Prosantorhinus HEISSIG , 1974

Heissig, Kurt, 2017, Revision Of The European Species Of Prosantorhinus Heissig, 1974 (Mammalia, Perissodactyla, Rhinocerotidae), Fossil Imprint 73 (3 - 4), pp. 236-274 : 238-239

Genus Prosantorhinus HEISSIG, 1974

T y p e s p e c i e s. Dicerorhinus germanicus WANG,

1929.

O t h e r s p e c i e s. P. douvillei ( OSBORN, 1900) , P. laubei HEISSIG et FEJFAR, 2007 , P. aurelianensis ( NOUEL, 1866),? P. tagicus ( ROMAN et TORRES, 1907).

O c c u r r e n c e. Early to Middle Miocene (MN 3 –

MN 7), Western and Central Europe.

D i a g n o s i s (e m e n d e d). Small to medium sized brachycephalic Teleoceratini with concave dorsal skull profile and elevated nasals fused near the tips below the subterminal horn base. Nasal incision high and of medium depth. Upper premolars shortened compared with the molars. Last upper molar with triangular outline and short distal cingulum. Incomplete cement layer on the labial tooth walls. Postcranials robust. Manus tetradactyl to tridactyl. Second metatarsal with proximal articular facet shortened from the rear by a foramen nutritium.

C o m p a r i s o n. See Table 1. Earlier Teleoceratini of the genus Diaceratherium DIETRICH, 1931 , include the Oligocene species D. lamilloquense MICHEL, 1983 and D. massiliae MÉNOURET et GUÉRIN, 2009 , as well as the early Miocene species D. lemanense ( POMEL, 1853). D. asphaltense ( DEPÉRET et DOUXAMI, 1902), D. tomerdingense DIETRICH, 1931, and probably D. aginense ( REPELIN, 1917) may be synonyms of the latter ( Antoine and Becker 2013: 141). In contrast to most species of Prosantorhinus these species are medium sized to large. They had, as far as it is known, a rather long skull (e.g. Depéret and Douxami 1902: pl. 1, figs 1, 2, Duranthon 1990: pl. 1, Becker et al. 2010: fig. 3C), a dorsal profile which is concave only in the posterior part of the frontals and straight or slightly convex at the transition from frontals to nasals (see figures cited above). The nasals are horizontal, and not fused together and therefore bearing a split horn base, which is defined by a roughened bone surface near the tip of the nasals, punctured by many foramina. The nasal incision is deeper and lower. The last upper molar has a trapezoidal outline and a long robust distal cingulum (see figures cited above). The metapodials are less robust than in Prosantorhinus ( Scherler et al. 2013: fig. 5). The manus is generally tetradactyl.

The cranial characters are known only in the three best documented species of Prosantorhinus . Two others are generically determined by dental characters.

The last genus of the Teleoceratini , Brachypotherium ROGER, 1904 immigrated into Europe during MN 4 and was the largest in Europe. It had a tridactyl manus, less shortened premolars, a straight skull profile and short narrow nasals with occasionally a feeble horn or was without a horn.

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