THE FIRST DISCOVERY OF MIDDLE MIOCENE RODENTS FROM THE NORTHERN JUNGGAR BASIN, CHINA

During the field season of 1982 in Northern Junggar Basin, surface collecting by the field party of IVPP at the outcrops of Halamagai Formation provided 7 isolated cheek teeth of rodents associated with some macromammals typical of middle Miocene age: Platybelodon, Stephanocemas thomsoni, Lagomeryx sp., etc. It is the first time that the Miocene rodents are discovered in this region. They belong to 3 genera, 4 species: Sinomylagaulus halamagaiensis gen. et sp. nov. Atlantoxerus junggarensis sp. nov. A. giganteus sp. nov. Amblycastor tungurensis Stirton, 1934 Many thanks are due to Drs. V. Fahlbusch, N. Schmidt-Kittler, P. Mein and N. S. Shevyreva for their sending me the comparative materials, reprints and profitable discussion. The colleagues of IVPP field party put in a lot of hard work to collect this material. Mr. Shen Wenlong made the textfigures. To all these persons the author wants to express her heartfelt gratitudes. All the specimens herein described are stored in the collections of IVPP.