Paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental context of the Early Pleistocene hominins from Dmanisi (Georgia, Lesser Caucasus) inferred from the herpetofaunal assemblage

Quaternary Science Reviews

Volumn 105, Issue , 2014, Pages 136-150

  Blain, Hugues Alexandre ^a,b   Agustí, Jordi ^a,b,c   Lordkipanidze, David ^d   Rook, Lorenzo ^e   Delfino, Massimo ^f,g  

^a INSTITUT CATALÀ DE PALEOECOLOGIA HUMANA I EVOLUCIÓ SOCIAL   (Spain)

^b UNIVERSITAT ROVIRA I VIRGILI   (Spain)

^c INSTITUCIÓ CATALANA DE RECERCA I ESTUDIS AVANÇATS ICREA   (Spain)

^d Georgian National Museum   (Georgia)

^e UNIVERSITY OF FLORENCE   (Italy)

^f UNIVERSITY OF TURIN   (Italy)

^g INSTITUT CATALÀ DE PALEONTOLOGIA MIQUEL CRUSAFONT   (Spain)

Author keywords

Dmanisi; Early Homo; Early Pleistocene; Herpetofauna; Paleoclimate; Paleoenvironment

Indexed keywords

DMANISI; EARLY HOMO; EARLY PLEISTOCENE; HERPETOFAUNA; PALEO-ENVIRONMENT; PALEOCLIMATES;

AMPHIBIAN; ARTIFACT; FOSSIL RECORD; HERPETOFAUNA; HOMINID; MEDITERRANEAN ENVIRONMENT; PALEOCLIMATE; PALEOENVIRONMENT; PALEOLITHIC; RECONSTRUCTION; REPTILE; SKELETAL REMAINS;

GEORGIA; UNITED STATES;

EID: 84908504604     PISSN: 02773791     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2014.10.004     Document Type: Article

References (92)

