The mammalian faunas of the Paleogene of Europe and their localities are reviewed with comments on problems of European stratigraphy (epoch, stage and substage limits) and on the possibilities of faunal migrations. Radiometric dating is discussed. A stratigraphic scale for the Paleogene is presented, as well as a refined system of sequential faunal levels. 

The biometric and morphologie variability of the cheek teeth in the end-of-the-phylum species Lophiodon lautricense Noulet studied in this note, reposes on the observation of about 800 teeth. These were revealed to be little variable in absolute dimensions. The considerable morphologie variability in the upper premolars permitted the problem of the molarization process to be taken up. An hypothesis concerning the order of eruption of the cheek teeth is formulated based on an examination of a large number of milk dentitions. In conclusion, it is suggested that reservations be held on the value of dental characters classically used in systematics for the group under consideration. 

A late Pleistocene deposit of 60 species of vertebrates and 12 of invertebrates is described from Robinson Cave, Overton County, Tennessee, U.S.A. Forty-eight species of mammals are represented by at least 2,483 individuals; 10 % are extinct, 10 % occur in the state only as boreal relicts in the Great Smoky Mountains; 23 % no longer occur as far south as Tennessee; 57 % occur at or near the site today. Nínety-one percent of the Recent mammal species can be found living today in the Minnesota-Wisconsin area, approximately 10 degrees farther north. Fluorine analysis suggests a long period of accumulation. The following 10 mammalian species are recorded from Tennessee for the first time. Sorex arcticus, Microsorex hoyi, Citellus tridecemlineatus, Clethrionomys gapperi, Microtus pennsylvanicus, Synaptomys cooperi, Synaptomys borealis, Zapus nudsonius, Napaeozapus insignis, Martes americana. Six additional species are present as boreal relicts in the Great Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee but not at the site today : Sorex cinereus, Sorex dispar, Sorex palustris, Parascalops breweri, Glaucomys sabrinus, Mustela nivalis. Six forms are extinct: Canis dirus, Ursus americanus amplidens, Sangamona furtiva, Dasypus bellus, Mammut americanus,Megalonyx jeffersoni. Twenty-six additional species of mammals, all of the snails, birds, reptiles, and amphibians recovered from the fauna still inhabit the area today: The fauna is indicative of a cold-temperate climatic episode associated with the Wisconsin glaciation, but may be chronologically mixed. 

A peculiar new rodent, Malpaisomys insularis nov. gen., nov. sp., is described from subfossil deposits of the eastern Canary Islands. The species shows some highly specialized skull features although its molars exhibit a mixture of primitive and derived characters among which a partial stephanodonty is most notable. A comparison of the new rodent with several Miocene to Holocene Muridae shows that Malpaisomys possibly shares a common ancestor with Acomys and Uranomys. 

The Mont-Hélène's fauna [Pyrénées-Orientales, France], includes 15 species of rodents with a new one, Occitanomys montheleni n. sp. among the 9 species of the Murids which are listed. The uncommon Cricetid, Blancomys neglectus, is well represented in the fauna. Peculiarities of the population referred to Slephanomys cf. donnezaniare discussed. The locality a fissure filling may be the oldest one of Tabianian age known in Southern France. The diversity of the Murids gives evidence of a subtropical climate and of a diversified environment which may be linked to the spreading of the coastal plain following the filling up of the Roussillon Neogene Basin. 

Le présent volume est l'aboutissement d'un projet né il y a presque cinq ans. En décembre 1991, l'un d'entre nous (MG) prenait des contacts en vue de proposer un symposium sur les mammifères fossiles, dédié à D.E. Russell, dans le programme du 4e Congrès de la European Society for Evolutionary Biology. Ce congrès, baptisé "Evolution 93", devait se tenir à Montpellier en août 1993. Son Comité d'Organisation, animé par F. Catzeflis, recherchait des organisateurs de symposiums. L'idée fut acceptée avec enthousiasme par le second d'entre nous (PDG), et le titre de notre Symposium fut précisé: " Palaeobiology and Evolution of Early Cenozoic Mammals - A Symposium in Honor of D.E. Russell". Le projet fut formellement accepté par le Comité d'Organisation en avril 1992. 

