Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia, 38(1) 1995

Issue:

VOL 38(1) 1995

Keywords:

Pleistocene, mammals, Northwestern Europe, palaeoenvironment

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On the application of fossil mammals to the reconstruction of the palaeoenvironment of northwestern Europe

• Thijs VAN KOLFSCHOTEN

Abstract:

The fossil record from the Quaternary deposits of the Northern European Plain shows palaeobotanical as well as palaeozoological associations that differ in various degrees from the extant flora and fauna. The record is interpreted and translated into palaeoenvironmental as well as palaeoclimatological pictures, which are mainly based on a comparison with the extant flora and fauna. The interpretation of Middle and Late Pleistocene mammal assemblages is, however, hampered by taphonomic biases and the fact that mammals have the capacity to adapt to environments and tolerate circumstances other than those under which they live today. Despite these restrictions it is obvious that the accuracy of the reconstruction of a palaeoenvironment increases if mammalian data are incorporated. A lack of mammalian data may result in a local instead of a regional reconstruction. Furthermore, it appears to be problematic to use terms such as interglacial and glacial sensu stricto to characterize fossil faunal associations. We should avoid these terms as much as possible and define, in the near future, faunal units that are characteristic of a particular palaeoenvironment in a restricted area. This would increase the applicability of fossil mammals to the reconstruction of the palaeoenvironment.