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The Columbretes Islands (eastern Spain) comprise a volcanic archipelago 50 km off the eastern Spanish coast. Illa Grossa is the main island of the archipelago. After the settlement of humans during the mid-19th century, strong modifications in biodiversity took place, including the reduction of the non-flying vertebrate fauna to a single taxon, Podarcis liolepis atratus (Boscá, 1916). The study of the fossils yielded at the COLT site (dated by AMC between 2780-2724 cal BP and 2600-2492 cal BP) from a loess deposit located at the south of Illa Grossa Island shows that this fauna was more diverse in the past. The assemblage was dominated by squamate reptiles, belonging to two lizards (Chalcides bedriagai (Boscá, 1880) and cf. Podarcis Wagler, 1830) and one snake (Vipera cf. latastei Boscá, 1878). The record in the late Holocene of Columbretes of Vipera cf. latastei settles the existing controversy about the identity of snakes in the archipelago. Regarding Chalcides bedriagai, this is the first record of its presence in the Columbretes Islands. Other faunal elements recovered from the site include at least six species of undetermined birds (passeriforms and procellariforms) and the anthropophilic Mus cf. musculus Linnaeus, 1758. The origin of the squamates taxa from Columbretes palaeontological site (COLT) is still unclear, but was probably related to the Late Pleistocene-Greenlandian (11 700 to 8300 BP, Early Holocene) sea transgression, natural passive colonization, and/or human introduction. We hypothesize implications for the conservation and management of the Natural Reserve.

Objectives: To assess quality of life or factors related to the foot and general health and to determine the impact taking into account foot health status in people with multiple sclerosis (MS).Methods: 50 subjects with MS and 50 healthy subjects were studied using the Foot Health Status Questionnaire, that is a validated and is reliable tool was used to assess foot health and quality of life. This instrument comprise four domains for evaluate the foot health (foot function, foot pain, footwear and general foot health) in the first section and for measure the general health comprise four domains (general health, physical activity, social capacity and vigor) for second section and was use for all participants.Results: In both groups of the sample, 50% (n = 15) were men and 50% (n = 35) women, and the mean age in the case group was 48.04 ± 10.49 and the control group was 48.04 ± 10.45 were recruited. A statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) was shown for foot function, general foot health, general health, physical activity and vigor domains, stating that people with MS have a lower related to foot health (lower FHSQ scores) compared to healthy subjects who have higher FHSQ scores. There were no statistically significant differences (p > 0.05) for the scores of the other domains of the FHSQ (foot pain, footwear and social capacity).Conclusion: Patients with MS suffer a negative impact on the quality of life related to foot health, which appears to be associated with the chronic disease.

Altres ajuts: J.G. is the recipent of a postdoctoral contract [ESPDOC20/83] from the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and her work was also supported by the Eusko Jaurlaritza [IT1485-22]. B.M.-S. was funded by the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Universidade, Xunta de Galicia, Spain (ED481D-2022-013). Here we present the results of a study of the small mammal assemblage recovered from a now disappeared karstic fissure located in a quarry called 'Pedrera del Corral d'en Bruach'. The site was located at 330 m a.s.l. in the Garraf Massif, ca. 20 km south of Barcelona. An archaeological rescue excavation was conducted in 2006 by the Grup de Recerca del Quaternari, focusing on sieving the sediments that had accumulated at the foot of the quarry face. Fortunately, some faunal remains and sediment were recovered, which were later processed and sorted. Two hundred and seventy small mammal remains were identified at genus or species level, bringing to light 15 taxa. The assemblage is typical of the Mammal Neogene 17 (MN17) biozone, placing this site in the Gelasian stage of the Early Pleistocene. It is noteworthy that the first record of the glirid Glirulus pusillus in Iberia is documented. Based on the small mammals identified, the surrounding environment of the Garraf Massif is judged to have been characterised by open forest landscape and more humid environmental conditions than nowadays. Finally, the site provides a remarkable contribution to what is known of the Iberian small mammals of this time period.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological, chronic, inflammatory, and progressive disease with musculoskeletal problems and neurodegenerative disorders that causes worsening of the health status of patients. The aim of this study was to determine the level of depression in MS patients compared to a population of healthy subjects. The established sample size was 116 subjects matched with the same age, sex, and body mass index. The subjects were recruited from different multiple sclerosis associations and neurology clinics in different public health areas (case group n = 58) and healthy subjects from the same locality (control group n = 58). The scores and categories of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) in its Spanish version were collected. There was a clear statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) in the BDI scores between both groups. As a result, we found that the subjects with MS presented worse results with BDI = 9.52 ? 7.70 points compared to the healthy subjects with a BDI score = 5.03 ? 5.14. Within the BDI categories, there were statistically significant differences (p < 0.001), which were greater for the MS group. Depression is a dangerous factor for MS patients, being a trigger for a poorer quality of life. 991B-C3B6-3D4F | Salete Soares N/A

Fear of movement or kinesiophobia is an irrational fear of physical movement and fatigue that causes a limitation of functional capacity and decreased physical activity. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the level of kinesiophobia in people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) and compare it with a group of healthy people, through the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia with 11 items (TSK-11). Method: A total of 116 subjects were recruited in a multicenter case-control study; 58 subjects suffered from MS and 58 were healthy subjects from different associations and the same locality. To assess the levels of fear of movement, the Spanish version of the TSK-11 self-questionnaire was used. Results: Most pwMS suffer from some degree of kinesiophobia (TSK-11 ≥ 18), and 60.3% had moderate to maximum kinesiophobia scores (TSK-11 ≥ 25). In contrast, healthy subjects presented a percentage of kinesiophobia from none to moderate (82.7%). Conclusions: Kinesiophobia is higher in pwMS than in the healthy control group. Accordingly, individuals showing pwMS should be assessed and monitored in order to diagnosed initial kinesiophobia levels, to allow planning treatment and preventive care activities that may improve the foot health and overall health in this group of patients.

En el presente trabajo se describe la asociación de Megacricetodon crusafonti (Freudenthal, 1963), Megacricetodon sp. y Heteroxerus aff. grivensis (Forsyth Major, 1893) de Cazuma 1, localidad situada en el sector de Bicorp, en la cuenca terciaria de Quesa - Bicorp (Prov. Valencia). La edad atribuida a esta localidad es Aragoniense Superior. Hasta el momento, con ésta, ya son cinco las localidades conocidas de mamíferos en el Aragoniense de la cuenca de Quesa - Bicorp (Cazuma 1, Quesa 0, Quesa 2, Quesa 3 y Quesa 6).

