The Early Pleistocene Carnivoran of Coste San Giacomo (Anagni, Central Italy): Biochronological Implications
Luca Bellucci,
Fabio Bona,
Jacopo Conti,
Beniamino Mecozzi,
Flavia Strani,
Raffaele Sardella
Affiliations
Luca Bellucci
Museo di Geologia e Paleontologia, Sistema Museale di Ateneo, Università di Firenze, via Giorgio La Pira 4, I-50121 Firenze, Italy
Fabio Bona
Museo Civico dei Fossili di Besano, via Prestini 5, I-21050 Besano, Italy
Jacopo Conti
Polo Museale, Sapienza, Università di Roma, p.le Aldo Moro 5, I-00185 Roma, Italy
Beniamino Mecozzi
Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Sapienza, Università di Roma, p.le Aldo Moro 5, I-00185 Roma, Italy
Flavia Strani
Departamento de Ciencias de La Tierra, Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA), Universidad de Zaragoza, ES-50009 Zaragoza, Spain
Raffaele Sardella
Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Sapienza, Università di Roma, p.le Aldo Moro 5, I-00185 Roma, Italy
Coste San Giacomo (CSG) represents a significant paleontological site to investigate the faunal and environmental changes that occurred in Mediterranean Europe during the Early Pleistocene. In this work, we described for the first time the Carnivoran assemblage. We ascribed the fossil remains to the following taxa: Ursus sp., Homotherium latidens, Canis etruscus, Pliocrocuta perrieri, Martellictis ardea and Vulpes alopecoides. Considering the value of the carnivoran taxa here identified, we discuss their particular biochronological significance, since the CSG site records the last occurrence of P. perrieri and the first occurrences of H. latidens, C. etruscus, M. ardea and V. alopecoides for the Italian Peninsula. These results will allow us to improve the data of the biochronological scheme of the Villafranchian European Land Mammal Age, recognizing the earliest dispersals and latest occurrences across Europe.