1. Agustí J. Synthèse biostratigraphique du Plio-Pleistocène de Guadix-Baza (province de Granada, Sud-Est de l'Espagne). Geobios 1986, 19:505-510.
2. Agustí J., Lordkipanidze D. How "African" was the early human dispersal out of Africa?. Quat. Sci. Rev. 2011, 30:1338-1342.
3. Agustí J., Blain H.-A., Cuenca-Bescós G., Bailon S. Climate forcing of first hominid dispersal in Western Europe. J.Hum. Evol. 2009, 57:815-821.
4. Agustí J., Blain H.-A., Furió M., De Marfá R., Santos-Cubedo A. The early Pleistocene small vertebrate succession from the Orce region (Guadix-Baza Basin, SE Spain) and its bearing on the first human occupation of Europe. Quatern. Int. 2010, 223-224:162-169.
5. Agustí J., Blain H.-A., Furió M., De Marfá R., Martínez-Navarro B., Oms O. Early Pleistocene environments and vertebrate dispersals in Western Europe: the case of Barranco de los Conejos (Guadix-Baza Basin, SE Spain). Quatern. Int. 2013, 295:59-68.
6. Amiranashvili N.G. Differences in shell morphology of Testudo graeca and Testudo hermanni, based on material from Bulgaria. Amphib. Reptil. 2000, 21:67-81.
7. Ananjeva N.B., Orlov N.L., Khalikov R.G., Darevsky I.S., Ryabov S.A., Barabanov A.V. The Reptiles of Northern Eurasia, Taxonomic Diversity, Distribution, Conservation Status. Pensoft Series Faunistica 47 2006, Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pensoft Publishers, Sofia, Bulgaria.
8. Arnold E.N. Relationships of the Palaearctic lizards assigned to the genera Lacerta, Algyroides and Psammodromus (Reptilia, Lacertidae). Bull. Br. Mus. Nat. Hist. Zool. 1973, 25:289-366.
9. Arnold E.N. Towards a phylogeny and biogeography of the Lacertidae: relationship within an Old-World family of lizards derived from morphology. Bull. Br. Mus. Nat. Hist. Zool. 1989, 55:209-257.
10. Arnold E.N., Arribas O., Carranza S. Systematics of the Palaearctic and Oriental lizard tribe Lacertini (Squamata: Lacertidae: Lacertinae), with descriptions of eight new genera. Zootaxa 2007, 1430:1-86.
11. Bailon S. Différenciation ostéologique des anoures (Amphibia, Anura) de France. Série C: Varia 1999, 41. Centre de Recherches Archéologiques-CNRS, Valbonne. J. Desse, N. Desse-Berset (Eds.).
12. Barahona F., Barbadillo L.J. Identification of some Iberian lacertids using skull characters. Rev. Esp. Herp. 1997, 11:47-62.
13. Barbadillo L.J., Sanz J.L. Análisis osteometrico de las regiones sacra y presacra de la columna vertebral en los lagartos ibéricos Lacerta viridis Laurenti, Lacerta lepida Daudin y Lacerta schreiberi Bedriaga. Amphib. Reptil. 1983, 4:215-239.
14. Blain H.-A. Amphibians and squamate reptiles from Azokh. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology Series 2014, (Chapter 9), Springer Monography, (in press). Y. Fernández-Jalvo, P. Andrews, T. King, L. Yepiskoposyan (Eds.).
15. Blain H.-A., Bailon S., Cuenca-Bescós G., Arsuaga J.L., Bermúdez De Castro J.M., Carbonell E. Long-term climate record inferred from Early-Middle Pleistocene amphibian and squamate reptile assemblages at the Gran Dolina cave, Atapuerca, Spain. J.Hum. Evol. 2009, 56:55-65.
16. Bruch A., Gabrielyan I.G. Quantitative data of the Neogene climatic development in Armenia and Nakhichevan. Acta Univ. Carol. Geol. 2002, 46:41-48.
17. Chkhikvadze V.M., Bakradze M. On the Systematic Position of the Recent Land Turtle from the Araxes Valley 1991, vol. 305:59-63. The Works of Tbilisi State University, (in Russian with English abstract).
18. Chkhikvadze V., Kharabadze E. Amphibians and reptiles from the early Pleistocene of Georgia. Abstracts, 14th Congress of INQUA, Berlin 1995, 48.
19. Currie D.J. Energy and large-scale patterns of animal- and plant-species richness. Am. Nat. 1991, 137:27-49.
20. Delfino M. Erpetofaune italiane del Neogene e del Quaternario 2002, (Ph.D. dissertation), Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Italy.
21. Delfino M. Neogene-Quaternary Herpetofaunas of Georgia: Taxonomy, Biochronology and Paleoenvironmental Evolution 2003, Final report for the CNR-NATO Outreach grant # 221.34 (16.01.2002). Unpublished.
22. Delfino M., Sala B. Late Pliocene albanerpetontids (Lissamphibia) from Italy. J.Vertebr. Paleontol. 2007, 27:716-719.
23. DeMenocal P. Plio-Pleistocene African climate. Science 1995, 270:53-59.
24. DeMenocal P. African climate change and faunal evolution during the Pliocene-Pleistocene. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 2004, 220:3-24.
