Vallonnet Cave bed 2, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Alpes Maritimes (Pleistocene of France)

Where: Alpes Maritimes, France (43.8° N, 7.5° E: paleocoordinates 43.8° N, 7.3° E)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

When: 2 Member, Early/Lower Pleistocene (2.6 - 0.8 Ma)

• Middle Early Pleistocene, between 1.37 and the Jaramillo event.

Environment/lithology: cave

• 5 stratigraphic units at the site, making a total depth of 1.5m of sediment. This level of the cave indicates a marine transgression.
• marine sands.

Size classes: mesofossils, microfossils

Collection methods: This level was formed in a drier and much warmer climate than today. Probably formed during one of the warmest transgressive seas in the second half of the Lower Pleistocene.

Primary reference: H. de Lumley. 1988. La stratigraphie du remplissage de la Grotte du Vallonnet. L'Anthropologie (Paris) 92(2):407-428 [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/H. O'Regan]more details

Purpose of describing collection: general faunal/floral analysis

PaleoDB collection 50523: authorized by Alan Turner, entered by Hannah O'Regan on 17.05.2005, edited by Wolfgang Kiessling

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• Several ancient foraminifera - Textularia turris, Arenobulimina sp. Uvigerina sp., Globotruncana sp. suggest that there are ?Turolian (Turoniennes) marls nearby.
unclassified
  -
Nodosariata
 Polymorphinida - Polymorphinidae
Globothalamea
 Rotaliida - Asterigerinatidae
 Rotaliida - Cibicididae
 Rotaliida - Nonionidae
 Rotaliida - Anomalinidae
Foraminifera
 Rotalioidea - Elphidiidae
 Lituolida - Lituolidae
 Globigerinoidea - Globigerinidae
Globigerina sp. d'Orbigny 1826
 Hormosinacea - Hormosinidae
Reophax sp. Montfort 1808
 Rotaliina - Cassidulinidae
 Asterigerinacea - Asterigerinidae
 Rotaliina - Bolivinidae
 Rotaliacea - Rotaliidae
Angiospermae
 Sapindales - Sapindaceae
 Fabales - Fabaceae
 Fagales - Juglandaceae
Pterocarya sp. Kunth 1824 wingnut
Juglans sp. Linnaeus 1753 walnut
 Vitales - Vitaceae
Vitis vinifera grapevine
Dicotyledoneae
 Myrtales - Myrtaceae
Angiospermae
 Lamiales - Oleaceae
Olea sp. Linnaeus 1753 olive
 Laurales - Lauraceae
Anthozoa
 Gorgonacea -
Gastropoda
 Trochoidea - Turbinidae
"Bolma rugosa" = Bolma rugosus
"Bolma rugosa" = Bolma rugosus Linnaeus 1767 snail
 Lepetellida - Haliotidae
Haliotis sp. Linnaeus 1758 abalone
 Cerithioidea - Cerithiidae
Gourmya vulgata cerith snail
= Cerithium vulgartum
 Sorbeoconcha - Vermetidae
Vermetus sp., "Bivonia cristata" = Vermetus (Bivonia)
Vermetus sp. Daudin 1800 worm shell
"Bivonia cristata" = Vermetus (Bivonia) worm shell
= Vermetus cristatus
 Patellogastropoda - Patellidae
Patella rustica limpet
= Patella lusitanica
Patella caerulea Linnaeus 1758 limpet
Bivalvia
 Arcida - Arcidae
Arca sp. Linnaeus 1758 ark
 Pectinida - Pectinoidae
"Chlamys varia" = Chlamys (Chlamys) varia Linnaeus 1758 scallop
"Chlamys multistriata" = Talochlamys multistriata Poli 1795 scallop
Spondylus aff. gaederopus Linnaeus 1758 scallop
 Ostreida - Gryphaeidae
"Gryphaea virleti" = Hyotissa virleti
"Gryphaea virleti" = Hyotissa virleti Deshayes 1832 oyster
 Ostreida - Ostreidae
Ostreidae indet., "Gryphaea cucullata" = Saccostrea cuccullata
Ostreidae indet. Rafinesque 1815 oyster
"Gryphaea cucullata" = Saccostrea cuccullata Born 1778 oyster
 Mytilida - Mytilidae
Lithophaga aff. lithophaga Linnaeus 1758 mussel
 Pholadida - Teredinidae
Gymnolaemata
 Cheilostomata - Phidoloporidae
"Retepora aff. cellulosa" = Reteporella
"Retepora aff. cellulosa" = Reteporella
Malacostraca
 Decapoda - Eriphiidae
Eriphia spinifrons Herbst 1785 crab
Thecostraca
 Balanomorpha - Balanidae
Balanus sp. Da Costa 1778 barnacle
Echinoidea
 Cidaroida - Cidaridae
Cidaris cidaris pencil urchin
 Camarodonta - Toxopneustidae
 Camarodonta - Echinidae
Chondrichthyes
 Myliobatiformes - Myliobatidae
Myliobatis aquila Linnaeus 1758 eagle ray
 Lamniformes - Carchariidae
"Odontaspis taurus" = Carcharias taurus
"Odontaspis taurus" = Carcharias taurus Rafinesque 1810 sand shark
Actinopteri
 Acanthomorphata - Sciaenidae
Pristipoma sp. Agassiz 1835
 Labriformes - Labridae
 Tetraodontiformes - Diodontidae
Chilomycterus sp. Brisout de Barneville 1846
 Perciformes - Sparidae
Sparus auratus perch-like fish
 Anguilliformes - Muraenidae