Tanto en España, la Ley estatal 4/1989, de conservación de los espacios naturales y de la flora y fauna silvestres, como en la Comunidad Valenciana la Ley 11/1994, de espacios naturales protegidos, consideran el patrimonio paleontológico en la categoría de los recursos naturales. Los yacimientos paleontológicos con valores científicos o culturales de interés especial pueden ser declarados como espacios naturales protegidos a partir de un plan de ordenación de los recursos naturales. Según la Ley 11/1994, de la Generalitat Valenciana, de espacios naturales protegidos, los recursos paleontológicos pueden ser protegidos a través de la declaración de dos figuras de protección específicas, el Monumento Natural y el Sitio de Interés. El instrumento de ordenación para las figuras de Monumento Natural y Sitio de Interés se denomina normas de protección. La ley valenciana de espacios naturales establece el contenido mínimo de estos planes de ordenación, incluyendo las limitaciones de uso y disfrute de los recursos naturales en las zonas protegidas. El patrimonio paleontológico en la Comunidad Valenciana es rico y diverso, encontrándose negativamente afectado su estado de conservación por el intenso desarrollo de las actividades humanas. La gestión y protección de este recurso por parte de la administración valenciana puede claramente mejorarse.

We present the bat assemblage from the early Miocene (MN4, 16.9–15.95 MY) basin of Ribesalbes-Alcora, which has yielded the remains of ten chiropteran taxa. Bat assemblages are rarely recovered in the fluvio-lacustrine fossil record. A bat species described in this work,Cuvierimops penalverisp. nov., is a new form of a typically Oligocene free-tailed bat. In addition, the other molossidsHydromops helveticus,Rhizomops cf.brasiliensis,Chaerephonsp.,Tadaridasp., and the vespertilionidsMyotis cf.intermediusandMiostrellusaff.petersbuchensis, as well as undetermined fossils ascribed to the generaSubmyotodon,Plecotus, andRhinolophusare described. This is the first record of the genusRhizomopsin the early Miocene; the genusCuvierimopsis the first recording from the Neogene, while the ‘Lazarus taxon’Chaerephonis the first fossil record of this genus, registered previously only in Holocene deposits. This bat assemblage with a high abundance of molossids is typical from the early Oligocene of western Europe, while in the early Miocene from Europe the molossids are scarce. The abundance of these bats is consistent with the presence of a tropical forest surrounding a paleolake. The fossils from the Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin represent the most complete bat assemblage of the Iberian Peninsula during this age, and significantly increase our knowledge about the early Miocene bats of Europe.

Materials from the localities of Araia d'Alcora in the Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin (Spain, early Miocene, Biozone C, MN4) have yielded an assemblage of erinaceids and metatherians, relatively rich for an Iberian site. The most common erinaceid is the gymnureGalerix symeonidisiDoukas, 1986, present in almost all of the studied sites. Other erinaceids in the faunal list are possibly an indeterminate species of the generaLantanotheriumFilhol, 1888 andAtelerixPomel, 1848, in what constitutes one of their oldest occurrences in Europe. Metatherians are represented by the herpetotheriidAmphiperatherium frequens erkertshofense(Koenigswald, 1970). The material described here was partially published by Furió and colleagues in 2012. We complete it with new material from the known localities and with material from new sites. We describe for the first time the lower dentition of this taxon in this basin, thus increasing knowledge of the high variability of its decidual molars. In addition, the climatic preferences of the speciesA. frequens(von Meyer, 1846), which was probably less strict in its humidity requirements than previously thought, are also discussed.

Modern microbialites in Argentina's Puna (Central Andes) are considered a reliable tool for understanding the evolution of early life on our planet and developing strategies for detecting life on Mars. The morphological, structural and geochemical variations in these deposits, together with their distribution and architecture, are some of the most important parameters for understanding and characterising them. However, the lack of appropriate cartography and/or the high price to access it, added to the complex geological and geomorphological context in this region, complicate a traditional mapping on a good scale of detail. This paper presents a GIS-based methodology for a detailed mapping and architectural modeling of Las Quínoas microbialitic deposit (Holocene). To meet this objective, the geoprocessing of the information obtained from drone surveys, fieldwork and laboratory work, is carried out using ArcGIS software. The result is a high-resolution reconstruction of the deposit architecture, together with several thematic maps that represent the variation of the morphological, structural and geochemical characteristics of the oncoids (microbialites) with respect to depth and their position in the water body. From an integral point of view, this work provides a new methodological approach for microbialites mapping and improves the survey strategies in Central Andes.

El Salt (Middle Palaeolithic; Alcoi, Spain) is a key site for understanding the disappearance of Neanderthals in the eastern Iberian Peninsula, a process that is observed along its stratigraphic sequence. To improve our understanding of the palaeoclimatic context in which this process took place, we applied the UDA-ODA discrimination technique to the fossil herpetological assemblages from Stratigraphic Units (SU) Xb (52.3 ± 4.6 ka) and V (45.2 ± 3.4/44.7 ± 3.4 ka). This method is based in the application of an ecological criterion, the maximum altitude of each species on each Iberian range, to discern and remove those areas that do not meet their ecological requirements (UDA) from those that do (ODA), which are included in its distribution from Atlases from which the common distribution species is going to be extracted. Results indicate the existence of an alternation between “cold and wet” moments with “warm and dry” ones, all of them in a more humid context than nowadays. Climate was slightly warmer than nowadays in SU Xb, whereas was cooler in SU V. Regarding MAP, our results show less variation between SUs than it has been provided by previous studies. These results do not fully agree with those provided by small mammals from the same SUs, which indicate an increase of the temperatures whereas rainfall experienced the contrary. These differences could be related with the wider distribution of the Iberian herpetofauna, and some differences in the applied ecological criterion. Furthermore, herpetofaunal palaeoclimatic reconstruction shows that the abandonment of the site by Neanderthals seems to have occurred during an arid phase.

El Salt is emerging as a reference site for the study of the extinction of Neanderthal populations in the Eastern Iberian Peninsula during MIS 3. The small vertebrate assemblage analysed in this work is framed within this general objective and comes from Stratigraphic Unit V, the most recent unit with human presence. Nearly 1300 small mammal remains have been studied in order to reconstruct the palaeoecological conditions of this debated period. A total of seven rodents (Microtus arvalis, Microtus duodecimcostatus, Microtus cabrerae, Sciurus vulgaris, Arvicola sapidus, Eliomys quercinus and Apodemus sylvaticus), three insectivores (Talpa occidentalis, Crocidura sp., Sorex sp.) and one lagomorph (Oryctolagus cf. cuniculus) were identified. Palaeocological analyse points to drier conditions in the upper part (Unit V) of the stratigraphic sequence, supporting the hypothesis that an aridification scenario may have played a role in the disappearance of the Neanderthal groups inhabiting this region of the Iberian Peninsula.