Based on fossil discoveries and phylogenetic studies, an Eocene Asian origin for hystricognathous rodents and anthropoid primates has gained strong support in recent years. The two groups then invaded both Africa and South America, which promoted their evolutionary success. However, the fossil record has so far failed to constrain the nature and precise timing of these pivotal dispersal events. In Africa, given the apparent absence of hystricognaths and anthropoids in early to early middle Eocene localities, it is suggested that these mammal groups dispersed from Asia to Africa sometime during the middle Eocene. In this paper, we report the discovery of several isolated teeth of a rodent from a new vertebrate locality situated in central Tunisia (Djebel el Kébar, KEB-1), dating from the late middle Eocene (Bartonian, ~39.5 Myr). These fossils document a diminutive new species of Protophiomys (P. tunisiensis nov. sp.), a basal genus of hystricognathous rodents which is well known from several North African mammalian-bearing localities of the end of the Eocene. The teeth of P. tunisiensis display a suite of anatomical details comparable with those observed in the other species of the genus, but with a lesser degree of development. Such an apparent primitive evolutionary stage is corroborated by the greater antiquity of this Tunisian species. P. tunisiensis nov. sp. is so far the most ancient representative of hystricognaths in Africa. However, it can be expected that hystricognaths were already present on that landmass given the new data on early caviomorphs recently reported from South America (at ~41 Myr). The arrival of hystricognaths in Africa from South Asia certainly predates the depositional period of the Kébar sediments, but perhaps not by much time. 

The Tertiary of the Salla-Luribay basin consists of red beds affected by the second period of the andine compression, of Miocene ending age. The Tertiary layers are exposed at an approximate elevation of 3.500 to 4.000 meters. Two stratigraphic units can be distinguished in them: the Luribay conglomerates, in which vertical clifts result from erosion, and the Salla layers consisting mostly of consolidated clays. These clays are very fossiliferous and have furnished a rich vertebrate fauna which gave to R. Hoffstetter the possibility to establish the Oligocene age of these beds. Sediments of same age has been reported to be present in several other places of Bolivia, particularly near Lacayani, where have been collected highly hypsodont Rodents, different from those found in Salla-Luribay basin. 

The Palaeobatrachidae until now have not been reported from France. The present note makes known the discovery of very significant remains in three Tertiary localities of France: Cernay (late Paleocene), Laugnac (late Aquitanian) and Sansan (middle Helvetian). The osteologic characters, as well as the geographic and stratigraphic distribution of the family are re-stated with added details. The Palaeobatrachidae are a European family known from the late Jurassic of Catalonia (publication in course by J. Seiffert) to the Plio-Pleistocene (pre-Mindel) of Poland and Rumania. By their way of life and certain osteologic characters they are similar to the Pipidae, but they are distinguished by profound differences. It would be rash to include them in the Pipoidea or even in the Aglossa. They are apparently an independant group, essentially holarctic, which held in Europe a role equivalent to that played by the Pipidae south of Tethys. 

 A new genus of hystricognath rodent with two new species, Soriamys gaimanensis and Soriamys ganganensis, from the Colhuehuapian Age (Early Miocene), Sarmiento Formation, of Patagonia is described. The first species comes from the south barranca of the valley of Rio Chubut, near Gaiman locality (Chubut Province). It is known through a great number of dental remains in different stages of wear. The teeth are protohypsodont, with cement in the principal valleys. P4 are simpler, more oval inoutline and without a differentiated hypocone-hypoflexus. Upper molars are pentalophodont in early stages of wear and become bilobated in middle and advanced stages; M3 have a temporary third posterior lobe due to the maintenance of the braquiflexus on the posterior wall of the tooth. Lower teeth have a completely asymrnetrical pattern in relation to the uppers. The molars are trilophodont, with only one complex crest in the trigonid composed of the fusion of the anterolophid and mesolophid. The dp4 have a derived pentalophodont pattern due to the loss or fusion of the mesolophid and the development of an accessory transverse crest between the anterolophid and metalophid. The second species is known through a complete skull and jaw and other skull fragments with the dentition, proceeding from Pampa de Gan Gan, Chubut province. Respect to the first species, the teeth are higher crowned, with an earlier occlusal simplification and a third posterior lobe of M3 more developed and persistent. The skull and jaws show many chinchilloid characters, such as jugal bone with an ascending process, concave palate, very prominent dorsal shelf of the masseteric fossa, nasolachrymal duct opened laterally on the maxillary and very developed lateral mandibular fossa. Moreover, Soriamys is closely related to Cephalomys by sharing a similar asymmetric dental pattern and other dental and mandibular characters. These two genera constitute a natural group, the Cephalomyidae, with peculiar dental characters, like the asymmetric pattem of the upper and lower teeth; Cephalomyopsis, and probably Litadontomys, can be considered part of this group. Scotamys and Perimys constitute a distinct lineage (the Neopiblemidae or Perimyidae), more closely related to the chinchillids. Many characters shared by cephalomyids, eocardiids and caviids suggest a closer affinity between the Chinchilloidea and the Cavioiidea as a whole. Abrocoma shows also an asymmetric dental pattern and other chinchilloid features that suggest some degree of relationship with the cephalomyids, still not well determined. 

