Paleontologists have redescribed a skull of the living species Hippopotamus amphibius recovered from a quarry called Cava Montanari at Tor di Quinto — from a formation dated between 560,000 and 460,000 years — within the urban area of Rome, central Italy. The reassessment of the stratigraphic and geological data on Cava Montanari implies that the specimen is the earliest confirmed occurrence of Hippopotamus amphibius in the European fossil record.
Hippos are iconic animals, often taken as representatives, together with elephants, of the savannah grasslands ecosystem, nowadays typical of the African continent.
Their presence is often related with warm climatic conditions, but this relationship does not express completely their ecological profile.
Modern hippos are especially dependent on the presence of water, and hence indicators of humid conditions and mild winters.
Hippopotamus amphibius arose from African ancestors during the Quaternary, a time when hippos were widespread in Europe.
However, the details of the modern species’ origin and dispersal into Europe are unclear and highly debated.
In the new study, Dr. Beniamino Mecozzi from the Sapienza Università di Roma and colleagues analyzed a hippo skull from Tor di Quinto, Italy.
The skull is among the most complete hippo specimens known from Pleistocene Europe, but its significance has been unclear due to uncertainties about its age and where exactly it was originally excavated.
Following restoration of the skull in 2021, the paleontologists were able to analyze the composition of sediments found within the skull cavities, revealing a match to the local Valle Guilia Formation, indicating a geologic age for this skull between 560,000 and 460,000 years old.
Cranial and dental morphologies also confirmed the identity of this skull as Hippopotamus amphibius.
“Our research reveals this skull to be the oldest known fossil of this modern hippo species in Europe,” the researchers said.
The results shed…
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