SMITHSONIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO PALEOBIOLOGY • NUMBER 54 The Carnivora of the Edson Local Fauna (Late Hemphillian), Kansas Jessica A. Harrison c^\THS0rV7^^ NOV 2 11983 1) JJ ISSUED NOV 16 1983 SMITHSONIAN PUBLICATIONS SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION PRESS City of Washington 1983 ABSTRACT Harrison, Jessica A. The Carnivora of the Edson Local Fauna (Late Hem- phillian), Kansas. Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology, number 54, 42 pages, 18 figures, 1983.—The late Hemphillian Edson Quarry Local Fauna contains 36 species of amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. The eight species of carnivorans are Cams davisi, a primitive dog; Osteoborus cyonoides, a large borophagine; Agnotherium species, a long-limbed bear; Plesiogulo marshalli, a wolverine; Pliotaxidea nevadensis, a badger; Martinogale alveodens, a skunk; Adel- phatlurus kansensis, a metailurine felid; and Machairodus coloradensis, a machai- rodontine felid. Edson is one of several fossil localities in Sherman County, Kansas, and was deposited in a series of fine sands within the Ogallala Formation. A secondary channel in a braided stream system is proposed as the environment of deposition. The high percentage of juveniles, as well as the vast numbers of the salamander Ambystoma kansensis, indicate accumulation during the spring of the year. The Edson Quarry Local Fauna compares very well with such typically late Hemphillian faunas as Coffee Ranch, Texas, and Optima, Oklahoma. Although only the carnivorans have been treated in depth, a listing of the vertebrate taxa is offered as well. OFFICIAL PUBLICATION DATE is handstamped in a limited number of initial copies and is recorded in the Institution's annual report, Smithsonian Year. SERIES COVER DESIGN: The trilobite Phacops rana Green. Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Harrison, Jessica A. The Carnivora of the Edson local fauna (late Hemphillian), Kansas. (Smithsonian contributions to paleobiology ; no. 54) Bibliography: p. Supt. of Docs, no.: SI 1.30:54 I. Carnivora, Fossil. 2. Paleontology—Pliocene. 3. Paleontology—Kansas—Sherman County. I. Title. II. Series. QE701.S56 no. 54 [QE882.C15] 560s [569'.74] 83-600029 Contents Page Introduction 1 Previous Work 1 Abbreviations 2 Acknowledgments 3 Location and Stratigraphy 3 Taphonomy 5 Faunal List 7 Biochronology 8 Paleoecology 10 Order CARNIVORA Bowdich, 1821 11 Family CANIDAE Gray, 1821 11 Subfamily CANINAE Gill, 1872 11 Canis davisi Merriam, 1911 11 Subfamily BOROPHAGINAE Simpson, 1945 15 Osteoborus cyonoides (Martin, 1928) 15 Family URSIDAE Gray, 1825 22 Subfamily AGRIOTHERIINAE 22 Agriotherium species 22 Family MUSTELIDAE Swainson, 1835 25 Subfamily GULONINAE Miller, 1912 25 Plesiogulo marshalli (Martin, 1928) 25 Subfamily MELINAE Burmeister, 1850 25 Pliotaxidea nevadensis (Butterworth, 1916) 25 Subfamily MEPHITINAE Gill, 1872 26 Martinogale alveodens Hall, 1930 26 Family FELIDAE Gray, 1821 27 Subfamily MACHAIRODONTINAE Gill, 1872 27 Tribe METAILURINI Beaumont, 1964 27 Adelphailurus kansensis Hibbard, 1934 27 Tribe MACHAIRODONTINI Beaumont, 1964 31 Machairodus coloradensis Cook, 1922 31 Conclusions 37 Literature Cited 39 in The Carnivora of the Edson Local Fauna (Late Hemphillian), Kansas Jessica A. Harrison Introduction from 1933 to 1942. This material was sold to Childs Frick, a Trustee of the American Museum Edson Quarry, Kansas, has produced one of of Natural History, and following his death was the largest and most diverse faunas from the late bequeathed to that museum and eventually in­ Hemphillian of North America. As such, it pro­ corporated along with the rest of the Frick Col­ vides an unusually detailed glimpse into this in­ lection into the holdings of the Department of terval during which the flora was completing a Vertebrate Paleontology. A small number of spec­ transition from woodland savanna to grassland, imens, notably the types of Perognathus dunklei and the climate was becoming more xeric, and faunal ?Oryzomys plwcaemcus, were collected in 1935 by interchange with Europe, Asia, and South Amer­ David Dunkle for the Museum of Comparative ica was increasing. Zoology at Harvard University. Some 36 taxa of vertebrates representing am­ Several authors have studied various compo­ phibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are known nents of the Edson fauna. Adams and Martin from the locality. Eight genera of carnivorans are (1929, 1930) and Taylor (1936, 1941) described present in the fauna. Although a complete sys­ the Edson herpetofauna. Tihen (1958, 1962) re­ tematic revision of the Edson Local Fauna is vised much of this early work. The avifauna was beyond the scope of this paper, a revised faunal dealt with by Wetmore (1937) and Wetmore and list has been compiled. Martin (1930). Martin (1928) and Hibbard PREVIOUS WORK.