The analysis of oxygene isotope variations as well as paleobotanical data suggest that the Oligocene/Miocene boundary corresponds to a transitional period marked by floristical and climatic variations. During this period, the pyreneo-alpine tectonics has contribued to modify the geography and western Europe landscapes. Faunal changes (appearances, extinctions, migrations) are observed in different mammalian groups, notably in the rodents. A study of the evolutionary trends and patterns in paleogene rodents is involved for the period ranging from level MP 28 of the Late Oligocene to the Early Miocene, including the Oligo-Miocene boundary.
The Rodents fauna from the sites of Venelles (Bouches-du-Rhône District, France) and Thezels (Lot, France), previously mentionned in litterature, have been studied. The first description of the Eomyidae of La Milloque (MP 29) has been completed. These faunas are compared to those from various localities dating from the considered period. In La Milloque, a new representative of the Eomys species is described next to a form close to Rhodanomys hugueneyae ENGESSER, 1987. It is the Eomys milloquensis nov. sp., the likely descendant of Eomys quercyi COMTE & VIANEY-LIAUD, 1987. Two new species are also described in Thezels: Eucricetodon thezelensis nov. sp., resulting from a likely and local evolution of Eucricetodon praecursor (SCHAUB, 1925) from La Milloque, which, in the same geographic area, could be at the origin of Eucricetodon hesperius ENGESSER, 1985 from Paulhiac. Plesiosminthus admyarion nov. sp., quite distinct from Plesiosminthus schaubi VIRET, 1926, which announces Plesiosminthus myarion SCHAUB 1930. Venelles 'Plesiosminthus schaubi population is considered as a sub-species, named Plesiosminthus schaubi meridionalis nov. subsp. New phylogenetic patterns are proposed. Among the Eomyidae, a quantification of various features of the M1-2/ crown (hypsodonty, degree of abrasion, occlusal angle, state of development of the I and V anticlines), and a comparison with the occlusal diagram of the other teeth among various other populations allows a more efficient separation of Eomys and Rhodanomys genera. In Western Europe, and within this period, it finally does not seem possible to gradually connect the genus Eomys to the genus Rhodanomys. The evolution of the Eomys quercyi - milloquensis lineage seems to underline a similar evolution to that which may have led from the Eomys to the Rhodanomys form. The latter which appears totally accomplished at level MP 29 of the Oligocene is considered as an immigrant. If we compare the most representative species of the Venelles, Thezels, and Coderet sites, (i.e. Rhodanomys, Eucricetodon, Adelomyarion, Peridyromys, Plesíosminthus), it becomes impossible to confirm their biochronological separation. The noticeable differences between the populations may be interpreted as geographical variations. An explanation to these variations, and to fauna's evolution during the Late Oligocene and Early Miocene can be found in the environmental modifications, supported by isotopic, paleobotanical and sedimentologic analysis. A tentative reconstruction of the environments is attempted by the cenogram method. The analysis of the fluctuations of fauna's diversity shows variations which may be correlated to a drop in temperature at MP 29, during the Late Oligocene, followed by an increase in temperature along with an aridity phenomenom, during the basal Miocene (MN O).The confrontation of various methods give the opportunity of reconstituting and comparing the evolution of the environment of three sequences of sites chosen from different regions. Ecological affinities of various rodents' species are being examined. It is possible to consider that the integration of all the conclusions resulting from this study should lead to an explanation to the evolution of rodents for the period around the Oligocene-Miocene boundary. The site of Coderet- level 3- would be posterior to the latter, at the beginnig of the Miocene, and would mark the level MN 0 of the Aquitanian.

