10.5479/si.1943-6688.103
William W. Korth
William
W. Korth
Robert J. Emry
Robert J.
Emry
Clint A. Boyd
Clint
A. Boyd
Jeff J. Person
Jeff J.
Person
Rodents (Mammalia) from Fitterer Ranch, Brule Formation (Oligocene), North Dakota
The Smithsonian Institution
2019
rodents
mammalia
North Dakota, USA
Prosciurus
Altasciurus
Heliscomys
Eumys
Paleontology
2019-09-12 14:34:51
Book
https://smithsonian.figshare.com/articles/book/Rodents_Mammalia_from_Fitterer_Ranch_Brule_Formation_Oligocene_North_Dakota/9761732
Eighteen rodent species are recognized from the Fitterer Ranch fauna of North Dakota on the basis of more than a thousand collected specimens. Of the species recognized, four are new: the prosciurine aplodontiids <em>Prosciurus hogansoni </em>and <em>Altasciurus leonardi</em>, the heliscomyid <em>Heliscomys borealis, </em>and the cricetid <em>Eumys lammersi</em>.<br>A previously described castorid from this fauna, <em>Oligotheriomys primus </em>Korth, 1998, is considered a synonym of “<em>Eutypomys</em>” <em>magnus </em>Wood, 1937, on the basis of the recovery of lower dentitions but is retained in the genus <em>Oligotheriomys</em>. A single specimen is questionably referred to <em>Microparamys</em>, a genus elsewhere limited to the Eocene (Clarkforkian-Chadronian land mammal ages). The rodent fauna appears to be a combination of predominantly Orellan and Whitneyan species (early Oligocene), suggesting that the section might transcend the Orellan-Whitneyan boundary. However, the rodent fauna does not alter significantly from the lowest to the highest horizons.
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