Review of the Results of Morphometric and Morphogenetic Analyses of Early Pleistocene Micromammals and Upper Pleistocene Cave Bears in Croatia

<div>Due to the large number and visible morphological variability of</div><div>skeletal parts of the Early Pleistocene micromammals and Upper</div><div>Pleistocene ursids we utilised morphometric, morphogenetic and statistical&nbsp;analyses in order to determine an...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Gordana Jambrešić
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Croatian Geological Survey 2010-11-01
Series:Geologia Croatica
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.geologia-croatica.hr/ojs/index.php/GC/article/view/314
Description
Summary:<div>Due to the large number and visible morphological variability of</div><div>skeletal parts of the Early Pleistocene micromammals and Upper</div><div>Pleistocene ursids we utilised morphometric, morphogenetic and statistical&nbsp;analyses in order to determine and process the material. The</div><div>results indicate rapid microevolutionary processes which arc reflected</div><div>both in variations of the characteristic parameters of particular skeletal</div><div>parts, and their morphology.</div><div>The Early Pleistocene age of the bone-breccias discovered along</div><div>the Adriatic coast was confirmed by the morphogenetic analyses of</div><div>micromammals, with reference to geochronologically important arvicolids: the fauna from Razvode near Knin comprises arvieolids characteristic</div><div>of the Lower Early Pleistocene, the fauna from Tatinja draga</div><div>near Karlobag comprises species typical for the Middle Early&nbsp;Pleistocene, while the fauna from Podumci near Uni&scaron;ić is of Late</div><div>Early Pleistocene age.</div><div>The results of the analyses of teeth and metapodial bones of the</div><div>cave bears from the Upper Pleistocene deposits in Vindija cave, Velika</div><div>pećina and Veternica cave (NW Croatia) are expressed as morphodynamic&nbsp;indices, namely, the frequency of the morphotypes occurrence&nbsp;indicates the existence of an interermediate type (?subspecies)&nbsp;within the phyletic lineage Ursus deningeri - Ursus spelaeus, which&nbsp;appeared during the Riss glacial and Riss/Wuerm interglacial, and a&nbsp;lack of deposits of that particular age in Veternica cave and Velika</div><div>pećina.</div>
ISSN:1330-030X
1333-4875