The earliest Muntiacus (Artiodactyla, Mammalia) from the Late Miocene of Yuanmou, southwestern China

The extended excavations from 1998 to 2000 in Yuanmou, Yunnan Province, southwestern China, resulted in the discovery of a new Late Miocene (ca 9-7 Ma) hominoid locality with associated mammalian fauna at Leilao. It includes a new muntjak, Muntiacus leilaoensis sp. nov. It has similar morphology to the extant forms and is the earliest record of the Muntiacus. This discovery shows that the Muntiacus are a persistent and conservative group in contrast with the other rapidly evolving cervids since ca 9-7 Ma.