The Pantolestidae from the middle eocene of Bouxwiller are the subject of a detailed study. Buxolestes hammeli (n. g., n. sp.) is not closely related to any other European or North American form described until now; it presents, however, some characters in common with Pantolestes, a form of the same age from North America. A parallel evolution from a common ancestral form could explain this ressemblance.
Another form (gen. and sp. indet.) accompanies Buxolertes hammeli in the Bouxwiller fauna.
  

Many types of insectivores have been described from specimens found in the Quercy phosphorites. These remains very often were not dated because they came from old collections. Recent excavations have permitted the situation of Amphidozotherium cayluxi FILHOL in the late Eocene. Two new genera are descrlbed based on material both from the old collections (Cryplotopos nov. g.) and from that recently recovered (Darbonetus nov. g., beginning of the middle Oligocene). Their systematic positions are revised and comparisons with American faunas are made. Amphidozotherium is not a talpid, but an erinaceoid belonging to an indeterminate family. Saturninia gracilis STHELIN is classified among the Nyctitheriinae, Myxomygale antiqua FILHOL among the Urotrichini Talpinae, and the genus Geotypus POMEL among the Scaptonichini Talpinae. A new study of the talpids from Auvergne has been rendered necessary. During the late Eocene and Oligocene precise morphology relationships existed between certain insectivores of Europe and North America. 

The entelodonts of the Quercy phosphorites are essentially known from isolated teeth. The skull remains attributed to Entelodon magnum by Kowalewsky in 1876 and the type left mandible of Enteladon depereti RÉPELIN, 1918 do not belong to this family. From a morphologic point of view, the teeth from Quercy are quite comparable to those from the type localities of E. magnum and E. deguilhemi. In the absence of distinctive anatomical criteria between E. magnum (small species from the level of Ronzon) and E. deguilhemi (large species from the level of Villebramar) they are referred, according to their size, to one or the other of these two species. However, some of them are intermediate in size. Their existence speaks in favor of a close relationship between E. magnum and E. deguilhemi and confers a real stratigraphic interest to these entelodonts of Western Europe. Finally, some anatomical characters (notch on the mesial border of P4, presence of a paraconid joined to the metaconid, trigonid higher than talonid) considered until now as peculiar to the North American Archaeotherium and not yet cited in its European contemporary Entelodon have been brought to light on the teeth from Quercy.

  

Until now Aplodontidae of the European Oligocene have been documented by four species only. The phylogenetic relations remained obscure. as the distribution of only one species has been known in some detail. New material made it possible to define the stratigraphic range of two of the already existing species (Plesispermophilus angustidens, Sciurodon cadurcense) and to follow their development during the Oligocene beginning with the event of the « Grande Coupure ››. Sciurodon remained nearly without change until the end of the Middle Oligocene. Plesispermophilus angustidens split into two distinct phyletic lines, one of which (P. macrodon n. sp.) reaching considerable size, is represented till the beginning of the Upper Oligocene (Pech de Fraysse, Gaimersheim). The other line leads to Plesispermophilus ernii (basal Upper Oligocene of Burgmagerbein 1. terminal Upper Oligocene of Coderet). Besides the already known forms a new small-sized species (P. atavus n. sp.) is described, which by its primitive features closely resembles the genus Plesispermophilus. Two other small-sized species already known from the Upper Oligocene (? P. argoviensis) and Lower Miocene (? P. descedens) seem to be closely related to the new species. It cannot be decided whether they are descendents of this line or have developed independently, because of their poor fossil record.
Comparison of the evolutionary modalities in the different phylogenetic lines reveals general trends. the most striking of which is the complication of the tooth pattern by the development of additional crests. In the lower molars the cusps diminuate in size and are more and more transformed into ridges. ln addition new connection between the crests appear. in the upper molars, the « selenodont » shape of the teeth becomes more and more dominant, and in the two main evolutionary lines of Plesispermophilus the metaconulus becomes duplicated. A further evolutionary trend is the size increase of the premolars compared to the molars, which is even more pronounced in the Miocene Aplodontidae.
Phylogenetic relations between the primitive Plesispermophilus and certain « prociurines ›› of Northern America as well as between Plesispermophilus (P. angustidens) and more progressive forms of the Upper Oligocene (P. ernii, P. macrodon n. sp.) can be documented. In this light, the taxonomic distinction between Prosciurinae (bunodont) and Allomyinae (selenodont) sensu Rensberger 1976 can be shown to be artificial, because it separates forms from each other, which are evidently closely related. Consequently the separation into two subfamilies has been abolished. 

