Cerro La Bota (Neogene of Argentina)

Also known as Zone of Chasichimys bonaerense

Where: La Pampa, Argentina (37.4° S, 65.5° W: paleocoordinates 37.6° S, 63.2° W)

• coordinate stated in text

• outcrop-level geographic resolution

When: Cerro Azul Formation, Huayquerian (8.0 - 5.0 Ma)

• Early late Miocene

•The stratotype is the lower level of the Cerro Azul Formation outcropping at this locality

•Montalvo et al. 2019: The revision of the vertebrate assemblage from this locality, as well as new geomorphologic and sedimentological interpretations of the Cerro Azul Formation in the area, confirms the previous assignation to the Chasicoan age.

•Prevosti et al. 2023: Between 9 and ca. 7.7 Ma, there is a transitional fauna, represented by the assemblages retrieved from Cerro Patagua, Cerro La Bota, and Algarrobo del Águila, with taxa already recorded in the Chasicoan fauna and the appearance of four taxa ca. 8 Ma that reach at least 7.3 Ma. These are “Orthomyctera”, Proeuphractus limpidus, Macrochorobates scalabrinii, and Tetrastylus laevigatus, possibly representing the first instances of the beginning of the “Huayquerian” fauna. We did not consider Cerro La Bota as part of the Chasicoan fauna but as representative of a transition between the Chasicoan fauna and the “Huayquerian” fauna, together with Cerro Patagua and Algarrobo del Águila (cf. Contreras et al., 2013).

Environment/lithology: fluvial; lithified, massive, red, sandy siltstone and lithified, medium-grained, sandy conglomerate

• Montalvo et al. 2019: Sedimentological and stratigraphic descriptions of the Cerro Azul Formation at Cerro La Bota locality were originally performed by Goin et al. (2000). These authors interpreted that the levels cropping out in this site represent ephemeral fluvial deposits. We propose here a new interpretation (Fig. 2) by recognizing two facies associations: loess-palaeosol association (FA1) and fluvial deposits association (FA2).

•The amalgamated conglomeradic–sandy bodies suggest the episodic development of perennial streams without flow division on a loessic substrate.

•Schmidt et al. 2018: Levels of Cerro Azul formation at Cerro La Bota represent an ephemeral fluvial event (Goin et al. 2000; Verzi et al. 2008).

• The Cerro Azul formation is composed of massive brown reddish sandy silts, with loessic erosion. A detailed description of the geology and stratigraphy of this formation can be seen in Linares et al. (1980) and Goin et al. (2000).

•Montalvo et al. 2019: The FA1 crops out in the lower part of the studied section and is 1.7 m thick (Fig. 2). It includes sheet-like strata with non-erosive bases, composed of massive and commonly very fine-grained siltstones (facies Fsm) with root traces (facies P).The FA2 is 2.2 m thick and overlays FA1 deposits with erosive contact (Fig. 2). It is constituted by a lateral and vertical erosive superposition of sandstone (facies St) and conglomeratic (facies Gt) bodies.

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Collection methods: Montalvo et al. 2019: specimens recovered belong to the Paleontological Collection of the Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de La Pampa (La Pampa Province, Argentina).

•Esteban, et al. 2000: Todos los ejemplares analizados están depositados en

•la Cátedra de Geología Histórica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales de la Universidad Nacional ele La Pampa, Argentina, cuyo acrónimo es GHUNLPam

Primary reference: D. H. Verzi, C. I. Montalvo, and C. M. Deschamps. 2008. Biostratigraphy and biochronology of the Late Miocene of central Argentina: Evidence from rodents and taphonomy. Geobios 41:145-155 [C. Jaramillo/M. Vallejo]more details

Purpose of describing collection: biostratigraphic analysis

PaleoDB collection 152063: authorized by Carlos Jaramillo, entered by Maria Vallejo on 05.11.2013, edited by Grace Varnham, Miranta Kouvari and Kateryn Pino

