Late Miocene large mammals from Ivand (Northwestern Iran)

Large mammalian fossil fauna of the Ivand locality in northwestern Iran is reported for the first time. This new locality is situated north of the city of Tabriz in the geographical proximity of the famous Maragheh fossil sites. A large hipparion, represented by an almost complete skull and mandibles, is recorded from this locality. The skull, most likely of Hipparion giganteum-Hipparion brachypus lineage, represents significant evidence of the presence of large hipparionine horses in northwestern Iran in the Late Miocene. A small number of horn-cores attributed to Oioceros atropatenes Rodler & Weithofer, 1890 and Gazella sp., in addition to some indeterminate dentition, represent the bovid material in the Ivand fossil assemblage. Postcranial evidence also points to the presence of Deinotherium giganteum Kaup, 1829 and Rhinocerotinae indet., while other material adds carnivorans, giraffes and large porcupine rodents to the list of the fauna. Based on the occurrence of these taxa, the Ivand locality can be correlated with the Middle and Upper Maragheh biostratigraphical intervals, thus demonstrating a middle Turolian age (c. 8-7 Ma).