The knowledge of the Anchilophini has been lately renewed by the discovery of a rather large amount of new material still largely unpublished. This new material offers the opportunity of a systematic revision of this tribe gathering those of European Eocene Equoidea which bear no mesostyle on upper check teeth and display a heavy trend to the molarization of premolars.

A cladistic analysis has made out two genera, Anchilophus (Paranchilophus included as a subgenus), characterized by a marked lophodonty and the transverse narrowness of the cheek teeth, a rather high hypsodonty, the frequent occurrence of "crochets" and "anticrochets" on the superior ones, and a rather weak molarization of the premolars, opposite to Metanchilophus n. gen. whose cheek teeth are more transversally elongated, less high, less lophodont, with cusps better distinct, enamel thicker and premolars more molarized on the whole.

Three species of Anchilophus are recognized, A. desmaresti, type species of the genus, A. (Paranchilophus) remyi and A. (Paranchilophus) jeanteli n. sp.

The genus Metanchilophus is more diversified with the species dumasi, radegondensis, gaudini (whose a new sub-species M. g. fontensis is defined), depereli, castrensis n. sp. and chaubeti n. sp.

The skull anatomy has been moreover described with several taxa; it brings to light (for all that one can generalize) that Anchilophini were light animals with a slender and elongated snout, a thin zygomatic arch, a rather developed encephalon with an advanced gyrencephaly.

The structure of the nasal opening together with the occurrence of epitympanic sinuses and the molarizing process of the premolars corroborate the attribution of this tribe to the family PalaeotheIiidae. 

Rodents first appear in the latest Paleocene or earliest Eocene as very fragmentary specimens (Family Paramyidae) known largely from a single locality. After this sparse beginning, rodents are usually abundant in the North American record if proper recovery methods are used. Utilization of rodents for biostratigraphic purposes depends on 1/ extinction, and 2/ replacement by evolution of endemic groups and/or incursions of Old World rodents, and rarely and late by South American kinds. These incursions are separated by relatively long periods of isolation in the Paleogene, but more episodic in the Neogene. At least 10 rodent zones can be characterized by major distinctions, and these zones can be amplified into as many as 16 with little trouble. In general, rodent genera permit as refined a zonation as do genera of large mammals. Distinction at a specific level has not been attempted herein except in the Blancan and Post-Blancan. 

The genus Parasteiromys AMEGHINO, 1904 is revalidated, and P. friantae sp. nov. (Hystricognathi, Erethizontidae) from Colhuehuapian (early Miocene) sediments of the southern cliff of Colhue-Huapi Lake (Province of Chubut, Argentina), is described. The molar morphology of these taxa and of living porcupines adds new elements to understand the dental evolution of the Erethizontidae, and to propose the hypothetical ancestral molar pattern for this family. This pattern does not correspond to any of the morphologies traditionally proposed as ancestral for South American hystricognathous rodents. The proposed pattern is characterized by a metaloph disconnected from the posteroloph and oriented towards the hypocone, and the third loph incompletely developed with the lingual portion homologous to the mesolophule of Baluchimyinae (Chapattimyidae) from the Miocene of Pakistan. The inferred steps of the molar evolution of erethizontids towards the pentalophodont condition, considered derived for the family, are illustrated. This study strengthens the hypothesis placing erethizontids in a basal position among rodents of the suborder Hystricognathi.

  

Is hereby described an impressive lchnoiauna belonging to the Lower to Middle Ludian of the Gard (S. France). The slab, already cleaned over a length of 18 m, is located near the top of the Potamides aporoschema lacustrine limestone (Lower Ludian, Euzet zone). It is therefore older than the Célas sandstone deposit, and still more than the Melanoides albigensis and M. acutus marly limestone corresponding to the Upper Levels of the Ludian stage. Although biostratigraphically older than the La Débruge and Montmartre zone, the biotope shows already a sampling of very tall Artiodactyles, Perissodactyles and Carnivorous. One of the most « majestic ›› Artiodactyles, Anopolotheriipus lavocati, nov., points out a huge size type. To mention also among the Ichnotypes described, 10, the big Perissodactyle Palaeotheriipus similimedius, nov., and the big Carnivorous Hyaenodontipus praedator, nov. 

