The evolution of terrestrial ecosystems in the Quaternary: Pleistocene mammals from Apulia in the Museum of Earth Sciences (UniBa)

The study of the evolution of terrestrial mammal communities during the Pleistocene is of crucial importance to better understand the effects of climatic and paleoenvironmental changes in a certain territory. This work is focused on the study of the numerous fossil remains from three Pleistocene sites in Apulia and all preserved inside the Museum of Earth Sciences of the University of Bari: Pirro Nord (Gargano, northern Apulia), Contrada Monticelli (Murge, central Apulia) and Gagliano del Capo (Salento, southern Apulia). In this research work, the study of the so-called "Dagostino Collection" began, consisting of about 700 finds collected during the first excavation campaigns at the Pirro Nord site during the early 1970s. The study of the fauna found at the Contrada Monticelli site was completed, consisting of over 150 finds collected during the early 1980s and only partially studied previously. Following restoration work, a large partial rhinoceros skull from Gagliano del Capo was studied in detail for the first time. The research work was conducted through traditional methodologies (morphological, biometric and statistical study) and digital (CT scan and 3D scans). Starting from the taxonomic identification and revision of previously studied remains of the fauna found, it has been possible to obtain data of the following types: 1) biochronological, linked to the arrival/disappearance of certain species; 2) paleobiogeographic, linked to the dispersion of these and the extension of their ranges; 3) paleoenvironmental, directly correlated to the ecological significance of the elements that make up the communities of terrestrial mammals. The Pirro Nord site (Early Pleistocene) is related to the homonymous Faunal Unit (FU), Contrada Monticelli (early Middle Pleistocene) can be associated with the Isernia FU, while the two large woolly species found in Gagliano del Capo suggest a correlation to the Last Glacial. Overall, the studied fauna from the site of Pirro Nord (Early Pleistocene, Pirro Nord FU), Contrada Monticelli (early Middle Pleistocene, Isernia FU) and Gagliano del Capo (Late Pleistocene, Last Glacial) seem to show some peculiar characteristics perhaps due to the isolation of the Apulian peninsula, furthermore they seem to have been a refuge area for relict populations for the extincted species in continental Europe. Finally, the cataloguing and new exhibitions of these finds have allowed to significantly enrich the paleontological heritage present in the Museum of Earth Sciences and constitute the starting point for further possible future developments.