The deficient management of the paleontological heritage through the environmental impact assessment procedures from the Valencian public administrations, linked mainly to the lack of competent technical means in the matter, results in an almost abandonment of it. On the contrary, the archaeological heritage has a series of perfectly structured tools that allow any possible impact on it regarding projects and actions subject to environmental impact assessment that can be detected and corrected. The damage that this situation creates results in the abandonment and almost absolute lack of protection of the palaeontological heritage in the Valencian Community. Despite how much has been written defending the location of paleontological heritage in the administrative field of Natural Heritage, the legal reality in the whole of the Spanish state is another, being based on its inclusion in the procedures together with the cultural heritage. This work defends the incorporation of a series of small legislative changes that make possible to equate the management of the palaeontological heritage with that of the archaeological one in the Valencian Community, thus avoiding the comparative torts that currently occur.

Early Pleistocene terrestrial climate conditions in the Mediterranean region, especially between 1.3 and 1.7 Ma, are poorly understood. Here, the amphibian and reptile fossil record from 24 fissures (Cava Pirro) of the Pirro Nord karstic complex (southern Italy) is used to infer quantitative paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental reconstructions. These numerical data indicate that the mean annual temperature may have been somewhat lower (–1.6 to –3.6 °C compared to modern temperatures) than that of today, and the mean annual precipitation slightly higher (+90 to +240 mm) than modern values. Seasonality was more pronounced, with cooler summers (–0.4 to –2.0 °C) and much colder winters (–1.2 to –6.0 °C). Rainfall distribution patterns during the year show more precipitation during the winter (+14 to +43 mm), with quantities of summer rainfall (–1.7 to +6.6 mm) being similar to modern values. The associated landscape comprised an open dry environment with scattered patches of woodland, locally along water courses or around swamps. This ecological scenario fits with early Pleistocene cold conditions, where the first occurrence of some eastern emigrants suggests a scenario of trans-Adriatic dispersal, as may have also occurred for the earliest European hominins.

En el presente trabajo se describen las características de una población de Megacricetodon collongensis, hallada en el yacimiento Quesa 2 de la cuenca miocena de Quesa (Valencia). Esta localidad constituye, hasta el momento, el límite sur conocido de extensión de esta especie en la Península Ibérica. La atribución de edad de los sedimentos en los que está situado el yacimiento Quesa 2 es Aragoniense medio-supedor (biozona E), lo que nos permite considerar la cuenca de Quesa como perteneciente al complejo de cuencas sinorogénicas de la zona de transición Ibérica-Béticas.

The locality of El Salt (Alcoi, Spain) is a key site for understanding the extirpation of Neanderthals in the eastern part of Iberia. In this paper, we analyse an assemblage of amphibians and reptiles from Stratigraphic Unit V (45.2 ± 3.4 ka to 44.7 ± 3.4 ka), which corresponds to one of the last regional records of Neanderthals, to improve knowledge of the palaeoecology and palaeoclimate of this event. The assemblage comprises three anurans (Pelodytes sp., Alytes obstetricans, and Epidalea calamita), two lizards (Lacertidae indet. and Chalcides bedriagai), and five snakes (Colubridae indet., Coronella sp., Coronella sp./Zamenis sp., Natrix maura, and Vipera latastei). Palaeoclimatic reconstruction, based on the Mutual Ecogeographic Range method, indicates that climate was cooler and slightly wetter climate than the present day climate of the Alcoi area. Applying the Habitat Weighting Method, we infer that the area surrounding El Salt was dominated by open dry regions, alternating with rocky areas with scarce scrubs and forest patches that would have developed under mesomediterranean conditions. These results are not entirely consistent with those obtained with other proxies (charcoal and small mammal assemblages) from the same site, which suggest slightly warmer and drier conditions. We hypothesise that these divergences may be partly related to the current wide distribution of reptiles and amphibians across Iberia. A key finding is that the extirpation of the Neanderthals in Iberia coincided with aridification. Fil: Marquina Blasco, Rafael. Universidad de Valencia; España. Museu Valencià D’història Natural; España Fil: Fagoaga, Ana. Universidad de Valencia; España. Museu Valencià D’història Natural; España Fil: Crespo Roures, Vicente Daniel. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Paleontología Vertebrados; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina. Museo Paleontológico de Alpuente; España Fil: Bailon, Salvador. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; Francia. Histoire naturelle de l’Homme prehistorique; Francia Fil: Mallol, Carolina. Universidad de La Laguna; España Fil: Hernández, Cristo M.. Universidad de La Laguna; España Fil: Galván, Bertila. Universidad de La Laguna; España Fil: Ruiz Sánchez, Francisco Javier. Universidad de Valencia; España. Museu Valencià D’història Natural; España. Universidad Estatal Península de Santa Elena; Ecuador

The El Salt site (Alcoi, Alicante, Spain) is one of the latest Neanderthal sites in the south-eastern Iberian Peninsula. The disappearance of this human group is controversial and needs detailed studies from different research areas. Taphonomy is essential to establish how representative is a fossil assemblage of the past living organisms that produced it and to interpret the formation process of the fossil site. In the case of El Salt, we have analyzed the micromammal assemblages of Units X and V, which contain fossils of Neanderthals and/or evidence of their activity. In contrast with previous identifications of the little owl (Athene noctua), our detailed taphonomic study shown here allows us to conclude that the main predator involved in the production of the micromammal assemblages was the European eagle owl (Bubo bubo). This is an opportunistic predator whose feeding preferences and behavior reflect the abundance of local micromammalian species, which can therefore provide a representation of past ecosystems near El Salt. The taphonomic information provided by this study also indicates the absence of transport and reworking processes, and reinforces previous paleoecological interpretations, suggesting an increase of aridity at the top of El Salt sequence that coincided with the local disappearance of Neanderthals., This investigation has been carried out thanks to the Spanish Government project HAR2015-68321-P: “Neandertales en la montaña alicantina. Un enfoque multianalítico” (2016–2019) MICINN-FEDER, and the project UV-INV_AE17-708551 (University of Valencia), Conselleria d’Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esport from the Valencian Government and the University of La Laguna (Tenerife, Spain).

The small-vertebrates’ assemblage recovered comes from Units I to IV from El Salt site (Alcoi, Spain). The sample is composed by nearly 310 remains, and includes one toad (Epidalea calamita), two lizards (Lacertidae indet. and Chalcides cf. bedriagai), two snakes (Coronella cf. girondica and cf. Coronella sp.), two insectivores (Crocidura sp. and Sorex sp.), one lagomorph (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and seven rodent taxa (Arvicola sapidus, Microtus sp., M. arvalis, M. cabrerae, M. duodecimcostatus, Apodemus sylvaticus, and Eliomys quercinus). All the species described in the present work are consistent with a Late Pleistocene-Holocene chronology. The presence of M. cabrerae (absent in the Middle Pleistocene) and M. duodecimcostatus (absent in the Mediterranean until the Late Pleistocene) seem to confirm this age. The presence of Neolithic pottery and M. arvalis in the same deposit is inconsistent from a biochronically point of view since this species was extirpated from this region at the end of the Late Pleistocene. Several taphonomic alterations related to transport within the small mammal remains have been identified. Further taphonomical and geoarchaeological work is needed to clarify the provenience of the studied faunal assemblages, which, given the high energy, erosional morphology and lithology of the sedimentary deposit, could have been reworked in a more recent time period.

