Hullot Manon, Martin Céline, Blondel Cécile, Becker Damien, Rössner Gertrud E
Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie, Staatliche Naturwissenschaftliche Sammlungen Bayerns, Munich 80333, Germany.
Centre de recherche en paléontologie Paris, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Paris 75005, France.
R Soc Open Sci. 2024 Oct 9;11(10):240987. doi: 10.1098/rsos.240987. eCollection 2024 Oct.
The Oligocene-Miocene transition witnessed great environmental and faunal changes, spanning from late Oligocene to early Miocene (MP28-MN3). Its drivers and consequences on mammals are, however, poorly understood. Rhinocerotoids are among the most affected taxa, reflected by great taxonomical and morphological changes. However, potential associated changes in ecology have not been explored. Here, we investigated the palaeoecology of 10 rhinocerotid species coming from 15 localities across Western Europe and ranging from MP28 to MN3. We explored evolutionary trends for diet, physiology and habitat via dental wear, hypoplasia, body mass and stable isotopy. All rhinocerotids studied were C3 feeders, whether browsing or mixed-feeding, but clear dietary differences were observed at some localities and between Oligocene and Miocene rhinocerotids. The prevalence of hypoplasia was low (less than 10%) to moderate (less than 20%), but there were great differences by loci, species and localities. Body mass covaried with hypoplasia prevalence, suggesting that larger species might be more susceptible to stresses and environmental changes. We reconstructed similar warm conditions at all localities except Gaimersheim, but found greater variations in precipitation. Indeed, a clear shift in δC values was noticed at the end of the Oligocene, consistent with climatic and vegetation changes reported at that time.
渐新世 - 中新世过渡时期见证了巨大的环境和动物群变化，时间跨度从渐新世晚期到中新世早期（MP28 - MN3）。然而，其对哺乳动物的驱动因素和影响却鲜为人知。犀类动物是受影响最大的类群之一，这体现在分类学和形态学上的巨大变化。然而，相关的潜在生态变化尚未得到探索。在此，我们研究了来自西欧15个地点、涵盖MP28至MN3时期的10种犀类动物的古生态学。我们通过牙齿磨损、发育不全、体重和稳定同位素分析，探讨了饮食、生理和栖息地的进化趋势。所有研究的犀类动物均为C3食性动物，无论是食叶还是混合食性，但在某些地点以及渐新世和中新世犀类动物之间观察到了明显的饮食差异。发育不全的发生率较低（低于10%）至中等（低于20%），但在不同位点、物种和地点之间存在很大差异。体重与发育不全发生率相关，表明体型较大的物种可能更容易受到压力和环境变化的影响。除盖默斯海姆外，我们在所有地点重建了相似的温暖条件，但发现降水量变化更大。事实上，在渐新世末期观察到δC值有明显变化，这与当时报道的气候和植被变化一致。
