Evidence for parallel development of ever-growing molars in Early Pleistocene rodents from southern Spain and their paleoenvironmental implications

Abstract

In this paper, we present a detailed survey on the rodent fauna from the site of Barranco de los Conejos (Guadix-Baza Basin, southern Spain). Its rodent fauna is composed of three arvicolines (Orcemys giberti, Manchenomys oswaldoreigi, and Tibericola vandermeuleni) and two murids (Castillomys rivas and Apodemus atavus). The three arvicoline species present ever-growing molars. Orcemys giberti and Manchenomys oswaldoreigi can be considered as descendants of local Mimomys species (Mimomys medasensis and Mimomys tornensis, respectively), while Tibericola vandermeuleni is an eastern inmigrant. Loosening of roots in Orcemys giberti and Manchenomys oswaldoreigi is explained as an adaptation to a fossorial way of life, in relation to the Early Pleistocene glacial-interglacial dynamics, which led to cooler and drier conditions. This environmental change would also explain the dispersal of Tibericola from the eastern Mediterranean.