Micromamíferos miocenos de Jebel Zelten, Libia

Abstract

Small mammal remains from seven localities were collected during two geological/paleontological field campaigns (1983 and 1997). The assemblages are small, but the twelve species recognized and described represent seven rodent families, one lagomorph and one bat family. The Jebel Zelten (large) mammal fauna was considered in most literature to represent one time-slice, although the interpretation of its age has been diverse. On basis of the evolutionary stage of the small mammal species, the faunal compositions and the stratigraphic sequence we conclude that the Jebel Zelten assemblages represent three periods in time and cover approximately 4 million years. Three assemblages can be assigned to the Middle Early Miocene (18-19 Ma), one to the Late Early Miocene (16-17) and two to the Middle Miocene (14-15Ma).