Introduction

In 1887, Weithofer described the fossil bat Necromantis adichaster on the basis of fragmentary material from the Paleogene Quercy phosphorite fillings of southwestern France. The Phosphorites are composed mostly of phosphate-rich clays, including fossil materials, that fill the caves and fissures riddling the karstic landscape in the large regional Quercy area (including parts of four departments, but mostly the Lot and Tarn-et-Garonne) and extending west to the hills of the Massif Central (e.g., Thévenin, 1903; Gèze, 1938). The fillings were deposited over a period of about 30 million years from the late Early Eocene to the late Early Miocene (e.g., Legendre et al., 1997), but also as recently as the Late Pliocene and Quaternary (Crochet et al., 2006; Aguilar et al., 2007).

From 1870 to 1907, many mines were established in the Quercy region to exploit the naturally occurring phosphate, a widely used fertilizer, with much of the Quercy ore being exported (see Durand-Delga, 2006 for a detailed history of the Quercy mining operations). Geologists were rarely allowed to visit the localities during the mining period, with fortunate exceptions, including Trutat, who took photographs (see Duranthon and Ripoll, 2006), and Thévenin, who produced a learned report (Thévenin, 1903). During the c. 40 years of intensive mining, the Quercy Phosphorites became renowned for producing many fossil bones and teeth, in good and even exceptional condition (Daubrée, 1871; Delfortrie, 1872). Today the Quercy Phosphorites are globally recognized for the thousands of vertebrate fossils they have produced, including many specimens of bats. For a recently updated record of Quercy micromammals see Sigé and Hugueney (2006) and for a catalog of classic Quercy mammalian taxa (i.e., before more recent excavations) see Sigé et al. (1979).