25. Denk T., Frotzler N., Davitashvili N. Vegetational patterns and distribution of relict taxa in humid temperate forests and wetlands of Georgia (Transcaucasia). Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 2001, 72:287-332.
26. ENVSEC, Zoi Environment Network Climate Change in the South Caucasus: a Visual Synthesis 2011, (accessed 31.12.2012). http://www.envsec.org/publications/climatechangesouthcaucasus.pdf.
27. Fritz U., Havaš P. Checklist of chelonians of the world. Vertebr. Zool. 2007, 57:149-368.
28. Furió M., Agustí J., Mouskhelishvili A., Sanisidro O., Santo-Cubedo A. The paleobiology of the extinct venomous shrew Beremendia (Soricidae, Insectivora, Mammalia) in relation to the geology and paleoenvironment of Dmanisi (Early Pleistocene, Georgia). J.Vertebr. Paleontol. 2010, 30:928-942.
29. Gabunia L., Vekua A.K. La mandibule de l'homme fossile du Villafranchien supérieur de Dmanissi (Géorgie Orientale). L'Anthropologie 1995, 99:29-41.
30. Gabunia L., Vekua A., Lordkipanidze D. The ecological environment of the dmanisi hominid. Dmanisi 1998, vol. I:160-177. Georgian Academy of Sciences, Centre for Archaeological Studies, Dmanisi Historical-Archaeological Department, Metsniereba and Tbilisi, (in Georgian).
31. Gabunia L.K., Jöris O., Justus A., Lordkipanidze D., Muschelišvili A., Nioradze M., Swisher C.C., Vekua A.K. Neue Hominidenfunde des Altpaläolithischen Fundplatzes Dmanisi (Georgien, Kaukasus) im Kontext Aktueller Grabungsergebnisse. Archäologisches Korresp. 1999, 29:451-488.
32. Gabunia L., Vekua A., Lordkipanidze D. The environmental contexts of early human occupation of Georgia (Transcaucasia). J.Hum. Evol. 2000, 38:785-802.
33. Gabunia L., Vekua A., Lordkipanidze D., Ferring R., Justus A., Maisuradze G., Mouskhelishvili A., Nioradze M., Sologashvili D., Swisher C., Tvalchrelidze M. Current Research on the Hominid Site of Dmanisi. ERAUL. 92 2000, 13-27.
34. Gabunia L., Vekua A., Lordkipanidze D., Swisher C.C., Ferring R., Justus A., Nioradze M., Tvalcrelidze M., Anton S.C., Bosinski G., Jöris O., Lumley de M.A., Majsuradze G., Mouskhelishvili A. Earliest Pleistocene hominid cranial remains from Dmanisi, Republic of Georgia: taxonomy, geological setting, and age. Science 2000, 288:1019-1025.
35. Gabunia L., De Lumley M.-A., Vekua A., Lordkipanidze D., de Lumley H. Découverte d'un nouvel hominidé à Dmanissi (Transcaucasie, Géorgie). C.R. Pale 2002, 1:243-253.
36. Garcia T. Cadre stratigraphique, magnétostratigraphique et géochronologique des hominidés fossiles du site de Dmanissi en Géorgie 2004, (Ph.D. dissertation), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France.
37. Garcia T., Féraud G., Falguères C., Lumley de H., Perrenoud C., Lordkipanidze D. Earliest human remains in Eurasia: new 40Ar/39Ar dating of the Dmanisi hominid-bearing levels, Georgia. Quatern. Geochronol. 2010, 5:443-451.
38. Gasc J.P., Cabela A., Crnobrnja-Isailovic J., Dolmen D., Grossenbacher K., Haffner P., Lescure J., Martens H., Martinez Rica J.P., Maurin H., Oliviera E., Sofianidou T.S., Veith M., Zuiderwijk A. Atlas of Amphibians and Reptiles in Europe 1997, Societas Europea Herpetologica and Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris.
39. Hervet S. Tortues du Quaternaire de France: critères de détermination, répartitions chronologique et géographique. Mésogée 2000, 58:3-47.
40. Holman J.A. Pleistocene Amphibians and Reptiles in Britain and Europe. Oxford Monographs on Geology and Geophysics 1998, Oxford University Press, New York and Oxford.
41. Hüsing S.K., Agustí J., Garcés M., Kouwenhoven T.J., Krijgsman W., Oms O., Zachariasse W.J. On the late Miocene closure of the Mediterranean-Atlantic gateway though the Guadix basin (southern Spain). Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol. 2010, 291(3-4):167-179.
42. Joannin S., Cornée J.-J., Münch P., Fornari M., Vasiliev I., Krijgsman W., Nahapetyan S., Gabrielyan I., Ollivier V., Roiron P., Chataigner C. Early Pleistocene climate cycles in continental deposits of the Lesser Caucasus of Armenia inferred from palynology, magnetostratigraphy, and 40Ar/39Ar dating. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 2010, 291:149-158.
43. Kuzmin S.L. The Amphibians of the Former Soviet Union. Pensoft Series Faunistica No. 12 1999, Pensoft, Sofia, Bulgaria, and Moscow, Russia.