The first part of this study was devoted to a descriptive analysis of teeth morphologies among the vespertilionine bats. This leads now to a tentative synthesis, providing views on the systematics of the group. The results could be seen according to three distinct but closely related purposes : 1 - the sorting of the genera contents in order to conform the genera units to homogeneous taxa that could represent natural issues of evolutionary lineages ; 2 - the investigation of relationships between extant genera in order to infer the possibilities of common origin ; 3 - according to the preceeding items and to the observed evolutionary trends, a tentative phylogeny, modest and cautious. The contents of many genera are sorted : Leuconoe is removed from subgeneric to generic position, whereas Myotis becomes a subgenus of it ; the myotodont species are cleared away from the Pipistrellus genus ; Glischropus and Scotozous are synonymized within Pipistrellus ; Hypsugo is raised to the generic level ; some species previously ranged within Pipistrellus will form provisionally a collective group, Attalepharca nov. ; the Eptesicus genus is broken up, the excluded species being grouped within Nycterikaupius gen. nov. ; the Nycticeini tribe is defined again after exclusion of Otonycteris , Scotoecus, Scotophilus , and addition of Hesperoptenus ; the species la io and Pipistrellus tasmaniensis are removed to Eptesicus (n.s.) and Pipistrellus dormeri to Scotoecus. Groupings of genera are stated according to the main evolutionary trends of I1/. The relevance of these is often warranted by close morphologic similarities of other teeth. This leads to a recognition of the major evolutionary radiations which occurred in the group. The filiations schematized at the end of the work show the dental relationships observed between the extant genera, and could represent a phylogenic framework. Two major facts are to be underlined : 1- the early divergence of leuconoids ; 2 - the successives crossings to myotodonty from the nyctaloid flow. Fossil data from the literature are punctually and tentatively incorporated within phylogenic sketches. 

A fossil species of the extant genus Leuconoe, L. lavocati n. sp. from Le Garouillas Oligocene locality, Quercy phosphorites, SW-France, is established in nomenclatural standards. 

Some fragmentary remains of spines and endoskeletal elements, referred here to as ctenacanthid like elasmobranchs, are recorded in the Middle Devonian of Bolivia. These specimens, and some others from the Eodevonian of Brasil represent the only  Devonian fish remains hitherto known from South America and indicate that further discoveries may be made in their original localities respectively.
  

A new Devonian vertebrste locality has been discovered in 1976 in the basal part of the Khush-Yeilagh Formation in the eastern Alborz Mountains of Iran. The fossils occur in a band one centimeter thick which is identifiable at other outcrops in the area. A preliminary study of the remains has yielded the following faunal list : Placodermata (Phlyctaeniida indet.. Groenlandaspididae indet.. Coccosteidae indet., Holonema sp., Ptyctodontida indet., Antiarcha indet., Bothriolepis cf. kwangtungensis), Elasmobranchii (Ctenacanthidae indet.), Acanthodii (Gyracanthus sp., « Onchus » overathensis, Ischnacanthiforme indet.), Dipnoi (? Dipteridae indet.), « Crossopterygii ›› (Onychodus cf. sigmoides, Holoptychiidae indet., Osteolepididae indet.). This fauna is older than the Middle Givetian and probably of Middle or Lower Eifelian age. Owing to its diversity, it may prove possible to use it in the future as a reference fauna for the study of the Devonian vertebrates in Central Asia and the Middle East. 

A new hypothesis for the phylogenetic relationships of recent anomalurids and graphiurids is proposed, based on information from evolutionary lineages of Paleogene European rodents, particularly Gliridae, and Eocene Algerian Zegdoumyidae. Differences in first occurrences, in paleogeography, and in infraorbital structure in glirids (protrogomorphy and pseudomyomorphy) and graphiurids (hystricomorphy) separate Graphiuridae from Gliridae (Graphiurinae is here raised to family rank). Similar considerations, and dental morphology, suggest that Anomaluridae (appearing in the late Eocene) and Graphiuridae (appearing in the Pliocene) are related to early Eocene Zegdoumyidae. 

The hipparions from the Dytiko localities of the lower Axios valley (Macedonia, Greece) are studied. The material comes from three localities Dytiko-l, 2, 3 (DTK, DIT, DKO), which are situated near the village of Dytiko, about 60 km northwest to Thessaloniki. Three species have been determined, the medium-sized H. mediterraneum, the small-sized H. matthewi and the very small-sized H. periafricanum. The determined Hipparion species, their morphological characters and their comparison with the other Axios valley material indicate a Late Turolian age for the Dytiko localities. 

A new example of parallelism in the dental pattern ofthe Theridomyidae is illustrated by the description ofa new species: Theridomys Iudensis from the standard level of Antoingt (middle Oligocene). Considering the occurence ofthis parallelism phenomenon. the use of numerous qualitative and quantitative criteria is essential to characterize the different stages ofthe different evolutive lineages. Thus, a new simple parameter is proposed (CHY = H+l/0,5 L) to estimate hypsodonty of the medium hypsodont Rodentia. 

