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Gratkorn: A benchmark locality for the continental Sarmatian s.str. of the Central Paratethys

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Abstract

This paper presents one of the richest and most complete vertebrate faunas of the late Middle Miocene (~12 Ma) of Central Europe. Up to now, sixty-two vertebrate taxa, comprising all major groups (fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals), have been recorded. Based on sedimentological and palaeobiological evidences, this Fossillagerstätte is assumed to originate from a floodplain paleosol formed on top of a braided river sequence. The fauna points to a highly structured, somewhat vegetated landscape with a wide array of habitats (e.g., fluvial channels, sporadically moist floodplains, short-lived ponds, savannah-like open areas and screes). It was preserved due to a rapid drowning and the switch to a freshwater lake environment. Palaeoclimatological data, derived from pedogenic features as well as from biota, indicate an overall semi-arid, subtropical climate with distinct seasonality (mean annual precipitation 486 ± 252 mm, mean annual temperature ~15°C). This underlines the late Middle/early Late Miocene dry-spell in Central Europe. From taphonomical point of view, the irregularly distributed but roughly associated larger vertebrate remains refer to an in situ accumulation of the bone bed. Splintered bones, gnawing marks as well as rhizoconcretions and root corrosion structures record some pre- and post-burial modification of the taphocoenose. However, the findings of pellet remains argue for a very fast burial and thus to a low degree of time-averaging. For this reason, the fossil fauna reflects the original vertebrate community rather well and is a cornerstone for the understanding of late Middle Miocene terrestrial ecosystems in this region. Certainly, Gratkorn will be one of the key faunas for a high-resolution continental biostratigraphy and the comprehension of Europe’s faunal interchanges near the Middle/Late Miocene transition.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Gudrun Daxner-Höck, Ursula Göhlich (both Vienna), Kurt Heissig, Bettina Reichenbacher, Gertrud Rössner (all Munich) and Jan van der Made (Madrid) for their comments to the rodent, ruminants, proboscidean and bird remains. For earlier discussions, we are indebted to Mathias Harzhauser (Vienna), Sebastian Klaus (Frankfurt/Main), Barbara Meller (Vienna), Robert Scholger (Leoben) and Petra Maria Tempfer (St. Andrä-Wördern). This work benefited from the reviews of Mathias Harzhauser and Lars van den Hoek Ostende (Leiden). Helmut W. Flügel (Graz) initiated this project by conducting a mapping campaign in this area, which was generously supported by the Geological Survey of Austria (Hans Georg Krenmayr). For partial funding of the excavations and access to the pit, we thank the Land Steiermark (Wissenschaftsreferat), the community of Gratkorn (especially the late major Elmar Fandl) and the Wietersdorfer & Peggauer Zementwerke AG (Josef Plank), respectively. Gerald Philipp, Gernot Tonauer, Manuel Kapeller (all Graz) and two groups of students from the university of Munich assisted substantially during the fieldwork. Many thanks go to Norbert Winkler (Graz) for the excellent preparation of vertebrate remains.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department for Geology and Palaeontology, Universalmuseum Joanneum, Weinzöttlstrasse 16, 8045, Graz, Austria

    M. Gross

  2. Institute for Geoscience, Eberhard-Karls University Tübingen, Sigwartstrasse 10, 72076, Tübingen, Germany

    M. Böhme

  3. Department for Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Richard-Wagner-Strasse 10, 80333, Munich, Germany

    J. Prieto

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  1. M. Gross
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  2. M. Böhme
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  3. J. Prieto
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Correspondence to M. Gross.

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Gross, M., Böhme, M. & Prieto, J. Gratkorn: A benchmark locality for the continental Sarmatian s.str. of the Central Paratethys. Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch) 100, 1895–1913 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-010-0615-1

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