1" THE FIRST CAPYBARAS (RODENTIA, CAVIIDAE, HYDROCHOERINAE) 2" INVOLVED IN THE GREAT AMERICAN BIOTIC INTERCHANGE 3" LOS PRIMEROS CARPINCHOS (RODENTIA, CAVIIDAE, HYDROCHOERINAE) 4" PARTICIPANTES DEL GRAN INTERCAMBIO BIÓTICO AMERICANO 5" 6" MARÍA GUIOMAR VUCETICH1, CECILIA M. DESCHAMPS2 AND MARÍA 7" ENCARNACIÓN PÉREZ3 8" 9" 1CONICET; División Paleontología Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque 10" s/n, 1900, La Plata, Argentina.
[email protected] 11" 2CIC Provincia de Buenos Aires; División Paleontología Vertebrados, Museo de La 12" Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, 1900, La Plata, Argentina.
[email protected] 13" 3Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio, Av. Fontana 140, U9100GYO Trelew, 14" Argentina.
[email protected] 15" 16" Pages: 22; Figures: 5. Supplementary online material: 3 17" 18" Heading: VUCETICH ET AL.: CAPYBARAS AND THE GABI 19" 20" Corresponding author: María Guiomar Vucetich.
[email protected] 21" 1" " 22" 23" Abstract. The new combination Phugatherium dichroplax nov. comb. (Ahearn and 24" Lance, 1980) for the North American species “Neochoerus” dichroplax Ahearn and 25" Lance, 1980 and “N.” cordobai Carranza-Castañeda and Miller, 1988 is proposed. Its 26" biochron is here enlarged (late Early Blancan - latest Blancan; Piacenzian-Gelasian), 27" being the youngest species of Phugatherium and thus extending the biochron of the 28" genus into the Early Pleistocene. This is the first mention of a Pliocene South American 29" lineage of capybaras crossing the Panamanian bridge, implying the recognition of a 30" third lineage of capybaras involved in the Great American Biotic Interchange. The 31" proposed North American origin of the genus Neochoerus is discussed.