St. Vallier (Pleistocene of France)

Also known as Saint Vallier

Where: Rhone-Alpes, France (45.2° N, 4.8° E: paleocoordinates 45.2° N, 4.6° E)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

When: MN 17 (2.6 - 1.8 Ma)

• Late Pliocene, Villafranchian, Villanyian.

Environment/lithology: cave

Size classes: macrofossils, microfossils

Preservation: bone collector

Collection methods: bulk,

• The first mention of a site at St Vallier is in 1855 in papers held at Lyon Museum. The data entered here are from the full 1954 site report, most specimens are held in Lyon, a few are kept in Basle.

Primary reference: M. J. Viret, E. Schmid, and C. Kraehenbuehl. 1954. Le Loess a bancs durcis de Saint-Vallier (Drome) et sa faune de Mammiferes Villafranchiens. Nouvelles Archives du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle de Lyon 4:1-197 [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/H. O'Regan]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 47150: authorized by Alan Turner, entered by Hannah O'Regan on 16.02.2005

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• Most cranial and dental specimens are illustrated in the plates of the 1954 volume. Numbers of specimens have been pieced together from the text and plates and they are likely to under-estimate the true numbers of each species.
unclassified
  -
? Otogyps sp.
1 distal ulna fragment (QSV 1037).
Mammalia
 Rodentia - Hystricidae
Hystrix refossa porcupine
2 maxilla fragments (QSV 658, 659), 2 isolated incisors (QSV 656, 657).
 Rodentia - Castoridae
"Castor plicidens" = Castor fiber
"Castor plicidens" = Castor fiber Linnaeus 1758 Eurasian beaver
1 right maxilla fragment with P4-M2 (QSV 650), ! upper left incisor (QSV 651), 1 cranium with associated mandibles (QSV 652a-c).,
 Rodentia - Cricetidae
Mimomys pliocaenicus Forsyth Major 1889 vole
1 mandible fragment, 1 mandible (QSV 660), 1 cranium (QSV 661).
 Lagomorpha - Leporidae
Oryctolagus lacosti rabbit
3 incomplete crania (QSV 666, 667, 668), 6 mandibles (QSV 669-674), 1 edentulous 'pont'' (QSV 679), 1 frontal fragment (QSV 680), 1 premaxilla with incisors (QSV 678), 1 left tibia (QSV 675), 1 left astragalus (676), 1 right calcaneum (QSV 677), 1 left 2nd metatarsal, 1 left 3rd metatarsal, 1 right 3rd metatarsal.
 Primates - Cercopithecidae
Macaca sp.1 Lacépède 1799 macaque
1 upper left incisor.
 Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
"Dicerorhinus etruscus" = Stephanorhinus etruscus
"Dicerorhinus etruscus" = Stephanorhinus etruscus Falconer 1868 rhinoceros
common. cranium, mandible and many pieces of postcrania.
 Perissodactyla - Equidae
"Equus (Hippotigris) stenonis" = Allohippus stenonis
"Equus (Hippotigris) stenonis" = Allohippus stenonis Cocchi 1867 horse
8 crania and many other specimens, very common in the assemblage.
 Artiodactyla - Cervidae
"aff. Cervus philisi" = Metacervocerus philisi1 Mennecart et al. 2017 deer
antlers, crania and mandibles, many teeth, some postcrania.
"Cervus ramosus" = Croizetoceros ramosus Croizet and Jobert 1828 deer
1 juvenile cranium (QSV 700), antler fragments (at least 2 (QSV 707 and 708)) and at least 1 frontal with antlers (QSV 703). Some postcrania.
Cervus (Euctenoceros) senezensis deer
antlers, crania and postcrania.
 Artiodactyla - Bovidae
Gazellospira torticornis1 antelope
Identified and figured in Heintz 1966.
Leptobos stenometopon antelope
crania and postcrania, inclding 3 crania.
Gallogoral meneghinii1 antelope
Identified and figured by Heintz, 1964 - a right mandible in Lyon Museum (QSV 849). An upper M1 (Lyon), plus 2 phalanges (St. V. 473 and 474, Basle) figured in Heintz 1966.
 Carnivora - Felidae
Megantereon megantereon Croizet and Jobert 1828 cat
