Original paper
The pika Prolagus (Ochotonidae, Lagomorpha, Mammalia) in the late Middle Miocene fauna from Gratkorn (Styrian Basin, Austria)
Prieto, Jérôme; Angelone, Chiara; Gross, Martin; Böhme, Madelaine
Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Abhandlungen Band 263 Heft 2 (2012), p. 111 - 118
published: Feb 1, 2012
DOI: 10.1127/0077-7749/2012/0215
ArtNo. ESP155026302002, Price: 29.00 €
Abstract
Although the importance of pikas (Ochotonidae, Lagomorpha, Mammalia) in biostratigraphic and palaeoecologic purposes comes more and more to light, this family continues to be understudied in Austria and Central Europe in general. Two mandibles of the widespread and longliving genus Prolagus have been recently excavated from the new fossil locality Gratkorn. They are ascribed to Prolagus oeningensis, and represent the youngest occurrence of the genus in the Styrian Basin at around 12-12.2 Ma (Late Sarmatian s. str., late Middle Miocene). This discovery completes our knowledge on ochotonid evolution in the peri-Paratethyan area leading to hypothesize differences in the evolutionary history of P. oeningensis in central-eastern and Western Europe.
Keywords
prolagus oeningensis • ochotonidae • late sarmatian s. str • small mammals