Publisher's Synopsis
The present volume Rodentia neogenica of the Catalogus Fossilium Austriae provides an overview of Neogene rodents from Austria, reflecting a fascinating chapter of mammal evolution. The investigated fossils were collected from 34 localities spanning a time interval of around eleven million years from the early to the late Miocene, with Maigen being the oldest and Eichkogel the youngest fossil site. The small mammal localities are situated in Neogene sedimentary basins of Austria: the Northern Alpine Foreland Basin, the Vienna Basin, the Styrian Basin and its satellite basins, the Pannonian Basin, and smaller basins along the Mur-Murz and the Lavant Valley. The investigated rodent fossils comprise thousands of isolated teeth, jaws and some partial skulls. They are housed in the collections of the Museum of Natural History Vienna (Geological-Paleontological Department). Minor parts stem from collections of the University of Vienna (Department of Palaeontology), the Universalmuseum Joanneum Graz (Geology & Palaeontology), the Montanuniversitat Leoben, and some private collections. The present volume introduces taxonomy, systematics and stratigraphy of all rodent groups represented in the Miocene of Austria. A sketch map of Austria and a stratigraphic chart show the topographic and stratigraphic positions of the fossil sites. The dental terminology is explained using sketches of dental patterns (22 Figs). SEM images illustrate the morphologic variation of dental characters of more than 50 represented genera and 90 species (77 Plates). The volume is completed by a taxonomic index.
