New results on Cercopithecids from the Early Pleistocene site of Untermassfeld

Abstract

The scant sample of Macaca sylvanus from the Early Pleistocene locality of Untermassfeld (Thuringia, Germany) is increased by the recent finds of a deciduous right upper incisor and a left maxillary fragment bearing a partial tooth row with P3-M2 preserved. The material is described; it brings the number of recorded individuals to at least three. We refrain from giving a subspecific name for the Untermassfeld macaques due to the large overlap in size among European fossil records. Macaca sylvanus is among the least recorded large mammal species of the Untermassfeld fauna; their tree- and rock-climbing behaviour probably let them escape from occasional flooding.