Carnivores from the Late Miocene locality of Hayranli (Hayranli, Sivas, Turkey)

Abstract

The locality of Hayranli-Sivas is situated in the central Anatolian plateau (Sivas, Turkey) and includes many fossil remains, including carnivores collected from 2 different spots. The aim of this study is to contribute to knowledge of carnivore evolution in Turkey based on the fossil specimens in Hayranli-Sivas. The studied collection indicates the presence of the following taxa: Hyaenictitherium wongii, Hyaenictitherium intuberculatum, Lycyaena dubia, and Machairodus giganteus. L. dubia is the first record from Anatolia. The material of each taxon was described and determined by comparison with other materials from various Eurasian localities. During the Early or Middle Turolian 9-7 Ma. (MN11-12), shrubland and open savanna grassland ecosystem habitats might have contributed to rich faunal diversity in the Hayranli location. Moreover, carnivores of the area, represented by 4 taxa biochronologically, were adapted to this ecology during the evolutionary processes. M. giganteus in closed ecosystem locality HAY-91 and H. wongii, H. intuberculatum, and L. dubia in open ecosystem locality HAY-2 were probably the most dominant carnivores of the survey area.