Home

The late Miocene mammals from the Konservat-Lagerstätte of Saint-Bauzile (Ardèche, France)

Grégoire MÉTAIS & Sevket SEN

en Comptes Rendus Palevol 17 (7) - Pages 479-493

Published on 30 September 2018

This article is a part of the thematic issue Lagerstätten 2: Exceptionally preserved fossils

Diatomite deposits of Saint-Bauzile near Privas (Ardèche) in southern France have been known since more than two centuries for abundant and extremely well-preserved fossils of plants and animals. The radiometric dating brackets fossil-bearing horizons between 7.2 and 7.6 Ma, which is consistent with the biochronologic age given by fossil mammals, which are characteristics of the late MN11 zone, i.e. the second part of the late Miocene. The main interest of this site for mammals is that they are preserved almost “in the flesh”, as entire skeletons with bones in their anatomical connection, and often with skin and fur charred and forming a halo around the body. In this work, we studied the remains of a lagomorph, two rodents, an equid, a suid, a bovid and a rhino. The mode of preservation of mammals as entire bodies suggests sudden death and rapid burial of individuals.


Keywords:

Konservat-Lagerstätten, Diatomites, Mammals, Late Miocene, France

Download full article in PDF format