The Campisano Ravine in the Ribesalbes­Alcora Basin (Spain, early Miocene, biozone C, MN 4) yielded a relatively diverse assemblage of squirrels, composed by the ground squirrels Heteroxerus rubricati, Atlantoxerus blacki and Aragoxerus sp. the marmotines Palaeosciurus cf. sutteri, Spermophilinus sp., Marmotini indet. and the flying squirrel Aliveria cf. luteyni. Heteroxerus rubricati, Atlantoxerus blacki and Spermophilinus are typical early Miocene species from the Iberian Peninsula, and in this work we increase the knowledge of the variability of them. In MN4, the genus Aragoxerus is reported for the first time in the Iberian Peninsula, and, apart from France, it is its only record in Europe. We report here the first record of the species Palaeosciurus cf. sutteri in the Iberian Peninsula, and one of the oldest in Europe. The occurrence of Aliveria cf. luteyni marks the first record of the genus Aliveria in Western Europe. Additionally, the palaeoecological significance of this assemblage is discussed. Fil: Crespo Roures, Vicente Daniel. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Paleontología Vertebrados; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina Fil: Fagoaga, Ana. Universidad de Valencia; España Fil: Ruiz Sánchez, Francisco Javier. Universidad de Valencia; España Fil: Montoya, Plini. Universidad de Valencia; España

The localities of La Bullana 3 and LA Bullana 2B (Valencia, E Spain) have yielded remains of Apodemusgorafensis, Paraethomys aff. abaigari, Stephanomys dubari, Apocricetus barrierei, Sciuridae indet. and Asoriculus cf. gibberodon the former, and Apodemusgorafensis, Paraethomys aff. abaigari, Stephanomys dubari, Apocricetus barrierei, Sciuridae indet., Asoriculus cf. gibberodon, Castillomysgracilis, Occitanomysbrailloni, Occitanomys sp., Paraethomys meini, Ruscinomys sp., Eliomys intermedius, Debruijnimys cf. julii and Atlantoxerussp. the latter. Based on the study of these micromammal assemblages, we propose an Early Pliocene age (MN14) for both sites. The pres-ence a gerbilid related to Debruijnimys julii in La Bullana 2B open new questions about the phylogenetic relationship between Debruijni-mys species from the Miocene and Pliocene of the Iberian Peninsula. Furthermore, preliminary paleomagnetic data indicate an age between 4.997 Ma and 4.896 Ma for La Bullana 2B, and between 5.235 Ma and 4.997 Ma for La Bullana 3. Las localidades de La Bullana 3 y La Bullana 2B (Valencia, E Spain) han cedido restos de Apodemusgorafensis, Paraethomys aff. abaigari, Stephanomys dubari, Apocricetus barrierei, Sciuridae indet. y Asoriculus cf. gibberodon la primera,y Apodemusgorafensis, Paraethomys aff. abaigari, Stephanomys dubari, Apocricetus barrierei, Sciuridae indet., Asoriculus cf. gibberodon, Castillomysgracilis, Occitanomysbrailloni, Occitanomys sp., Paraethomys meini, Ruscinomys sp., Eliomys intermedius, Debruijnimys cf. julii y Atlantoxerussp. la segunda. Basándonos en el estudio de estas ascociaciones de micromamíferos, proponemos una edad correspondiente al Plioceno inferior (MN14) para ambos yacimientos. La presencia de un gerbílido relacionado con Debruijnimys julii en La Bullana 2B plantea nuevas preguntas acerca de la relación filogenética entre las especies de Debruijnimys del Mioceno y Plioceno. Además, datos paleomagnéticos preliminares indican una edad entre 4.997 Ma y 4.896 Ma para La Bullana 2B, y entre 5.235 Ma y 4.997 Ma para La Bullana 3.

El Salt is an important reference site for understanding the extinction of Neanderthal populations in the eastern Iberian Peninsula during MIS 3. In this paper, we describe the small mammal assemblage from Stratigraphic Unit V, the youngest unit with evidence of human presence, based on nearly 1300 specimens. A total of seven rodents (Microtus arvalis, Microtus duodecimcostatus, Microtus cabrerae, Sciurus vulgaris, Arvicola sapidus, Eliomys quercinus and Apodemus sylvaticus), three insectivores (Talpa occidentalis, Crocidura sp., Sorex sp.) and one lagomorph (Oryctolagus cf. cuniculus) were identified. Palaeocological analyses point to drier conditions in this part of the stratigraphic sequence, supporting the hypothesis that an aridification scenario may have played a role in the extinction of the Neanderthal groups inhabiting this region of the Iberian Peninsula., Research at El Salt is funded by the Spanish Government project HAR2015-68321-P (MINECO FEDER/UE), UV-INV_AE17-708551 (University of Valencia) and Conselleria d'Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esports from the Valencian government. This investigation was also carried out thanks to the Prometeo Project of the Secretariat for Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation from Ecuador and the University of La Laguna (Tenerife, Spain).

Archaeological remains have highlighted the fact that the interglacial Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11 was a threshold from the perspective of hominin evolution in Europe. After the MIS 12 glaciation, considered one of the major climate-driven crises experienced by hominins, the archaeological records show an increasing number of occupations, evidence of new subsistence behaviors, and significant technical innovations. Here, we used statistical and geographic techniques to analyze the amphibian- and reptile-based paleoclimate and habitat reconstructions generated from a large data set of the Iberian Peninsula to (1) investigate if temperature, precipitation, and/or forest cover may have impacted the hominin occupation of the territory during the Early and Middle Pleistocene, (2) propose an ‘Iberian’ ecological model before and after the MIS 12/11 transition, and (3) evaluate, based on this model, the potential hominin occupation at a European scale. The results indicate the existence of climatic constraints on human settlement related to rainfall and environmental humidity. The Early Pleistocene and the first half of the Middle Pleistocene are dominated by the occupation of relatively humid wooded areas, whereas during the second part of the Middle Pleistocene, a broadening of the earlier ecological niche is clearly observed toward the occupation of more open arid areas. Based on the estimated occupational niche for hominins, a maximum potential distribution for early hominins is proposed in Europe before and after 426 ka. Results also indicate that parts of the Iberian Peninsula may not have been suitable for early hominin occupation. Our ecological model is consistent with the pattern of hominin occupation observed in northern and central Europe, where the earliest evidence reflects only pioneering populations merely extending their ranges in response to the expansion of their preferred habitats, as compared with a more sustained occupation by 400 ka.

