Somssich Hill no. 2: Early/Lower Pleistocene, Hungary

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
unclassified
Carassius sp.
Chaus sp.
Angiospermae - Rosales - Ulmaceae
Celtis sp. Linnaeus 1753
Osteichthyes
Osteichthyes indet. Huxley 1880
Amphibia - Temnospondyli
Anura indet. (Fischer von Waldheim 1813)
Reptilia - Anguidae
Ophisaurus sp. Daudin 1803
Reptilia - Ophidia
Ophidia indet. Latreille 1804
Reptilia - Anseriformes - Anatidae
Anatidae indet. Vigors 1825
Anser subanser
Reptilia - Piciformes - Picidae
Dendrocopos submajor
Picus cf. viridis Linnaeus 1758
Reptilia - Strigiformes - Strigidae
Surnia robusta Jánossy 1977
Athene noctua (Scopoli 1769)
A. noctua cf. lunellensis
Reptilia - Passeriformes
Passeriformes indet. Linnaeus 1758
Reptilia - Passeriformes - Hirundinidae
Hirundo cf. rustica Linnaeus 1758
Reptilia - Passeriformes - Alaudidae
Galerida cf. cristata (Linnaeus 1758)
Reptilia - Phasianidae
Coturnix cf. coturnix (Linnaeus 1758)
Lyrurus partium Kretzoi 1962
Reptilia - Falconidae
Falco cf. vespertinus Linnaeus 1766
Falco tinnunculus Linnaeus 1758
F. tinnunculus atavus
Reptilia - Testudines - Emydidae
Emys orbicularis (Linnaeus 1758)
Mammalia - Chiroptera
Chiroptera indet. Blumenbach 1779
Mammalia - Primates - Cercopithecidae
Macaca sp. Lacépède 1799
Mammalia - Rodentia - Sciuridae
Citellus primigenius
synonym of Spermophilus
Mammalia - Rodentia - Zapodidae
Sicista praeloriger Kormos 1930
Mammalia - Rodentia - Muridae
Apodemus sylvaticus (Linnaeus 1758)
original and current combination Mus sylvaticus
Mammalia - Rodentia - Cricetidae
Microtus arvalinus
Microtus gregalis
Microtus ratticepoides
Pitymys arvalidens
synonym of Microtus
Pitymys gregaloides
synonym of Microtus
Myodes sp. Pallas 1811
    = Clethrionomys sp. Tilesius 1850
Janossy 1986
synonym of Myodes
Lemmus sp. Link 1795
Mimomys savini
Mimomys sp. Forsyth-Major 1902
small species
Allocricetus sp. Schaub 1930
Lagurus arankae
Lemmus arankae-pannonicus group
Cricetus cricetus (Linnaeus 1758)
C. C. runtonensis
Cricetulus sp. Milne-Edwards 1867
Pliomys episcopalis
Mammalia - Rodentia - Gliridae
Glis sackdillingensis Heller 1930
Dryomimus eliomyoides Kretzoi 1959
Mammalia - Rodentia - Castoridae
Trogontherium sp. Fischer von Waldheim 1809
Mammalia - Lagomorpha - Leporidae
Lepus terraerubrae
Mammalia - Lagomorpha - Ochotonidae
Ochotona sp. Link 1795
Mammalia - Erinaceidae
Erinaceus cf. praeglacialis Brunner 1933
Mammalia - Talpidae
Talpa fossilis Petenyi 1864
Desmana thermalis Kormos 1930
Mammalia - Soricidae
Crocidura obtusa
Beremendia fissidens (Petényi 1864)
Episoriculus sp. Ellerman and Morrison-Scott 1951
Sorex minutus Linnaeus 1766
Sorex runtonensis Hinton 1911
Mammalia - Carnivora - Mustelidae
Lutra sp. Brisson 1762
Meles atavus
Mammalia - Carnivora - Felidae
Felis cf. lunensis Martelli 1906
Leo gombaszoegensis Kretzoi 1938
    = Panthera gombaszoegensis Kretzoi 1938
O'Regan 2003
Mammalia - Carnivora - Canidae
Canis mosbachensis Soergel 1925
Vulpes sp. Frisch 1775
Mammalia - Cervidae
Capreolus cf. suessenbornensis
Cervus sp. Linnaeus 1758
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Equidae
Asinus sp. Gray 1822
synonym of Equus
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
aff. Rhinoceros "etruscus" Falconer 1868
    = aff. Dicerorhinus etruscus Falconer 1868
O'Regan 2003
    = aff. Stephanorhinus etruscus Falconer 1868
O'Regan 2003
Gastropoda
Gastropoda indet. Cuvier 1795
Bivalvia
Bivalvia indet. Linnaeus 1758
see common names

Geography
Country:Hungary State/province:Barany
Coordinates: 45.9° North, 18.5° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:45.8° North, 18.4° East
Basis of coordinate:based on nearby landmark
Altitude:180 meters
Time
Period:Quaternary Epoch:Pleistocene
10 m.y. bin:Cenozoic 6
Key time interval:Early/Lower Pleistocene
Age range of interval:2.58000 - 0.77400 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Stratigraphy comments: Late Lower Pleistocene, Biharian.
Lithology and environment
Lithology description: 'In contrast with similar localities in the Villany mountains, this loessy sediment was definitely light yellow in colour.'
Geology comments: 'the site was made up of a hollow filling left by quarrying of Malm (Oxfordian) limestone.'
Taphonomy
Size of fossils:macrofossils,mesofossils
Collection methods and comments
Collection methods:bulk,field collection
Reason for describing collection:biostratigraphic analysis
Collection method comments: Excavated in 'layers in a 1 by 2m portion of the sediment in 1975. In the course of yearly excavations we reached a depth of 6m in 1981.'
'to a depth of about 5m the homogeneous loess did not change its colour, although from about 2m, compact freshwater limestone (calcite) deposits impeded the work. Around a depth of 6m the sediment started changing colour to brownish-red. All the 20-30cm thick layers removed contained small vertebrate remains in statistically analysable quantities. Preliminary analysis of this material showed that the relative abundance of Pitymys arvalidens decreased from 65-75% in the upper layer to 4% in the lower layers, while that of Lagurus increased to 65%. Further down the relative abundance of the two species became equal. Layer no. 29, slightly more reddish in colour, contained the only primate specimen (Macaca sp.) whereas layer no. 30, similar in colour and consistency, contained the only tooth remain of the lemming (Lemmus sp.).'
Taxonomic list comments:This is a preliminary list, disregarding stratification and based on several thousand finds.
Metadata
Also known as:Somssichhegy 2
Database number:35457
Authorizer:A. Turner Enterer:H. O'Regan
Modifier:H. O'Regan Research group:PACED
Created:2003-12-16 02:56:32 Last modified:2003-12-16 05:21:38
Access level:the public Released:2003-12-16 02:56:32
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:
9534.PACED D. Janossy. 1986. Pleistocene vertebrate faunas of Hungary. Developments in Palaeontology and Stratigraphy, 8. Elsevier, Amsterdam 1-208 [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/H. O'Regan]

Secondary references:

9580PACED H. J. O'Regan. 2003. Reidentifications and synonomies of European mammals. [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/M. Uhen]