—The fossil concentration was (1934, 1937, 1939) described several of the smaller discovered in 1924 by H. T. Martin of the Uni­ mammals and published the first faunal lists. versity of Kansas Museum of Natural History Martinogale, a mephitine mustelid, was named by and was subsequently worked by university field Hall (1930), and Dunkle (1938) later referred parties under the direction of Martin or Claude additional material to this genus. Wood (1936) W. Hibbard into the 1930s. George Sternberg, a named the rodent, Kansasimys, and recently Wah- professional fossil collector, periodically exca­ lert (1978) has explored its systematic relation­ vated large amounts of material, approximately ships. Harrison (1979) named a new lamine 80% of the total Edson sample, during the interval camel, Alforjas, and reviewed the wolverine ma­ terial (1981, 1982). Prescott (1953) investigated Jessica A. Harrison, Department of Paleobiology, National Museum the geology and groundwater resources of Sher­ of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560. man County. Edson 18.5 Km * \ 5 5 eo'. r- m' m CC, ' CC f 1 i 1 I f""'' ©Sherman Co. Loc. 4 \ \ \ 1 \ \ Sherman Co. \ m Edson Q. \ V \ \ \ \ \ \ N I Km \ j Misplaced Q. • Logan Wallace Co. <^ Co. West Q. «\ • Rnino Hi" Q- FICURE 1.—Geographic location of Edson Quarry and adjacent fossil localities. ABBREVIATIONS.—The following abbreviations History, Lawrence, Kansas are used in this study: SMM Sternberg Memorial Museum USNM Former United States National Museum, col­ F:AM Frick Collection, American Museum of Nat­ lections now in the National Museum of ural History, New York, New York Natural Hislory, Smithsonian Institution, KUVP University of Kansas Museum of Natural Washington, D.C. NUMBER 54 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.—I am grateful to Richard but attains a thickness of up to 90 meters in H. Tedford, Department of Vertebrate Paleon­ others. It is composed of a wide variety of fluvial tology, American Museum of Natural History, to sediments, including gravel, sand, silt, and clay, Hans-Peter Schultze and Larry Martin, Univer­ deposited by streams draining the Rocky Moun­ sity of Kansas Museum of Natural History, and tains. A very hard limestone layer capping the to Richard Zakrzewski, Sternberg Memorial Mu­ Ogallala sediments in many areas was described seum, for the loan of specimens. John Chom by Elias (1931:138, 139) as the "Chlorellopsis lime­ unearthed the negative for Figure 2a from the stone" or the "Algal limestone." Because the lime­ KUVP archives. Debra K. Bennett took the pho­ stone contains a high percentage of a fossil alga, tograph in Figure 3. Earl Manning identified the Chlorellopsis bradleyi, Elias inferred the presence of peccary from Edson Quarry. Henry Galiano was a large, shallow lake or system of smaller lakes to very generous with his knowledge of the metail- provide the lacustrine environment requisite for urine felids. Richard Tedford offered several use­ its deposition. ful comments pertaining to Canis davisi. Sue Voss The Ogallala Formation is overlain by a Pleis­ was very helpful in translating the work of French tocene loess, the Sanborn Formation, which paleontologists. This paper represents part of a ranges up to 15 meters (about 50 feet) in thick­ dissertation submitted to the University of Kan­ ness. Along valley and arroyo floors, Pleistocene sas. The project was supported in part by grants alluvial sands and gravels may be found. The from the National Science Foundation and the nature of the Ogallala deposits in neighboring Geological Society of America. I would especially Decatur, Wallace, Rawlins, and Thomas counties like to thank Robert J. Emry, Ralph E. Eshelman, has been described by Elias, 1931 and 1937, Frye, Earl E. Manning, and Henry Galiano for the 1945, and Hodson, 1963. considerable time and thought they expended in Edson Quarry is located in an arroyo draining the review of this paper. into the North Fork of the Smoky Hill River. It was last worked by George Sternberg in 1942. The location was reestablished in 1973 through Location and Stratigraphy the use of field notes and photographs from the Edson Quarry is located in the NW 1/4 of the archives of the University of Kansas Museum of SE 1/4 of Section 25, T 10 S, R 38 W, Sherman Natural History. Legend has it that Sternberg County, Kansas (Figure 1). It is one of several completely excavated the single, large, lenticular fossil localities (Rhino Hill Quarry, West Quarry, bone bed at Edson Quarry (Figure 2a). The Sherman County Locality 4, and Misplaced approximate extent of the original excavations Quarry) in southwest Sherman County and and the disposition of the backdirt mounds were northeast Wallace County that have produced still discernable in 1978 (Figure 2b); indeed, bone smaller collections