuroides siderolithicus Picted and Humbert 1869 rodent
Left DP4 (MGL.47049) from Les Alleveys 1852; Two right M1/2 (MGL.47496, 47625); right P4 (MGL.47487); right M1/2 (MGL.47482); from Les Alleveys 1986
 Primates - Omomyidae
Pseudoloris parvulus Filhol 1890 tarsier
Necrolemur antiquus Filhol 1873 tarsier
 Theriamorpha - Nyctitheriidae
Nyctitheriidae indet. Simpson 1928 placental
 Chiroptera - Hipposideridae
"Pseudorhinolophus morloti" = Hipposideros (Pseudorhinolophus)
"Pseudorhinolophus morloti" = Hipposideros (Pseudorhinolophus) roundleaf bat
 Chiroptera - Vespertilionidae
Stehlinia minor vesper bat
 Chiroptera - Emballonuridae
Vespertiliavus sp. Schlosser 1877 sac-winged bat
 Chiroptera - Molossidae
Cuvierimops ? sp. Legendre and Sigé 1983 free-tailed bat
 Artiodactyla - Tapirulidae
Tapirulus sp. Gervais 1850 even-toed ungulate
 Artiodactyla - Mixtotheriidae
Mixtotherium lavergnense Sudre 1977 even-toed ungulate
 Artiodactyla - Amphimerycidae
Pseudamphimeryx sp. Stehlin 1919 even-toed ungulate
 Artiodactyla - Xiphodontidae
Dichodon sp. Owen even-toed ungulate
Haplomeryx sp. Schlosser 1886 even-toed ungulate
 Macroscelidea - Amphilemuridae
Gesneropithex sp. Hürzeler 1946 elephant shrew
 Theriamorpha - Herpetotheriidae
Amphiperatherium cf. minutum Aymard 1846 marsupial
Amphiperatherium fontense Crochet 1979 marsupial