Research paper
Inferences of dietary preferences of Miocene squirrels (Xerinae, Sciuridae) from the Iberian Peninsula and Namibia using microwear analyses and enamel thickness
IRIS MENÉNDEZ
Departamento de Geodinámica, Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias Geológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. C/ José Antonio Novais 12, 28040 Madrid (Spain). irismene@ucm.es
Departamento de Cambio Medioambiental, Instituto de Geociencias (UCM, CSIC). C/Severo Ochoa 7, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
Mujeres con los Pies en la Tierra, Madrid, Spain.
Corresponding author
ANA R. GÓMEZ CANO
Mujeres con los Pies en la Tierra, Madrid, Spain. argomez@ucm.es
Transmitting Science, C/Gardenia 2, Piera, 08784, Barcelona, Spain.
FERNANDO BLANCO
Museum für Naturkunde, Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany. Fernando.Blanco@mfn.berlin
MANUEL HERNÁNDEZ FERNÁNDEZ
Departamento de Geodinámica, Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias Geológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. C/ José Antonio Novais 12, 28040 Madrid, Spain. hdezfdez@ucm.es
2Departamento de Cambio Medioambiental, Instituto de Geociencias (UCM, CSIC). C/Severo Ochoa 7, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
MARÍA A. ÁLVAREZ-SIERRA
Departamento de Geodinámica, Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias Geológicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. C/ José Antonio Novais 12, 28040 Madrid, Spain. masierra@ucm.es
2Departamento de Cambio Medioambiental, Instituto de Geociencias (UCM, CSIC). C/Severo Ochoa 7, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
ADRIANA OLIVER
Mujeres con los Pies en la Tierra, Madrid, Spain. adriaoli@ucm.es
ABSTRACT
In this work, we compared microwear features and enamel thickness from upper molars (M1 and M2) of extinct Xerinae squirrels from the Miocene of Namibia (Vulcanisciurus sp) and the Iberian Peninsula (Atlantoxerus nov. sp. and Heteroxerus rubricati). We also examined the microwear from young and adult specimens of one extant squirrel, Atlantoxerus getulus, to compare it with the extinct species. Both, the microwear features and enamel thickness showed that the Miocene African species presented a more abrasive diet than the Iberian ones.
Key words: Microwear, enamel thickness, Sciuridae, ground squirrels, dietary inference
How to cite: Menéndez, I., Gómez Cano, A.R., Blanco, F., Hernández Fernández, M., Álvarez-Sierra, M.A. & Oliver, A. 2020. Inferences of dietary preferences of Miocene squirrels (Xerinae, Sciuridae) from the Iberian Peninsula and Namibia using microwear analyses and enamel thickness. Spanish Journal of Palaeontology, 35 (2), 177-184
Received 30 November 2019, Accepted 22 May 2020, Published 31 December 2020
https://doi.org/10.7203/sjp.35.2.18481