2 crania (QSV 145, 1150), 1 upper canine (QSV 147), some poastcranial material, in particular a radius in Basle (St. V. 774)
Homotherium sainzelli1 Aymard 1853 cat
1 astragalus, 1 upper milk dentition (QSV 140), 1 posterior part of the skull (QSV 141).
Acinonyx pardinensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 cheetah
1 cranium with both mandibles in association (QSV 112), 1 cranial fragment (QSV 116), 3 mandibles (QSV 110, 113, 117), 1 distal humerus (QSV 265), 1 calcaneum (QSV 122), 1 maxilla fragment from Bale Museum (st. V.)
Panthera schaubi n. sp. cat
1 cranium, 2 mandibles. (QSV 136, 137, 138).
"Felis (Lynx) issiodorensis" = Lynx issiodorensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 lynx
5 mandibles (QSV 130, 1131, 1132 , 1135, Basle 1138), 5 Maxillae (QSV 125, 126, 1133, 1136, Basle 1952),
 Carnivora - Hyaenidae
"Euryboas lunensis" = Chasmaporthetes lunensis Del Campana 1914 hyaena
1 cranium (QSV 53) , 1 mandible (QSV 25), 1 lower M1 (QSV 52), 1 lower P4 (QSV 51).
Crocuta perrieri spotted hyaena
Fairly common. Many crania, mandibles and a variety of juvenile dentition.
 Carnivora - Mustelidae
Enhydrictis ardea Bravard 1828 mustelid carnivore
1 cranium (QSV 150), 1 mandible (QSV 149), 1 left tibia (QSV 148).
Lutra cf. bravardi Pomel 1843 otter
1 left tibia (Basle ST-V. 306).
Meles thorali Viret 1951 badger
2 specimens (QSV 1, QSV 2 - type specimen), 1 mandible (ST.V 303, Basle) at least 7 upper M1s (QSV no number, 18, 1056, 3, 7, 1052, 1055) at least 5 lower M1s (QSV 8, 13, 16, 19, 1051), some postcrania.
Baranogale antiqua1 Pomel 1864 mustelid carnivore
3 crania (QSV 56 (incomplete)), (QSV 57 - with mandibles), (QSV 58, fragmentary, no teeth).
 Carnivora - Ursidae
Ursus etruscus Cuvier 1823 bear
MNI based on cranial fragments. Many crania, 1 radius, 2 ulnae, 1 tibia, 3 humerii (prox. missing), 1 calcaneum and 1 astragaus (both left), 1 3rd metatarsal, 1 4th metatarsal, 1 5th metatarsal, 1 3rd phalange.
 Carnivora - Canidae
Nyctereutes vulpinus n. sp.2 Soria and Aguirre 1976 raccoon dog
in Viret 1948. 3 crania, 2 mandibles, 1 right humerus (prox. missing), 1 left radius, 1 left ulna, 1 right back fot (metatarsals to phalanges, including sesamoids), 1 left back foot (calcaneum, astragalus, cuboid and scaphoid), 1 left calcaneum and cuboid, 1 right astragalus, 1 axis, 1 atlas, 1 left 1st metacarpal with two phalanges.
Vulpes alopecoides Forsyth Major 1877 fox
1 maxilla fragment with P3-M2 (QSV 1110).
 Proboscidea - Gomphotheriidae
Anancus arvernensis Croizet and Jobert 1828 gomphothere
1 molar, 1 unciform (QSV 154), 1 trapezoid (QSV 1213), 3 tibiae (QSV 160, 1210, 1211), 1 astragalus, 1 calcaneum, 1 navicular, 1 cuboid, 2 cuneiforms. (all others from one foot, QSV 1210 c-h)
 Proboscidea - Elephantidae
"Elephas (Archidiskodon) meridionalis" = Mammuthus meridionalis
"Elephas (Archidiskodon) meridionalis" = Mammuthus meridionalis Nesti 1825 mammoth
Isolated teeth, 1 trapezoid (QSV 1200), 1 magnum (QSV 1201), 1 pyramidal (QSV 173), 1 tibia (QSV 1202a).
Aves
 Accipitriformes - Accipitridae
Aquila sp. Linnaeus 1758 eagle
1 left distal femur (QSV 1036), 1 right metacarpus in Basle, 1 first phalange from the second digit.
 Passeriformes - Corvidae
Corvus ? hungaricus Lambrecht 1915 crow
Corvus sp. (C. hungaricus Lambrecht?). 1 left humerus 9QSV 1031), 1 right tarsometatarsus (QSV 1038, Basle), 1 femur fragment.
 Anseriformes - Anatidae
Cygnus sp. Garsault 1764 swan
1 incomplete radius in Basle.
 Ciconiiformes - Ciconiidae
Ciconia sp. Brisson 1760 stork
1 right metacarpus (QSV 1038).
 Galliformes - Phasianidae
? Gallus bravardi Gervais 1852 junglefowl
2 fragments of a left humerus (QSV 1032), 1 left proximal femur fragment (QSV 1033), 1 right coracoid (QSV 1034).