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First Quaternary Fossil Record of Caecilians from a Mexican Archaeological Site

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Thomas A. Wake ,
Marvalee H. Wake  and
Richard G. Lesure
Thomas A. Wake
Affiliation:
Institute of Archaeology, University of California, Los Angeles, California, 90095-1510
Marvalee H. Wake
Affiliation:
Department of Integrative Biology and Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley, California, 94720-3140
Richard G. Lesure
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles, California, 90095-1361
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Abstract

A single vertebra from an Early Formative period archaeological site in coastal Chiapas, México, is identified as belonging to the amphibian Dermophis mexicanus (Duméril and Bibron) 1841 (Amphibia: Gymnophiona: Caeciliidae). The vertebra was recovered from deposits dated to approximately 1200–1350 B.C. The specimen represents the first Quaternary fossil record for gymnophiones. Its presence suggests the possible role of the species as a bioturbator. Its recovery is further evidence of the utility of fine-grained archaeological recovery techniques.

Type
Short Paper
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 52 , Issue 1 , July 1999 , pp. 138 - 140
Copyright
University of Washington

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