Pharmacological concentrations of melatonin reduce reperfusion arrhythmias, but less is known about the antiarrhythmic protection of the physiological circadian rhythm of melatonin. Bilateral surgical removal of the superior cervical ganglia irreversibly suppresses melatonin rhythmicity. This study aimed to analyze the cardiac electrophysiological effects of the loss of melatonin circadian oscillation and the role played by myocardial melatonin membrane receptors, SERCA2A, TNF&alpha, nitrotyrosine, TGF&beta, KATP channels, and connexin 43. Three weeks after bilateral removal of the superior cervical ganglia or sham surgery, the hearts were isolated and submitted to ten minutes of regional ischemia followed by ten minutes of reperfusion. Arrhythmias, mainly ventricular tachycardia, increased during reperfusion in the ganglionectomy group. These hearts also suffered an epicardial electrical activation delay that increased during ischemia, action potential alternants, triggered activity, and dispersion of action potential duration. Hearts from ganglionectomized rats showed a reduction of the cardioprotective MT2 receptors, the MT1 receptors, and SERCA2A. Markers of nitroxidative stress (nitrotyrosine), inflammation (TNF&alpha, ), and fibrosis (TGF&beta, and vimentin) did not change between groups. Connexin 43 lateralization and the pore-forming subunit (Kir6.1) of KATP channels increased in the experimental group. We conclude that the loss of the circadian rhythm of melatonin predisposes the heart to suffer cardiac arrhythmias, mainly ventricular tachycardia, due to conduction disorders and changes in repolarization.

We present 45 new paleontological sites with fossil mammals, their faunal lists and the syntethic stratigraphic column from the Campisano ravine in the Araia/Mas de Antolino outcrop (Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin; Valencian Community, E Spain). The synthetic stratigraphic column of this basin is divided into five units, named A to E in Anadon (X Congr Nac Sedimentol 1:9–12, 1983), and for the first time, we report a detailed stratigraphic column of Unit C, in which the studied sites are included. This ravine is divided into the following sections: Mas dels Coixos, Mas de Torner, Araia Cantera Sud, Barranc de Campisano, Foieta la Sarra, Mas d’Antolino B and Corral de Brisca. Based on the study of more than 3000 faunal remains from these localities, we infer a lower Aragonian age (MN4, Early Miocene). Particularly, the described sections can be correlated to the local biozone C, in the upper part of the MN4 of the Calatayud-Montalban Basin (Spain), the type area of the Aragonian age.

The small mammal assemblages from Alto de Ballester 1 and 2 in the Rubielos de Mora basin represent a unique faunal assemblage from the late early Miocene (Ramblian, MN 3). Together, the assemblages yielded five species of rodents (Peridyromys murinus, P. aff. murinus, P. aquatilis, Pseudotheridomys aff. fejfari and cf. Steneofiber depereti), and nine insectivores (Galericinae indet., Desmanella fejfari, Myxomygale minor, Desmanodon daamsi, Chainodus cf. sulcatus, Heterosorex sp., cf. Oligosorex thauensis, cf. Clapasorex alvarezae, and Paenelimnoecus cf. truyolsi). High abundance and diversity of insectivores, and the presence of a beaver and a dimylid show that the assemblages represent a humid, forested environment. This is in line with the palaeobotanical evidence of the basin. The two Alto de Ballester assemblages, which are very different from other Ramblian faunas, show that there was a variety of ecosystems on the Iberian Peninsula at this period, probably drier in the inland and more humid near the coastal zone.

We report a new dimylid species, Plesiodimylus ilercavonicus sp. nov., from the Early Miocene locality of Mas d’Antolino B-5 (Ribesalbes-Alcora, Castello, Spain). This new species of Plesiodimylus is an amblyodont form of the genus and exhibits some primitive characters. The phylogenetic and palaeoenvironmental implications of this southern occurrence of Plesiodimylus in Lower Miocene sediments are discussed.urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:EB5435A4-EECE-4B88-B5AC-4B77E2E13029

The presence of bat fossils in localities of fluvio-lacustrine origin is quite uncommon, and usually these remains are poorly preserved or not studied in detail. In the present work we study the ba...

This paper presents a multiproxy palaeoenvironmental study from Abric del Pastor (Alcoy, Spain), a rock shelter which has yielded evidence for Middle Palaeolithic human occupation. The sedimentary sequence has been analysed for lipid biomarker n-alkane abundances (ACL, CPI), compound specific leaf wax δH and δC, and bulk organic geochemistry (TOC, %N, %S), providing a record of past climate and local vegetation dynamics. Site formation processes have been reconstructed through the application of soil micromorphology. Analyses of anthracological, microvertebrate and macrofaunal assemblages from selected subunits are also presented here. Our data indicates that a variable climate marked by predominantly cold conditions persisted through most of the sequence and that Neanderthal occupations in stratigraphic unit IVd, assigned to MIS 4 or late MIS 5, occurred in a landscape setting characterised by a mosaic of biotopes. The presence of key resources inside the ravine where the site is located suggests that the occupation of the rock shelter may have been strategically motivated by a subsistence and mobility strategy which focused on zones of localised ecological resilience, such as intra-mountainous valleys or ravines, during periods of global or regional environmental downturn., This research was supported by the ERC Consolidator Grant project PALEOCHAR – 648871. Excavations at Abric del Pastor are funded by Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities Project HAR2015-68321-P and the Government of Valencia Cultural Heritage Department.

The Miocene record of talpids and dimylids in south-western Europe is very scarce. In the present work, we study for the first time the talpids and complete the description of the dimylids, already started with a new species of the genus Plesiodimylus from the Ribesalbes–Alcora Basin (MN4, lower Aragonian, early Miocene) by Crespo et al. (2018). The talpids recovered inRibesalbes–Alcora comprise themost common Desmanodon daamsi and Desmanella fejfari, for which the last known occurrence is recorded here. The dimylids comprise the species Plesiodimylus ilercavonicus, which expands the biostratigraphic record of the genus and species and has been found in a new site. On the other hand, we discuss the palaeoecological significance of this assemblage. L’enregistrement miocène de talpidés et dimylidés dans le Sud-Ouest de l’Europe est très rare. Dans le présent travail, nous étudions pour la première fois les talpidés et complétons la description des dimylidés, déjà entamée par Crespo et al. (2018), avec une nouvelle espèce du genre Plesiodimylus du bassin de Ribesalbes–Alcora (MN4, Aragonien inférieur, Miocène précoce). Les talpidés récoltés dans ce bassin constituent les plus communs Desmanodon daansi et Desmanella fejfari, pour lesquels la dernière occurrence connue est enregistrée là. Les dimylidés présentent l’espèce Plesiodimylus ilercavonicus, qui élargit l’enregistrement biostratigraphique du genre et de l’espèce et a été trouvée dans un nouveau site. Par ailleurs, nous discutons la signification paléoécologique de cet assemblage. Fil: Crespo Roures, Vicente Daniel. Museu Valencia d’Història Natural; España. Museo Paleontológico de Alpuente; España. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina Fil: Marquina Blasco, Rafael. Museu Valencia d’Història Natural; España. Universidad de Valencia; España Fil: Ruiz Sánchez, Francisco Javier. Museu Valencia d’Història Natural; España. Universidad de Valencia; España. Universidad Estatal Península de Santa Elena; Ecuador Fil: Montoya, Plini. Universidad de Valencia; España