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

unclassified
  -
Reptilia
 Squamata - Colubridae
"Colubridae" indet.4 Oppel 1811 colubrid snake
Mammalia
  -
Mammalia indet.3 Linnaeus 1758 mammal
 Cingulata - Dasypodidae
Vetelia perforata4 Scillato-Yané 1977 armadillo
Macrochorobates scalabrinii Moreno and Mercerat 1891 armadillo
Eutatini indet.4 armadillo
Doellotatus inornatus4 Rovereto 1914 armadillo
Chasicotatus ameghinoi Scillato-Yané 1977 armadillo
Euphractini indet.4 Winge 1923 armadillo
Chorobates villosissimus4 Reig 1958 armadillo
Proeuphractus sp.4 Ameghino 1886 armadillo
Proeuphractus limpidus4 Ameghino 1886 armadillo
Zaedyus pichiy1 Desmarest 1804 pichi
 Cingulata - Pampatheriidae
Kraglievichia sp.4 Castellanos 1927 edentate
 Cingulata - Glyptodontidae
Glyptodontinae indet.4 Gray 1869 glyptodon
 Cingulata - Chlamyphoridae
Chlamyphorinae indet.3 Bonaparte 1850 edentate
 Megatherioidea - Megatheriidae
? Anisodontherium indet.4 Brandoni and De Iuliis 2007 edentate
? Anisodontherium sp.3 Brandoni and De Iuliis 2007 edentate
 Notoungulata - Toxodontidae
Toxodontidae indet.4 Ameghino 1889 notoungulate
Hemixotodon chasicoensis4 Cabrera and Kraglievich 1931 notoungulate
 Notoungulata - Hegetotheriidae
Paedotherium minor4 Cabrera 1937 notoungulate
Tremacyllus impressus4 Ameghino 1888 notoungulate
Hemihegetotherium torresi4 Cabrera and Kraglievich 1931 notoungulate
Hemihegetotherium torresi7 Cabrera and Kraglievich 1931 notoungulate
GHUNLPam 351, GHUNLPam 5303, GHUNLPam 5307, GHUNLPam 5307, GHUNLPam 6983, GHUNLPam 21975
 Notoungulata - Interatheriidae
Protypotherium minutum4 Cabrera and Kraglievich 1931 notoungulate
 Notoungulata - Mesotheriidae
Typotheriopsis chasicoensis4 Cabrera and Kraglievich 1931 notoungulate
 Panameriungulata - Proterotheriidae
Proterotheriidae indet.6 Ameghino 1887 placental
Proterotheriinae indet.5 Ameghino 1885 placental
 Rodentia - Dinomyidae
Dinomyidae indet.4 Peters 1873 caviomorph
Tetrastylus sp.4 Ameghino 1886 caviomorph
 Rodentia - Caviidae
Caviidae indet.4 Gray 1821 caviomorph
cf. Procardiomys indet.4 Pascual 1961 caviomorph
cf. Procardiomys sp.3 Pascual 1961 caviomorph
cf. Orthomyctera indet.4 Ameghino 1889 caviomorph
cf. Orthomyctera sp.3 Ameghino 1889 caviomorph
 Rodentia - Chinchillidae
Lagostomus sp.4 Brookes 1828 viscacha
Lagostomus telenkechanum2 Rasia and Candela 2017 viscacha
GHUNLPam 5986 left mandible with i and p4-m3
 Rodentia -
Octodontoidea indet.4 Waterhouse 1839 caviomorph
Octodontoidea "indet. 1"4 Waterhouse 1839 caviomorph
Octodontoidea "indet. 2"4 Waterhouse 1839 caviomorph
cf. Chasichimys indet.4 Pascual 1967 caviomorph
cf. Chasichimys sp.3 Pascual 1967 caviomorph
Chasichimys bonaerense Pascual 1967 caviomorph
 Rodentia - Octodontidae
Octodontidae indet.3, "Metacaremys primitiva" = Metacaremys primitiva3, "Cercomys primitiva" = Metacaremys primitiva4
Octodontidae indet.3 Waterhouse 1839 caviomorph
"Metacaremys primitiva" = Metacaremys primitiva3 Piñero et al. 2021 caviomorph
GHUNLPam 5969, 6922, 6925, 6926, 6927, 6928, 6929, 21984, 21986, 21987, 21989
"Cercomys primitiva" = Metacaremys primitiva4 Piñero et al. 2021 caviomorph
 Rodentia - Echimyidae
"Cercomys" sp.4 Cuvier 1829 spiny rat
 Theriamorpha -
Metatheria indet.4 metatherian
 Marsupialia -
Didelphimorphia indet.3 Gill 1872 marsupial