四川中—晚更新世东方剑齿象化石牙齿形态特征及个体发育分析*

四川盆地是中国发现并研究第四纪哺乳动物化石最早的地区之一, 主要研究热点在重庆地区, 而四川地区却少有人研究。东方剑齿象(Stegodon orientalis Owen, 1870)是中国南方中—晚更新世大熊猫—剑齿象动物群中最常见种类之一, 但关于其分类与演化特征尚未形成统一认识, 其个体发育情况也还未得到充分研究。本文对产于四川地区、保存在成都自然博物馆(成都理工大学博物馆)的17个东方剑齿象化石的牙齿形态特征和个体发育阶段进行了研究, 并根据牙齿的萌出和磨蚀状态将其分为5个年龄组, 即婴儿期、幼年期、亚成年期、成年期和老年期。本研究填补了四川地区东方剑齿象牙齿形态特征和个体发育分析方面的空白, 也为进一步厘清西南地区剑齿象的分类、系统发育及演化研究提供基础材料信息。

The dental morphology and ontogeny analysis of the Mid–Late Pleistocene Stegodon orientalis (Mammalia: Proboscidea) from Sichuan

The Sichuan Basin is one of the earliest regions in China to discover and study Quaternary mammalian fossils, with the main research hotspot areas being in Chongqing. While there are few studies in the Sichuan region. Stegodon orientalis Owen, 1870 is one of the most common species in the Pleistocene Ailuropoda-Stegodon fauna of southern China. However, its classification and evolution have currently not yet been formed into a unified understanding, and its ontogeny is still not researched enough. This study delves into the dental morphology and ontogeny analysis of 17 specimens of S. orientalis from the Sichuan region, preserved in the Chengdu Natural History Museum (Chengdu University of Technology Museum). Based on tooth eruption and wear, those materials’s ontogeny can be divided into 5 age groups, including neonate, juvenile, sub-adult, adult, and old adult. This study fills the gap in the aspects of dental morphology characteristics and ontogeny analysis of Ailuropoda–Stegodon fauna in the Sichuan region. It also provides essential data for further refining the classification, phylogeny, and evolutionary studies of Stegodon.