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The distal humerus of Pliobates cataloniae (Primates: Pliopithecoidea): functional and locomotor inferencesNARA Subscribed
The small-bodied stem catarrhine Pliobates cataloniae (Pliopithecoidea: Crouzeliidae), from the Miocene (11.6 Ma) of the Vallès-Penedès Basin (NE Iberian Peninsula), combines catarrhine symplesiomorphies and several crown hominoid-like features that are interpreted as convergent. The most obvious modern ape-like traits of Pliobates are found in the forelimb, particularly in the wrist and elbow joints. In the humerus, these inc...
The early Middle Miocene (15.9 Ma) site of els Casots (Vallès-Penedès Basin, Catalonia, Spain) has yielded a rich vertebrate assemblage, including abundant carnivoran remains that mostly remain unpublished. Here we describe a new species of the amphicyonid genus Paludocyon based on a compressed cranium with well-preserved teeth and an isolated lower molar (m2) from els Casots. Paludocyon moyasolai sp. nov., included in the sub...
Suines originated in Asia during the Middle Miocene and dispersed into Europe by the early Late Miocene. Their first European record, which corresponds to Propotamochoerus palaeochoerus , was formerly dated to MN7+8 but recent data have suggested an earliest MN9 age. Although P. palaeochoerus has long been known from the fossiliferous area of els Hostalets de Pierola, dating inaccuracies have precluded ascertaining its earlies...
Soil Microbial Diversity and Network Organization Respond to Land Use and Agricultural Inputs WorldwideNARA Subscribed
Soil microbiomes are critical for ecosystem functioning, yet the global influences of climate and agricultural practices on their diversity and structure remain incompletely characterized. Here we analyzed 1921 soil samples from 33 countries worldwide across diverse biomes to assess how climate gradients and agricultural inputs, including pesticides and fertilizers, shape prokaryotic and fungal communities. We found that micro...
New evidence from the bony labyrinth and teeth of the Late Miocene ape Oreopithecus based on a partial cranium from BaccinelloNARA Subscribed
Oreopithecus bambolii , from the Tusco-Sardinian archipelago, is the latest-known European Miocene ape and a longstanding evolutionary enigma, owing to its mosaic morphology. Its systematic position has been intensely debated, resulting in a broad spectrum of hypotheses, ranging from a dryopithecine great ape to a nyanzapithecid stem hominoid, a giant hylobatid, or even a pliopithecoid. We reassess these competing hypotheses b...
The Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO) event (ca. 16.9–14.7 Ma) was a period of increased warmth spanning more than 2 Myr that offers valuable insights into climate-driven ecological changes. The early Middle Miocene site of els Casots (MN5, ~15.9 Ma), in the Vallès-Penedès Basin (NE Iberian Peninsula), is of extraordinary importance due to the abundant vertebrate remains and its coincidence with the midpoint of the MCO. Procervul...
Under the current global biodiversity crisis, there is a need for automated and noninvasive monitoring techniques that can gather large amounts of data cost‐effectively at various ecological scales, from local to large spatial scales. These data can then be analyzed to inform stakeholders and decision‐makers. One such technique is passive acoustic monitoring, which is commonly coupled with automatic identification of animal sp...
The densely sampled and well dated late Aragonian to Vallesian succession (late Middle to early Late Miocene, 12.5–9.0 Ma) of the Vallès‑Penedès Basin (VP) in Catalonia has yielded one of the richest primate records in Eurasia, including hominoids and pliopithecoids. Here we present high‑resolution mean annual precipitation (MAP) estimates derived from the ecological structure of small mammal assemblages to infer the paleoclim...
Microbial colonization and function of biofilms developing on plastics and bioplastics in a pristine mountain stream ecosystemNARA Subscribed
Streams naturally receive allochthonous particulate organic materials, but human activity may contribute additional plastic litter inputs, which can affect ecosystem functioning. Our objective was to assess the effect of plastic and bioplastic inputs on microbial biomass and function in a pristine mountain stream. To do that, fragments of plastics (polyethylene—PE, polypropylene—PP), bioplastics (polyhydroxyalkanoate—PHA, poly...