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Taxonomy, paleoecology and taphonomy of ground sloths (Xenarthra) from the Fairmead Landfill locality (Pleistocene: Irvingtonian) of Madera County, California

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

H. Gregory McDonald ,
Robert G. Dundas  and
James C. Chatters
H. Gregory McDonald*
Affiliation:
Park Museum Management Program, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80525, USA
Robert G. Dundas
Affiliation:
Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences, California State University, Fresno, CA 93740, USA
James C. Chatters
Affiliation:
Applied Paleoscience, 10322 NE 190th St., Bothell, WA 98011, USA
*
*Corresponding author.Fax: + 1 970 225 3574. E-mail addresses:Greg_McDonald@nps.gov (H.G. McDonald),rdundas@csufresno.edu (R.G. Dundas), paleosci@gmail.com (J.C. Chatters).
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Abstract

The Fairmead Landfill locality contains a diverse middle Irvingtonian, (0.78–0.55 Ma), vertebrate fauna that includes three sloths, Megalonyx wheatleyi, Nothrotheriops shastensis and Paramylodon harlani. The co-occurrence of these three genera in a single fauna is relatively rare in both the Irvingtonian and Rancholabrean and this is only the fourth documented Irvingtonian fauna to contain all three sloth genera. The presence of the three different sloths, each of which had different ecological requirements, indicates the presence of a variety of different habitats at this time and a heterogeneous landscape. Preliminary analysis of pollen from the site supports the interpretation of the existence of a mosaic of plant communities, but a landscape dominated by a mesic grassland. This interpretation is also supported by the total faunal diversity that includes taxa associated with woodlands as well as open habitat and taphonomic differences in the preservation and relative abundance of the different sloths. Evolutionarily the Fairmead Landfill sloths show a suite of morphological, size and proportional characters that indicate they represent transitional populations between older and younger members of their respective lineages.

Keywords

MegalonyxNothrotheriopsParamylodonSlothsFairmead LandfillIrvingtonianPleistoceneMaderaCalifornia
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 79 , Issue 2 , March 2013 , pp. 215 - 227
Copyright
University of Washington

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