  

The anatomy of Norselaspis glacialis n.g., n.sp., a primitive kiaeraspidian from the Lower Devonian of Spitsbergen, is described on the basis of spécimens studied by grinding sections or prepared with dilute formic acid. This study yielded some new anatomical details, including the presence of a canal prolonging posteromedially the canal alloted to the facial nerve by Stensiö. This posterior prolongation of the « facial canal ›› into the posterolateral part of the labyrinth cavity is consistent with the hypothesis put forward by Allis, Lindström, Jefferies and Whiting, that this canal housed the glossopharyngeus nerve. Furthermore, in N. glacialis, the foramen usually referred to as the foramen for the œsophagus opens posteriorly into a cavity in the postbranchial wall, referred to here as the intramural cavity, and which is interpreted as having housed the heart. Consequently, the œsophagus probably accompanied the dorsal aorta through the aortic canal. Finally, the foramen generally interpreted as having transmitted the ventral afferent arterial trunk is here considered as having housed the hepatic vein, which emptied into the venous sinus of the heart. The ventral afferent arterial trunk may thus have passed through the former «œsophageal ›› foramen.
The problem of the position of the dorsal nerves in the Osteostraci is discussed, and it is suggested that the three foremost nerve canals opening into the oralobranchial cavity housed the maxillary ramus of the trigeminus, the facial nerve and the glossopharyngeus nerve respectively. The mandibular ramus of the trigeminus must have accompanied one of the two foremost nerves, but for the moment it is impossible to decide which.
The problem of the nature of the interbranchial crests of the Osteostraci is briefly discussed. Comparison with the branchial apparatus of the Petromyzontida does not support the hypothesis that the interbranchial crests are part of the branchial arches, incorporated into the endoskeletal shield. A different hypothesis is proposed, that the branchial skeleton of the Osteostraci was situated entirely inside the oralobranchial cavity, and was attached to the endoskeletal shield only by the ventromedial processes. The grooves classically allotted to the efferent branchial arteries would thus have housed extrabranchial arteries, branching off from the dorsal aorta, and irrigating the ventral branchial musculature.
A phylogeny and a classification of the kiaeraspidians are proposed. The evolution of this monophyletic group is characterized by, e.g., reduction of cornual processes, shortening of the abdominal division of the shield, subdivision of the lateral fields, and enlargement of the supraoral fossae.
The phylogenetic position of the kiaeraspidians within the Osteostraci remains uncertain. Their sister-group may be either the benneviaspidiens or the thyestidians, or Thyestes alone (in which case they would have to be included within the thyestidians). 

Situated in the Cape region of the Republic of South Africa (RSA), the paleontological site of Langebaanweg is dated to 5.1 Myr and is famous for having yielded an abundant vertebrate assemblage, including numerous rodent species from the Mio-Pliocene transition. Based on molar morphology and skull anatomy, the single Gerbillinae taxon identified at Langebaanweg and described in this paper is allocated to Desmodillus, which is a modern monotypic South African endemic genus. It is significant in being the oldest representative of the genus in Africa. We describe here a new species of this genus which is larger than the modern D. auricularis, but nevertheless retains some of its main characteristics, namely the shape of the maxilla and mandible, the presence of poorly fused alternating cusps, and no longitudinal crest. This taxon differs from modern South African Gerbilliscus representatives in some mandibular and maxillary characters, in the m1 prelobe cusp, and in having less fused cusps. Two fossil Gerbillinae discovered in the Upper Miocene of Africa and Asia, Abudhabia and Protatera, have been compared with the new species. We discuss their relationships with modern and Plio-pleistocene Gerbillinae and conclude that Abudhabia could be the sister taxon of Desmodillus and that around 6-5 Myr a vicariance event allowed Gerbillinae to diversify into modern Desmodillus in South Africa, and Gerbilliscus in East Africa. The murine/gerbilline ratio, which is a good indicator of rainfall, supports other proxies which suggest that at 5.1 Myr the climate in the Langebaanweg region was more humid than today. 