The zone of Araia d’Alcora in the Ribesalbes-Alcora Basin (Spain, early Miocene, biozone C, MN 4) yielded a relatively rich assemblage of shrews for an Iberian site, composed by Oligosorex thauensis, cf. Soricella discrepans, Paenelimnoecus micromorphus and Heterosorex neumayrianus. The fossils of O. thauensis, the most abundant taxon, significantly increase our knowledge regarding the morphology of the species. It signals the last known occurrence of this shrew and extending its record to a MN4 site. This species is competing with other shrews in the studied sites. Paenelimnoecus micromorphus is recorded for the first time in the Iberian Peninsula. Soricella discrepans is a typical species from Central Europe; if its occurrence is confirmed in Ribesalbes-Alcora, it would represent the only record of this species in MN4 from the Iberian Peninsula. The material of Heterosorex neumayrianus, a species relatively common in the Iberian Peninsula but always poorly represented, constitutes the best Spanish collection described. When dimylids are present Heterosorex is uncommon.© October 2019 Paleontological Society. Fil: Crespo Roures, Vicente Daniel. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Paleontología Vertebrados; Argentina. Museu Valencia d'Història Natural; España. Museo Paleontológico de Alpuente; España. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina Fil: Fagoaga, Ana. Universidad de Valencia; España. Museu Valencia d'Història Natural; España Fil: Montoya, Plini. Universidad de Valencia; España Fil: Ruiz Sánchez, Francisco Javier. Museu Valencia d'Història Natural; España

El Salt is an important reference site for understanding the extinction of Neanderthal populations in the eastern Iberian Peninsula during MIS 3. In this paper, we describe the small mammal assemblage from Stratigraphic Unit V, the youngest unit with evidence of human presence, based on nearly 1300 specimens. A total of seven rodents (Microtus arvalis, Microtus duodecimcostatus, Microtus cabrerae, Sciurus vulgaris, Arvicola sapidus, Eliomys quercinus and Apodemus sylvaticus), three insectivores (Talpa occidentalis, Crocidura sp., Sorex sp.) and one lagomorph (Oryctolagus cf. cuniculus) were identified. Palaeocological analyses point to drier conditions in this part of the stratigraphic sequence, supporting the hypothesis that an aridification scenario may have played a role in the extinction of the Neanderthal groups inhabiting this region of the Iberian Peninsula.

Fossil squirrels are relatively abundant in Aragonian and Ramblian assemblages, but very scarce in the Late Turolian and Ruscinian of the Iberian Peninsula. Until now, the locality of Venta del Mor...

Murids are usually the dominant faunas of the late Miocene and early Pliocene micromammal assemblages. The present work deals with the murid faunas of the well-known late Miocene locality of Venta del Moro, comprising over 2700 molars ascribed to the taxa Apodemus gorafensis, Occitanomys alcalai, Paraethomys meini and Stephanomys dubari. This list differs from those of previous studies by the presence of A. gorafensis instead of A. gudrunae. The presence of A. gudrunae in younger localities than Venta del Moro implies that both species, considered ancestor and descendant, coexisted for some time. In addition, the analysis of such an extensive collection has allowed us to check the variability of the studied species in great detail, such as the development of the longitudinal connections of O. alcalai, to a greater extent than previously described. Finally, we discuss the biometrical changes of the lineages of Paraethomys in Southern Europe from MN13 to MN15, and hypothesize about the mechanisms be...

In this work, we have studied the fossil rodent, insectivore and chiropteran faunas, of a new locality from the AlmenaraCasablanca karstic complex, named ACB MB (Castellón, east Spain). We consider an early Ruscinian age for this site, close to the Miocene/Pliocene boundary, and infer warm and relatively humid conditions from the analysis of the micromammal assemblage. We remark the presence of two species of Eliomys in ACB MB, rare in localities of this age, and the lack of any gerbil remains, fossil markers of faunal interchanges between Africa and Europe in the context of the Messinian Salinity Crisis, recorded in the nearby late Miocene site of ACB M

Nearly 250 small mammal remains from Unit Xb of El Salt Middle Palaeolithic site have been studied in order to reconstruct the palaeoecological conditions during a phase of Neanderthal occupation in this locality at 52.3 ± 4.6 ka. A total of 7rodents (Microtus arvalis, M. agrestis, M. (Terricola) duodecimcostatus, Microtus (Iberomys) cabrerae, Arvicola sapidus, Eliomys quercinus and Apodemus sylvaticus), 4 insectivores (Erinaceus cf. europaeus, Crocidura sp., Sorex sp. and Talpidae indet.) and 1 lagomorph (Oryctolagus cf. cuniculus) have been identified. Applying the Mutual Ecogeographic Range and Habitat Weighting methods, Unit Xb may correspond to a relatively cold (−3.3 °C in comparison with present values) and slightly more humid (+113.3 mm in comparison with present values) period. The environment was mainly composed of open woodlands (58%) followed by dry (20%) and humid (14%) meadows. These results suggest that supramediterranean conditions were present in the surroundings of the site at 52.3 ± 4.6 ka instead of mesomediterranean conditions present today., Research at El Salt are funded by the Spanish Government project HAR2015-68321-P (MINECO), and Conselleria d’Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esports from Generalitat Valenciana. This investigation was carried out thanks to the Prometeo Project of the Secretariat for Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation from Ecuador.

In this work, we describe four new micromammal sites in the northern side of the Gormaget ravine, in the Alcoy Basin (Spain): AF-1’06, AF-1’07, AF-1A and AF-2. Based on the study of the faunal remains from these localities, we infer a latest Turolian-earliest Ruscinian age for AF-1’06 and AF-1A, and an earliest Ruscinian age for AF-1’07 and AF-2. The species assemblage of the locality AF-1’06, the only one which have yielded a sufficient number of remains to perform a palaecological analysis, shows warm and dry conditions near the Mio-Pliocene boundary in the Alcoy Basin. These data show a reduction of dry and warm indicators from older to younger localities in the Alcoy Basin, suggesting a change to colder and more humid conditions during the Early Pliocene.

