Ruminantia from the middle Miocene of the Gračanica coalmine (Bugojno Basin, Bosnia-Herzegovina)
Articles > Article · 2018
Authors: Manuela Aiglstorfer, Serdar MAYDA
Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments, Journal Indexed in SCI Expanded, International, WoS, 2018, vol 100, pp 351-362
DOI: 10.1007/s12549-018-0354-z
Summary
Five different ruminant taxa were found in the Gracanica coal mine: the tragulidDorcatherium vindebonense, a palaeomerycid (Palaeomerycidae gen. et sp. indet.), the giraffeGiraffokeryxsp., and the bovids ?Tethytragussp. andEotragus?clavatus. The ruminant fauna fits well to an early middle to middle middle Miocene age and is typical for a locality of the mammal units MN5 or MN6. The assemblage shows Asian as well as European affinities, represents the westernmost occurrence ofGiraffokeryxknown so far, and confirms the role of the Balkan Peninsula as a corridor between the two continents. As the ruminant assemblage from Gracanica is not abundant, palaeoecological considerations are only tentative, but the determined taxa point to a predominantly forested environment.