Two incomplete pelves of the giant bird Gargantuavis philoinos are described from Late Cretaceous deposits at Fox-Amphoux (Var, south-eastern France). They consist of synsacra with attached parts of the ilia. One of them has undergone considerable dorsoventral compression, which makes it very similar in appearance to the holotype pelvis of Gargantuavis philoinos from Campagne-sur-Aude (Aude, southern France). The second specimen has suffered some lateral distortion but is uncrushed dorsoventrally. Because of this, its avians characters (including an arched synsacrum and widespread pneumatisation) are especially clear. These new specimens confirm the avian nature of Gargantuavis and reveal new details about its pelvic anatomy, but provide little new evidence about its systematic position within Aves. The geographical distribution and general rarity of Gargantuavis are discussed.
  

The Caudata are known by two Salamandridae ; one of them is attributed to the genus Megalotriton. The Pelobatidae form the major part of the Anura ; a few bones indicate also the presence of Neobatrachia. 

The skull remains referred to the genus Palaeotherium are recorded and described. Biometrical tests are made to elucidate intrageneric allometric relationships and to allow comparisons with various other perissodactyls. Apart from the well known shortness of post canine diastems and deepness of the narial opening, the genus is characterized by a great lengthening of the splanchnocranium, owing to a spreading of the post-orbital facial region, by a reduced area of the eye-socket and by the prevalence of the temporal muscle with regard to the masseter; this original shape of the masticatory apparatus needs to be related to the morphology of the jugal teeth and particularly to their  asymmetrical semi-hypsodonty.
    These animals, whose running ability was evidently poor, appear to have been adapted to rather closed environments, feeding on relatively soft vegetable matter; olfactory sense was likely to play a leading part in interindividual and environmental relationships. Such evolutionary trends might explain the disappearance of most of them, as clirnatic conditions deteriorated at the end of the Eocene, before the "Grande Coupure" which affected mammalian faunas at that time.
      Although the present paper is not directly concemed with phylogenetics, it invalidates the supposed ancestor-descendant relationship between P. castrense and P. magnum, and it suggests a possible emergence of the P. medium lineage from a P. siderolithicum stock. Moreover, the structure of the post-orbital facial area allows the  erection of a new sub-genus, Franzenitherium, for the  species lautricense and duvali.

  

A lot of isolated teeth of a pteropodid fruit bat has been recently found within an assemblage of micromammals recovered from a karstic fissure filling named Lo Fournas-Il near the locality of Baixas (Pyrénées-Orientales, France). The fauna is Middle Miocene Serravallian age. The fossil fruit bat appears morphologically close to Rousettus; its size is that of a recent medium-sized fruit bat. While the fruit bats are very poorly known as fossils, this discovery shows that one of their recent types of dentitions was perfectly established by Middle Miocene times, and supports the presumed long geologic story of the suborder. One of the major invasions of the Old World fruit bats, supposed originated from SE Asia, reached up to Europe. A suborder unit is added to the miocene fauna of this continent. 

This study describes four taxa of Gliridae from the Oligocene mammal locality Gröben 3: Gliravus tenuis BAI-ILO, 1975, Bransatoglis micio (MISONNE, 1957), B. planus (BAHLO, 1975) and B. heissigi n. sp. Gliravus tenuis from Gröben 3 is somewhat more advanced than the type population found in Heimersheim. This confirms previous research suggesting that Gröben 3 should be dated earlier than Heimersheim (MP 24). The first documented occurrence of B. mício around level MP 24 was found in Gröben 3. An abundance of tooth material from B. planus in Gröben 3 makes it possible, for the first time, to observe evolutionary stages within this species from MP 21 until MP 28. B. heissigi n. sp. is restricted to level MP 24. This species is located between B. mísonnei (MP 20 - 23) and Microdyromys praemurinus (MP 25 - 28). Within the lineage Bransatoglis bahloi - B. misonnei - B. heissigi, a decrease in size is noticeable.