44. Kvavadze E., Vekua A. Vegetation and climate of the Dmanisi man period (East Georgia) from palynological data. Acta Palaeobot. 1993, 33:343-355.
45. Lapparent De Broin F.de African chelonians from the Jurassic to the present: phases of development and preliminary catalogue of the fossil record. Palaeontol. Afr. 2000, 36:43-82.
46. Larrasoaña J.C., Roberts A.P., Rohling E.J., Winklhofer M., Wehausen R. Three million years of monsoon variability over the northern Sahara. Clim. Dyn. 2003, 21:689-698.
47. Lordkipanidze D., Jashashvili T., Vekua A., Ponce De León M.S., Zollikofer C.P.E., Rightmire G.P., Pontzer H., Ferring R., Oms O., Tappen M., Bukhsianidze M., Agustí J., Kahlke R., Kiladze G., Martínez-Navarro B., Mouskhelishvili A., Nioradze M., Rook L. Postcranial evidence from early Homo from Dmanisi, Georgia. Nature 2007, 449:305-310.
48. Lordkipanidze D., Ponce De León M.S., Margvelashvili A., Rak Y., Rightmire G.P., Vekua A., Zollikofer C.P.E. Acomplete skull from Dmanisi, Georgia, and the evolutionary biology of early Homo. Science 2013, 342:326-331.
49. Lumley de H., Lordkipanidze D., Féraud G., Garcia T., Perrenoud C., Falguères C., Gagnepain J., Saos T., Voinchet P. Datation par la méthode 40Ar/39Ar de la couche de cendres volcaniques (couche VI) de Dmanissi (Géorgie) qui a livré des restes d'hominidés fossiles de 1.81Ma. C.R. Pale 2002, 1:181-189.
50. Maisuradze G., Pavlenisvili E., Schmincke H.-U., Sologasvili D. Paléomagnetik and Datierung der Basaltlava. Dans: der altpaläolithische Fundplatz Dmanisi in Georgian (Kaukasus). Jb. R. G. Z. Mainz 1989, 36:74-83.
51. Martinón-Torres M., Bermúdez De Castro J.M., Gómez-Robles A., Margvelashvili A., Prado L., Lordkipanidze D., Vekua A. Dental remains from Dmanisi (Republic of Georgia): morphological analysis and comparative study. J.Hum. Evol. 2008, 55:249-273.
52. Mashkour M., Monchot H., Trinkaus E., Reyss J.-L., Biglari F., Bailon S., Heydari S., Abdi K. Carnivores and their Prey in the Wezmeh Cave (Kermanshah, Iran): a Late Pleistocene Refuge in the Zagros. Int. J. Osteoarchaeol. 2009, 19:678-694.
53. Messager E. Apports des études paléobotaniques à la reconstitution paléoenvironnementale du site de Dmanissi et de sa région (Géorgie) 2006, (Ph.D. dissertation), Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France.
54. Messager E., Lordkipanidze D., Ferring C.R., Deniaux B. Fossil fruit identification by SEM investigations, a tool for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of Dmanisi site, Georgia. J.Archaeol. Sci. 2008, 35:2715-2725.
55. Messager E., Lordkipanidze D., Delhon C., Ferring C.R. Palaeoecological implications of the Lower Pleistocene phytolith record from the Dmanisi Site (Georgia). Paleogeogr. Paleoclimatol. Paleoecol. 2010, 288:1-13.
56. Messager E., Lordkipanidze D., Kvavadze E., Ferring C.R., Voinchet P. Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of Dmanisi site (Georgia) based on palaeobotanical data. Quat. Int. 2010, 223-224:20-27.
57. Messager E., Lebreton V., Marquer L., Russo-Ermolli E., Orain R., Renault-Miskovsky J., Lordkipanidze D., Despriée J., Peretto C., Arzarello M. Palaeoenvironments of early hominins in temperate and Mediterranean Eurasia: new palaeobotanical data from Palaeolithic key-sites and synchronous natural sequences. Quat. Sci. Rev. 2011, 30:1439-1447.
58. Muschelišvili A. Die Kleinfauna von Dmanisi. Jb. R. G. Z. Mainz 1995, 42:181-182.
59. Nakhutsrishvili G.S. The vegetation of Georgia (Caucasus). Braun-Blanquetia 1999, 15:1-68.
60. Önol B., Semazzi F.H.M. Regionalization of climate change simulations over the eastern mediterranean. J.Clim. 2009, 22:1944-1961.
61. Rage J.-C. The oldest known colubrid snakes. The state of the art. Acta Zool. Cracov. 1988, 31:457-474.
62. Rage J.-C. The lower vertebrates from the Eocene and Oligocene of the Phosphorites du Quercy (France): an overview. Strata, Série 1 2006, 13:161-173.
63. Rage J.-C. Mesozoic and Cenozoic squamates of Europe. Palaeobiodivers. Palaeoenviron. 2013, 93:517-534.
64. Rage J.-C., Roček Z. Evolution of anuran assemblages in the Tertiary and Quaternary of Europe, in the context of palaeoclimate and palaeogeography. Amphib. Reptil. 2003, 24:133-167.
65. Rage J.-C., Sen S. Les amphibiens et les reptiles du Pliocène supérieur de Çalta (Turquie). Géologie méditerranéenne 1976, 3:127-134.
66. Ratnikov V.Yu Fossil remains of Modern Amphibian and Reptile Species as the Material for Studying of Their Areas History. Science Research Works of the Geological Institute of Voronezh 2009, 59:1-91. (in Russian).
