Kaszab Zoltán (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 65. (Budapest 1973)

Jánossy, D.: New species of Episoriculus from the Middle Pliocene of Osztramos (North Hungary)

ANNALES HISTORICO-NATURALES MUSEI NATIONALIS HUNOARICT Tom us 05. Budapest 1973. New Species of Episoriculus from the Middle Pliocene of Osztramos (North Hungary) By D. JÁNOSSY, Budapest Abstract — Two new species, Episoriculus borsodensis sp. n. and E. tornensis sp. n. are described from Osztramos, N. Hungary. Both originate from the younger and older Middle Pliocene. A detailed description as well as a systematical-evolutionary sketch of the members of the tribe Soriculini are given. An ancient stock of Soricids lived during the Pliocene and survived through the Lower Pleistocene (the groups Blarinini and Soriculini) in Europe; one of the characteristic systematic units of this group is the evolutionary line fo the tribe Soriculini KRETZOI, 1965, now confined only to Eastern and Southern Asia. As known, HEXSEL ( 1S55) was the first to describe a member of this group as „Sorex" similis from Sardinia. BATE (1945) established later, for this and related forms, the new genus Nesiotites, with the two further species corsicanus and hidalgo from Corsica and the Balearics. From the European mainland only one form was hitherto known namely PETÉXYI'S "Crocidura" gibberodon (1864), originating from Beremend and later newly described, on the basis of the stratigraphically younger material from Villány, by KORMOS (1934) as "Soriculus kubinyii" (the identity of the two was shown by KRETZOI 1936). This single species was noticed to appear from the Middle Pliocene of Poland (Podlesice, KOWALSKI 1956) up to the Lower Pleistocene of Hungary (the stratigraphically last fossils from Locality 3 Villány, KRETZOI 1956). Finally KRETZOI ( 1959) proposed to establish for Soricuius gibberodon a new genus, Asoriculus, an opinion that was not followed by REPEXXIXG (1967), who ranged this species with the genus Episoriculus. KOWALSKI (1956) mentioned the size of the Podlesice-from to be somewhat smaller, and I also found an equally small form in the material of Osztramos J (JÁNOSSY 1972). It was impossible to ascertain on the basis of these fragmentary remains, whether the differences constitute taxonomic or biostratigraphic values or not. A well preserved finding of this group from Locality 13 Osztramos (a skull with full dentition together with the mandible of one side and a humerus of the same individual) threw new light upon the matter. Locality 13 of Osztramos represents, in contrast to the other ones of the same hill, not a fissure but a level of carstic cavities, observable in the whole quarry system. It consists of more or less eroded and horizontally situated holes (average thickness one half to one meter), partially filled with yellowish-brown sandy clay, parts of which containing the remains of bats in large numbers. The Episoriculus fossils collected by TOTAL, are the only ones which do not belong to Chiroptera (the description of these latter will be published by TOPÁL). The dark red clay of Locality 1, Osztramos (JÁXOSSY 1972), apparently penetrates the matrix of Loc. 13, a clear geological argument for the stratigraphically lower age fo the latter than the former one. A detailed analysis of the dentition of the remains originating from Loc. 13, Osztramos, as well as a comparison with the similar bones of the type of Soriculus kubinyii KORMOS, the material collected newly from Beremend and from Loc. 7, Osztramos, Csarnótian age (for a faunistico-stratigraphic picture of the latter see JÁXOSSY 1973) decided the systematico-biostratigraphic: position of these forms. I consider them to represent a new species, described as follows. Ann. Hist.-nat. Mus. Nat. Hung., 1973, 65 4 Természettudományi Múzeum Évkönyve 1973.