  

Previous chronological arrangements of South American Quaternary land mammal faunas are appraised on the basis of current geological and paleontological data. Three South American late Pliocene-Pleistocene land mammal ages are conventionally recognized, from oldest to youngest, the Uquian, Ensenadan, and Lujanian ; all are defined on Argentine faunas.

     The Uquian is based fundamentally and historically on the fauna from the Uquía Formation in Jujuy Province, northwestern Argentina. Important known formations in Argentina yielding Uquian Age faunas include the sub-surface Puelche Formation (or Puelchense) near the city of Buenos Aires, and the Barranca de Los Lobos and Vorohué Formations between Mar del Plata and Miramar, Buenos Aires Province. A tentative subdivision is propos-ed for the Uquian into three subages based on knowledge of the Mar del Plata-Miramar sequence, from oldest to youngest, the Barrancalobian, Vorohuean, and Sanandresian. In Argentina the Uquian is presently marked by the first known record of Scelidodon, Hydrochoeropsis, Ctenomys, Canidae, Ursidae, Gomphotheriidae, Equidae, Tapiridae, Camelidae, Cervidae, and the last known record of Thylatheridium, Thylophorops, Dankomys, Eumysops, Pithanotomys, Eucoelophorus, Hegetotheriidae, Sparassocynidae, and Microtragulidae.

The Ensenadan Age is based on the fauna from the Ensenada Formation near the city of Ensenada, Buenos Aires Province. In Argentina the Ensenadan is marked by the first known record of Lomaphorus, Neothoracophorus, Plaxhaplous, Cavia, Lyncodon, Lutra, Galera, Smilodon, Dicotyles, Lama, Vicugna, the last known record of Orthomyctera, and the only known record of Brachynasua.

     Typícal beds of late Lujanian Age in Argentina consist of fluvial deposits occupying stream channels, and shallow basins, often incised into beds of early Lujanian (i.e. Bonaerian of early workers) and Ensenadan Age. The Lujanian Age is based on a fauna from beds along the Rio Luján, about 65 km west of the city of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Province. The Lujanian in Argentina is marked by the first record of Equus, Chlamyphorus, and Holochilus, and the last record of Megatherioidea, Glyptodontoidea, Arctodus (=Arctotherium), Smilodon, Litopterna, Notoungulata, Proboscidea, Equidae, Morenelaphus, and Palaeolama.

   These land mammal ages are often difficult to recognize in other South American countries. The compositions of South American Pleistocene faunas vary with the environment. Some taxa were widely distributed in fossil deposits throughout the continent, but their occurrences need not reflect synchroneity. This is a result of changing climates and habitats in time. Consequently, proposed intracontinental correlations need confirmation based on magnetostratigraphy and a radioisotope time scale. Paleontologic characterizations of these land mammal ages (i.e. first and last record, and guide fossils) are useful for much of Argentina, but extensions to most of the other parts of South America are at best tenuous.

The majority of known non-Argentine Pleistocene faunas are believed to be Lujanian in age. Possible non Argentine early Pleistocene (Uquian) faunas include Ayo Ayo and Anzaldo in Bolivia, and Cocha Verde in southern Columbia. A possible middle Pleistocene (Ensenadan or early Lujanian) fauna is the Chichense of Ecuador. Paleomagnetic and radioisotopic date (MacFadden et al., 1983) clearly indicate that the greater part of the Tarija fauna (Bolivia) is Ensenadan in age.

  The end of the Pleistocene and beginning of the Holocene in South America is marked by extinction of nearly all large mammalian herbivores and their specialized large predators. Radiocarbon age determinations suggest that large scale extinctions of megafauna occurred between 15,000 and 8,000 yrs. B.P. (years before present). 

A new example of parallelism in the dental pattern ofthe Theridomyidae is illustrated by the description ofa new species: Theridomys Iudensis from the standard level of Antoingt (middle Oligocene). Considering the occurence ofthis parallelism phenomenon. the use of numerous qualitative and quantitative criteria is essential to characterize the different stages ofthe different evolutive lineages. Thus, a new simple parameter is proposed (CHY = H+l/0,5 L) to estimate hypsodonty of the medium hypsodont Rodentia.