The locality of El Salt (Middle Paleolithic, Alcoy, Spain) is mainly known by having one of the youngest Neanderthals records of the southeastern Iberian Peninsula. In this work, we have analysed the herpetofaunal fossils from the upper part of stratigraphic unit Xb, dated at 52.3 ± 4.6 ka (MIS 3). The faunal list is composed by three taxa of anurans (Alyte obstetricans, Bufo bufo s.l., and Epidalea calamita), one taxon of blanid (Blanus cinereus s.l.), two taxa of lizards (Chalcides bedriagai and cf. Acanthodactylus erythrurus), and one taxon of snakes (cf. Rhinechis scalaris). All of them have a broad distribution range in the Mediterranean, with wide ecological preferences range. This association of amphibians and reptiles from the Unit Xb suggests a slightly warmer and more humid climate than the current one; with an annual temperature range less accused and a similar seasonality of the rainfall than it is recorded nowadays in Alcoy. These results may correspond to a warm period (Daansgard-Oeschger event) during the MIS 3. A landscape composed by bushland and forest patched in which some open areas were present, with presence of permanent water bodies in the nearby areas, would characterize the surroundings areas of El Salt.

In this paper, we synthesize sedimentological, magnetostratigraphic and paleontological data from the continental vertebrate site of Puerto de la Cadena (Murcia, SE Spain), in order to clarify its age. The study site is located on the northern edge of the Carrascoy mountain range, in the upper part of the Cigarrón Unit. The end-Messinian discontinuity has been detected at the base of this unit, which indicates it has an early Pliocene age. Abundant remains of small and large vertebrates, including rodents, lagomorphs, primates, carnivorans, perissodactyls, artiodactyls, proboscideans, testudines, squamats, and crocodiles, have been found in this area. Some of these elements are of African origin, such as Debruijnimys sp., Macaca sp., and Sivatherium cf. hendeyi, and their presence is related to the Messinian Salinity Crisis. In addition, remains found at this site verify the persistence of Crocodylia in the European record beyond the late Miocene. The association includes typical elements of the early Ruscinian terrestrial record (MN14), like Apocricetus cf. barrierei, Sivatherium, Gazella aff. baturra, and Hipparion fissurae. The Puerto de la Cadena site is located in a reversed geomagnetic chron that has been correlated with C3n.3r (from 4.997 to 4.896 Ma). According to this correlation, the MN13/MN14 boundary has a minimum age of 4.9 Ma., This research has also been supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (CGL2016-80000-P; CGL2015-68333-P; CGL2016-76431-P; FPDI-2013-18986), the Generalitat de Catalunya (CERCA Program, 2014 SGR 901 and 2014 SGR 416 GRC), and University of the Basque Country/EHU (GIU15/34). P.P. is supported by an FPU Predoctoral Fellowship (FPU12/02668) with the financial sponsorship of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, Spain.

Understanding past climate and the mechanisms of climate change remain major challenges in scientific research. The Mutual Ecogeographic Range (MER) method for climatic reconstruction uses the current geographical distribution of fossil assemblages to infer palaeoclimatic conditions. Current species distributions used in the MER method are usually obtained from biogeographic atlases that record the absence/presence of species in a 10 × 10 km grid. A 10 × 10 km area is quite broad and the method only records presence/absence, without considering the real area occupied by any given species. Thus, the method overlooks the fact that environmental heterogeneity is strongly related to topography, and climatic conditions may change abruptly over a few kilometres. To improve the accuracy of small vertebrate palaeoclimatic reconstructions derived from the MER method, we developed the UDA-ODA discrimination methodology, which is applied to stratigraphic units Xb and Upper Unit V from El Salt (Alcoi, Spain). We identified the Occupied Distribution Area (ODA), which denotes realistic occupied areas where the species may be present and the UDA (Uncertain Distribution Area) where the species may be absent. We achieved this by combining the species’ distribution recorded in the atlases and the species environmental requirements described in the literature. Climate values resulting from the MER method and our UDA-ODA discrimination methodology showed significant differences. Extrapolating values from areas that are more similar to the areas occupied by the different species today yielded more representative climatic parameters for the assemblage tested, resulting in a more accurate palaeoclimatic reconstruction. Moreover, the discrimination analysis proposed here allows us to work with species whose distribution is currently disturbed, which was not possible using the MER method.

The accurate timing of biogeographic dispersal can be determined by examining the age of fossiliferous strata on either side of a physical barrier. Here we show that African mammals migrated to Iberia and European mammals migrated to North Africa at the same time before isolation of the Mediterranean Sea during the Messinian. The fossil site of Venta del Moro (Spain) exhibits western Europe’s most complete vertebrate fauna for the latest Miocene. Its uniquely cosmopolitan assemblage is evidence of faunal dispersals from Africa and Asia to Europe during the latest Miocene glaciation. A preliminary paleomagnetic study suggested an age of 5.8 Ma for this site, but our expanded magnetostratigraphy dates the site at 6.23 Ma. In addition, we recalibrated the paleomagnetic age of the Librilla site (Spain) and the North Africa site of Afoud-1 (Morocco) using the Astronomical Tuned Neogene Time Scale. Our results show a two-way African-Iberian mammal dispersal just before 6.2 Ma. These new ages indicate that an ephemeral land corridor existed between the two continents 250 k.y. before the onset of the Messinian Salinity Crisis, reflecting a tentative initial isolation of the Mediterranean Sea. This corridor developed after tectonics closed the Betic Seaway at 6.3 Ma and during the intensification of the latest Miocene glaciation at 6.26 Ma, when water circulation in the Mediterranean became very restricted.

Apocricetus Freudenthal et al. (Treballs del Museu de Geologia de Barcelona 7: 11–93, 1998) is a medium to large Cricetinae, practically without mesolophids in the m1 and m2, with long third molars; anterior and posterior protolophule are present and the posterior metalophule is reduced or absent. Apocricetus barrierei (Mein and Michaux Comptes Rendus Academie de Sciences de Paris D 270: 2780–2783, 1970) was defined on the basis of three specimens from the French locality Chabrier. Apart from this site, several French and Spanish localities of Early Pliocene age contain remains of this species. Despite this extra material, the species is poorly characterized, and none of the localities contains material of all six dental elements. In this paper, two new assemblages from La Bullana 2B and La Bullana 3 (Cabriel Basin, Spain) are described. The rich assemblage from La Bullana 2B provides a better insight in the metrical and morphological variability of this species.

In this paper, a new species of Vasseuromys, V. bergasensis sp. nov., from the locality of Bergasa (Ebro Basin, Spain), is described. Bergasa contains a fauna belonging to the Late Oligocene (zone MP30), composed— among other species—of Issiodoromys pseudanaema and Rhodanomys transiens. The main diagnostic features of V. bergasensis sp. nov. are the presence of a long centrolophid (fused or not to the mesoconid) in the lower molars, a large reduction in thenumber and length of extra ridges in the upper and lower molars, the absence of extra ridges between metalophid and centrolophid and between centrolophid and mesolophid, and the absence of the metatrope in more than half the specimens of the upper teeth M1 and M2. V. bergasensis sp. nov. is similar in size to V. elegans and smaller than the other members of the genus. The age and simple dental pattern of the new species of Vasseuromys allow us to hypothesize about relationships within the genus.