Two new Squalicorax species, S. benguerirensis nov. sp. and S. microserratus nov. sp. are described from the Lower Maastrichtian of the Benguérir phosphate open mine, Ganntour deposit, Morocco. The species S. benguerirensis nov. sp. was classically assigned to S. yangaensis since Arambourg (1952) and has been also recognized in coeval deposits from eastern USA to Mid-East. The species S. microserratus nov. sp. correspond to the lateral teeth of S. kaupi as reported by Arambourg (1952) and which is now referred in fact to S. bassanii. The comparison of these two new species with other Anacoracids, known in Moroccan or elsewhere, allows highlighting the great taxonomic and ecological diversities of this family during the Cretaceous.
  

A late Pleistocene deposit of 60 species of vertebrates and 12 of invertebrates is described from Robinson Cave, Overton County, Tennessee, U.S.A. Forty-eight species of mammals are represented by at least 2,483 individuals; 10 % are extinct, 10 % occur in the state only as boreal relicts in the Great Smoky Mountains; 23 % no longer occur as far south as Tennessee; 57 % occur at or near the site today. Nínety-one percent of the Recent mammal species can be found living today in the Minnesota-Wisconsin area, approximately 10 degrees farther north. Fluorine analysis suggests a long period of accumulation. The following 10 mammalian species are recorded from Tennessee for the first time. Sorex arcticus, Microsorex hoyi, Citellus tridecemlineatus, Clethrionomys gapperi, Microtus pennsylvanicus, Synaptomys cooperi, Synaptomys borealis, Zapus nudsonius, Napaeozapus insignis, Martes americana. Six additional species are present as boreal relicts in the Great Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee but not at the site today : Sorex cinereus, Sorex dispar, Sorex palustris, Parascalops breweri, Glaucomys sabrinus, Mustela nivalis. Six forms are extinct: Canis dirus, Ursus americanus amplidens, Sangamona furtiva, Dasypus bellus, Mammut americanus,Megalonyx jeffersoni. Twenty-six additional species of mammals, all of the snails, birds, reptiles, and amphibians recovered from the fauna still inhabit the area today: The fauna is indicative of a cold-temperate climatic episode associated with the Wisconsin glaciation, but may be chronologically mixed. 

New and hitherto unpublished mammals from the stratigraphical levels Unterkohle, Untere Mittelkohle and Obere Mittelkohle of the Geiseltal near Halle, GDR, are described (= biochronological levels MP 11-13, Geiseltalian sensu Franzen & Haubold 1986a, b). The marsupial taxa Amphiperatherium aff. maximum (MP 12), A. goethei (MP 12), and Peratherium aff. monspeliense (MP 12 and 13) are recorded for the first time. A lectotype for Amphiperatherium giselense is designated, and the alleged primate Microtarsioides voigzi is assigned to Marsupialia, incertae sedis. A new insectivore species, Saturninia ceciliensis n. sp., is described (MP 13). The anteater Eurotamandua joresi is recorded for the first time outside its type locality, Grube Messel, FRG (MP 11). The present humerus and ulna display the autapomorphic features of the myrmecophagids. 

The rodents (Cricetidae, Gliridae, Sciuridae) found in lacustrine, brackish marine and karstic sediments of Miocene age in Languedoc, assign the position of the different localities in the scale of "niveaux repères" used by mammalogists. Some detailed stratigraphical studies bring several correlations between this continental biochronological scale and the marine scale ; the most important results are the Aquitanian age of the "niveaux repères" of Coderet and Paulhiac, the Burdigalian age of Laugnac, Estrepouy, Vieux-Collonges, La Romieu and Sansan and the Langhian or Lower Serravallian age of La Grive M. The correlations between the Tethys and the Central Paratethys for the Lower Neogene profit also of these results, since the locality of Neudorf Spalte 1, 2 (Czechoslovakia) is shown to be younger than Sansan (France). The paleontological study has also several geological inferences for the Miocene of Languedoc ; with the calibration of this Miocene, we know quite precisely that the Lower Miocene is chiefly a time lacustrine sedimentation, and also that the marine Miocene sedimentation ends early in the Miocene Period, in Langhian or lower Serravallian times. 

The faunal list of the mammals collected at the locality of Aumelas (Hérault, France) is revised. For the first
time this Middle Eocene locality is precisely settled in the european chronological scale of "niveaux repères", between the levels of Bouxwiller and Egerkingen, in Uppermost Lutetian.
A new Dichobunid from the site is described : Aumelasia gabineaudi n. g., n. sp. This new genus has primitive characters. and it may be in the descent of the Lower Eocene Protodichobune.