<i>Caiman</i> cf. <i>Latirostris</i> (Alligatoridae, caimaninae) in the Late Miocene Palo Pintado Formation, Salta province, Argentina: paleogeographic and paleoenvironmental considerations
The three recognized species of Caiman —C. latirostris, C. yacare and C. crocodilus— currently live in northern and central South America. Except for the fragmentary dentary of a putative Caiman from Oligocene rocks in Brazil, the genus has been reliably recorded in rocks of ages spanning the Neogen...
| Autores: | , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2014 |
| País: | Argentina |
| Institución: | Universidad Nacional de La Plata |
| Repositorio: | SEDICI (UNLP) |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:sedici.unlp.edu.ar:10915/126063 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/126063 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Ciencias Naturales Crocodylia Caiman Neogene Salta Province Argentina |
| Sumario: | The three recognized species of Caiman —C. latirostris, C. yacare and C. crocodilus— currently live in northern and central South America. Except for the fragmentary dentary of a putative Caiman from Oligocene rocks in Brazil, the genus has been reliably recorded in rocks of ages spanning the Neogene, when species of Caiman were a constant component of the South American crocodyliofauna. The major taxonomical diversification of Caiman occurred during the late Miocene, which is well documented in the area of Parana (northeastern Argentina). Fossil crocodylians in Parana are represented by one gavialid and caimanines, with at least five species of Caiman (including C. latirostris). This assemblage represents the southernmost record of Crocodylia living in “Amazonia” during the Miocene. In this work we confirm the record of Miocene caimans outside the Parana and we prove the presence of Caiman cf. latirostris in present-day northwestern Argentina during the late Miocene. The taxonomic identificatio... |
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