Early Pleistocene Mammalian Faunas of India and Evidence of Connections with Other Parts of the World

Abstract

In India, Early Pleistocene mammals have been found in Karewa Group of Kashmir Valley and the Pinjor Formation (Upper Siwalik Subgroup) of the Himalayan foothills. An attempt has been made here to integrate published fossil mammal data from the well dated sections in India to provide a Plio-Pleistocene biostratigraphic scheme. Occurrence of common mammals in Early Pleistocene hominin sites in Ethiopia, Algeria, Israel, Georgia, Indonesia, China as well as the Pinjor Formation of India and Pakistan indicates similar paleoenvironmental conditions and some faunal exchange. The beginning of the Pleistocene (1.8 Ma) saw an upsurge in tectonic activity all along the Himalayan foothills and this led to a change in depositional environment, slope and overall landscape. These factors, combined with overall global trend towards cool and dry conditions, were probably responsible for the spread of grasslands and shrinkage of forests, eventually aiding decline of the Siwalik mammalian faunal diversity.