The pig Propotamochoerus palaeochoerus from the upper Miocene of Grytsiv, Ukraine

Abstract

The suid from Grytsiv (= Gritsev) in Ukraine belongs to the genus Propotamochoerus. This genus was not yet known from the Miocene of eastern Europe. The Grytsiv suid is described and its significance is discussed within the palaeobiogeographical and stratigraphical framework of the genus Propotamochoerus. Grytsiv is geographically situated between three areas with different species of the genus: W Europe (P. palaeochoerus), China (P. hyotherioides) and the Indian Subcontinent (P. hysudricus). In Europe, P. palaeochoerus is replaced at the MN 9-10 boundary or early in MN 10 by a different species of Propotamochoerus with affinities with P. hyotherioides or P. hysudricus. The fossils from Grytsiv extend the known range of P. palaeochoerus eastward into Ukraine.