67. Rauscher K.L. Die Echsen [Lacertilia, Reptilia] aus dem Plio-Pleistozän von Bad Deutsch-Altenburg, Niederösterreich. Beitr. Paläont. 1992, 17:81-177.
68. Rightmire G.P., Lordkipanidze D., Vekua A. Anatomical descriptions, comparative studies and evolutionary significance of the hominin skulls from Dmanisi, Republic of Georgia. J.Hum. Evol. 2006, 50:115-141.
69. Roček Z. Mesozoic and Tertiary Anura of Laurasia. Palaeobiodivers. Palaeoenviron. 2013, 93:397-439.
70. Sanchíz B. La familia Bufonidae (Amphibia, Anura) en el Terciario europeo. Trab. Neógeno-Cuaternario 1977, 8:75-111.
71. Sanchíz B. Salientia. Handbuch der Paläoherpetologie 1998, tome 4. (München, Germany).
72. Schmincke H.-U., Van Den Bogaard P. Die Datierung des Masavera-Basaltlavastrom. Jb. R. G. Z. Mainz 1995, 42:75-76.
73. Sensoy S., Demircan M., Ulupinar U., Balta I. Climate of Turkey 2008, (accessed 31.12.2012). http://www.mgm.gov.tr/files/en-US/climateofturkey.pdf.
74. Sindaco R., Jeremčenko V. The Reptiles of the Western Palearctic. 1. Annotated Checklist and Distributional Atlas of the Turtles, Crocodiles, Amphisbaenians and Lizards of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and Central Asia. Monografie Della Societas Herpetologica Italica I 2008, Belvedere, Latina.
75. Sindaco R., Venchi A., Grieco C. The Reptiles of the Western Palearctic. 2. Annotated Checklist and Distributional Atlas of the Snakes of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and Central Asia, with an Update to the vol. 1. Monografie Della Societas Herpetologica Italica II 2013, Belvedere, Latina.
76. Speybroeck J., Beukema W., Crochet P.A. Atentative species list of the European herpetofauna (Amphibia and Reptilia)-an update. Zootaxa 2010, 2492:1-27.
77. Stöck M., Moritz C., Hickerson M., Frynta D., Dujsebayeva T., Eremchenko V., Macey J.R., Papenfuss T.J., Wake D.B. Evolution of mitochondrial relationships and biogeography of Palearctic green toads (Bufo viridis subgroup) with insights in their genomic plasticity. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 2006, 41:663-689.
78. Stöck M., Sicilia A., Belfiore N.M., Buckley D., Lo Brutto S., Lo Valvo M., Arculeo M. Post-Messinian evolutionary relationships across the Sicilian channel: mitochondrial and nuclear markers link a new green toad from Sicily to African relatives. BMC Evol. Biol. 2008, 8:56.
79. Szyndlar Z. Fossil snakes from Poland. Acta Zool. Cracov. 1984, 28:1-156.
80. Szyndlar Z. Areview of Neogene and Quaternary snakes of Central and eastern Europe. Part I: Scolecophidia, Boidae, Colubrinae. Estud. Geol. 1991, 47:103-126.
81. Szyndlar Z. Areview of Neogene and Quaternary snakes of Central and eastern Europe. Part II: Natricinae, Elapidae,Viperidae. Estud. Geol. 1991, 47:237-266.
82. Szyndlar Z. Oligocene snakes of southern Germany. J.Vertebr. Paleontol. 1994, 14:24-37.
83. Szyndlar Z. Early Oligocene to Pliocene Colubridae of Europe: a review. Bull. Soc. Geol. Fr. 2012, 183:661-681.
84. Tiedemann R., Sarnthein M., Shackleton N.J. Astronomic timescale for the Pliocene Atlantic d18O and dust flux records of ODP Site 659. Paleoceanography 1994, 9:619-638.
85. Trauth M.H., Maslin M.A., Deino A., Strecker M.R. Late Cenozoic moisture history of east Africa. Science 2005, 309:2051-2053.
86. Trauth M.H., Maslin M.A., Deino A.L., Bergner M.L., Strecker M.R., Bergner A.G.N., Dühnforth M. High- and low-latitude controls and East African forcing of Plio-Pleistocene East African climate and early human evolution. J.Hum. Evol. 2007, 53:475-486.
87. Trauth M.H., Larrasoaña J.C., Mudelsee M. Trends, rhythms and events in Plio-Pleistocene African climate. Quat. Sci. Rev. 2009, 28:399-411.
88. Vekua A. Die Wirbeltierfauna des Villafranchium von Dmanisi und ihre biostratigraphische Bedeutung. Jb. R. G. Z. Mainz 1995, 42:77-180.
89. Venczel M., Sen S. Pleistocene amphibians and reptiles from Emirkaya-2, Turkey. Herpetol. J. 1994, 4:159-165.
90. Venczel M., Várdai G. The genus Elaphe in the Carpathian Basin: fossil record. Nymphaea, Folia Naturae Bihariae 2000, 28:65-82.
91. Volodicheva N. The caucasus. The Physical Geography of Northern Eurasia 2002, 350-376. Oxford, London. M. Shahgedanova (Ed.).
92. Zangerl R. The turtle shell. Morphology A 1969, vol. I:311-339. Academic Press, London and New York. C. Gans, D. Bellairs, T.S. Parson (Eds.).