Late Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) Glyptodont and Pampathere (Xenarthra, Cingulata) from Sonora, Mexico

Abstract

The fossil-rich deposits of Térapa (east-central Sonora) contain more than 60 zoological taxa, many with tropical affinities such as Crocodylus (crocodylian), Hydrochaeris (capybara), and many birds. The deposits also contain the dermal ossicles (osteoderms) of two extinct xenarthrans, a glyptodont (Glyptotherium cylindricum) and a pampathere (giant armadillo; Pampatherium cf. mexicanum). Glyptodont remains are also known from other less-well studied localities in Sonora. The faunas from these localities also contain the genus Bison, which indicates that the deposits are of the Rancholabrean Land Mammal Age, late Pleistocene. The presence of Pampatherium at Térapa and the presence of Glyptotherium at Térapa and the Río Mayo/Río Yaqui sites represent the first published accounts of these species from Sonora, and greatly extends their known geographical distribution during the Rancholabrean by about 1,100 km into northwestern Mexico.