The panda's false thumb is an iconic structure, described as one of the most shocking cases of anatomical convergence, and has been studied in many essays about evolution. However, in a recent paper in which we evaluated this feature within the Carnivora, we concluded that the developed radial sesamoid could be taken as a plesiomorphic character for at least the Arctoidea, rather than an anatomical convergence of the pandas (both red and giant). Following this argument, in this research we describe the action of a radial sesamoid as a real false thumb for the first time outside the mammalian carnivorans. The cricetid Sigmodon peruanus shows a very similar radial sesamoid compared to that of the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) but somehow relatively even more developed, compared to the other bones of the manus than in the latter, showing that the use of this structure as a opposable pincer is much more expanded in mammals than thought previously., This study was supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (CGL2011-25754, CGL2011-28681 and CGL2012-37866), the Generalitat de Catalunya (2014 SGR 416 GRC) and the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (BSCH-UCM910607).

The material of Eomyidae from three localities (Morteral 1, Morteral 20A and Morteral 22) of the Morteral section in the Magro Basin, eastern Spain, is described. These localities contain remains of Ligerimys and Eomyops. Morteral 1 is situated in the lowest part of the section and contains Ligerimys ellipticus, whereas Morteral 20A and Morteral 22 are situated in the middle part of the section and contain, among other rodent species, Eomyops noeliae. The youngest localities in the Morteral section (Morteral 41 and 44) record Megacricetodon collongensis, first representative of Megacricetodon in the Middle Miocene (MN5). The locality Morteral 20A contains Megacricetodon primitivus; Morteral 1 and Morteral 22 contain a form of Megacricetodon different from both M. primitivus and M. collongensis, therefore, these three localities are of lower Aragonian age (MN4). In the Aragonian type area, L. ellipticus is rare in zone B (lower part of MN4) and frequent in zone C (upper part of MN4). The first record of Eomyops in the Aragonian type area occurs in MN7/8 and in MN5 in Central Europe. The turnover of eomyid faunas in MN4 localities of the Morteral section clearly confirms the hypothesis of Engesser (1999) that Eomyops may have appeared earlier than supposed so far (MN5).

The present work provides for the first time a detailed description of teeth attributable to metatherians in the Miocene fossil record of Spain, and justifies their generic and specific ascription. The fossil elements found correspond to Amphiperatherium frequens, the last herpetotheriid that inhabited Europe. This is so far the southernmost occurrence of this species, thus showing that its geographic range extended further southward than previously thought.

A representative outcrop of the Messinian stromatolites belonging to the Terminal Carbonate Complex unit, from the northern sector of the Bajo Segura basin (Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo section, Sierra del Colmenar, SE Spain) has been studied. Here, we present a detailed analysis of the architecture, external morphology, and internal morphology in order to reconstruct the environmental and palaeoecological conditions for their growth. The stromatolites macrostructure consists of a continuously doming type morphology (build up and sheets areas).These developed close to the coast and acted as a palaeogeographic barrier, reducing physical stress, channeling the erosive effect of water and favoring restricted conditions. This stromatolitic macrostructure exhibits variations in its internal morphology, giving rise to seven subfacies, which are a product of the environmental changes experienced during the growth of the microbial mats. Although broadly suggesting a coastal environment, restricted and shallow during formation, the variation in internal morphology (mesostructure and microstructure) is evidence of minor changes in the physical environment that indicate a progressive shallowing. Fil: Villafañe, Patricio Guillermo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos; Argentina Fil: Corbí, Hugo. Universidad de Alicante; España Fil: Cónsole Gonella, Carlos Alfredo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Correlación Geológica. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Departamento de Geología. Cátedra Geología Estructural. Instituto Superior de Correlación Geológica; Argentina Fil: Ruiz Sánchez, Francisco Javier. Universidad de Valencia; España Fil: Soria, Jesús Miguel. Universidad de Valencia; España

A new species of Eomyops, Eomyops noeliae, is described. from the locality MT-20A (Morteral section, Magro basin, eastern Spain). It is intermediate in size between the large eomiid, E. hebeiseni, and the small species of the group E. catalaunicus, E. bodvanus and E. oppligeri. The age range is Lower Aragonian. MT-20A is located between deposits that contain Megacricetodon primitivus and M. collongensis. Morphologically, E. noeliae sp. nov. is clearly different from the rest of species of the genus, due to an important reduction of the lingual anteroloph of M1,2,3 and the labial anterolophid of M3. The lower incisor shows two parallel ridges along the enamel like the type species of the genus, E. catalaunicus. This character is basic for the distinction between Eomyops and the North American genus Leptodontomys.

In this paper, we describe a previously unknown species of the glirid Eliomys from the Late Miocene and Early Pliocene Cabriel, Alcoy and Granada basins of southeastern Spain. Eliomys yevesi sp. nov. is characterized by its relative small size, narrow lingual wall and common presence of two centrolophs in the upper molars, and well-developed centrolophids in the lower molars. The new species is the probable ancestor of E. intermedius, which in turn represents the ancestor of the extant E. quercinus. According to its morphologic and biometric features, the origin of E. yevesi sp. nov. is likely to be found in some population of E. truci from the Late Miocene. Based on these affinities, we propose the lineage E. truci–E. yevesi sp. nov.–E. intermedius–E. quercinus, in which there is a trend towards the development of centrolophs, as well as the reduction of accessory crests.

In the Gormaig area (Alcoy basin, SE Spain) a number of fossil mammal localities are known, of which only the classic site of Alcoy-Mina, known since the mid-19th century, has yielded remains of macrofauna. In the vicinity of this site are the localities of Alcoy-2C (AL2C) and Alcoy-2D (AL2D), probably representing the levels of Alcoy-Mina. The faunal assemblage allows dating the AL2C and AL2D localities as Early Pliocene (end of the Early Ruscinian or early-late Ruscinian boundary, MN14-MN15). Several taxa (Pliopetaurista and Glis) are thought to have affinities for humid and close biotopes. En el área del Gormaig (cuenca de Alcoy, SE España), se conocen toda una serie de yacimientos de mamíferos fósiles, de los cuales tan sólo la localidad clásica de Alcoy-Mina, conocida desde mediados del siglo XIX, ha aportado restos de macrofauna. En las proximidades de esta localidad se encuentran los yacimientos de Alcoy-2C (AL2C) y Alcoy-2D (AL2D), probablemente representando los niveles fosilíferos de Alcoy-Mina. La asociación faunística encontrada en AL2C y AL2D permite la datación de estas localidades como pertenecientes al Plioceno inferior (fin del Rusciniense inferior o límite Rusciniense inferior-superior, zona MN14-MN15). Varios taxones (Pliopetaurista y Glis) se consideran indicadores de biotopos cerrados de carácter húmedo.