taxonID	type	description	language	source
038C87C6FFF3FFF3B1EAFE24FB99FA3E.taxon	discussion	Today in Madagascar there are two recognised species, Brachyuromys ramirohitra Major, 1896 and Brachyuromys betsileoensis (Bartlett, 1880), both ranked as Least Concern on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (Goodman et al. 2013). According to Soarimalala and Goodman (2011), B. betsileoensis is smaller and is distinguished easily by external characters. Ellerman (1941) provided an identification key with some dental characters for the genus, among which were the flat-crowned cheekteeth, with curved folds becoming isolated with wear. According to him B. ramirohitra molars are flatter and their folds become isolated at a very early age, while in B. betsileoensis this condition is not reached until old age. Brachyuromys ramirohitra has a larger m 3 than B. betsileoensis. Petter (1961) also recognised the same size and morphological differences between molars of the two species. Currently although both species are known from separate locations in the Central Highlands of Madagascar, defined as the interior region of the island greater than 900 m above sea level (Goodman and Soarimalala 2018; Denys et al. 2021), they are only sympatric in Andringitra and Ampitambe (Goodman and Rasolonandrasana 2001; Jenkins and Carleton 2005). Some of the Children’s Cave specimens were labelled ‘ Brachyuromys arvicoloides ’ Maj. but the species was never described and is a nomen nudum. According to Jenkins and Carleton (2005), during his fieldwork Major provisionally recognised the presence of two species within the genus that he was later to formally name as Brachyuromys, using the label names of B. ramirohitra and B. ‘ arvicola ’. Evidently Major recognised that taxa which he had provisionally named ‘ arvicola ’ and ‘ arvicoloides ’ were synonyms of Nesomys betsileoensis Bartlett, 1880 but formulated Brachyuromys as a new genus in recognition of the incorrect generic allocation to Nesomys. In his original description of B. ramirohitra, Major (1896 a) indicated the presence of this species in the lower deposits of the Children’s Cave (Sirabé). In order to verify the presence of one or two species of Brachyuromys in the cave and their specific attribution we compared them with modern representatives of the genus. We confirm here the presence of two Brachyuromys species in Children’s Cave.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFF3FFF0B185FA6BFD08FA0B.taxon	description	Attributed material: Lower Stratum: 1 skull fragment and 2 left mandibles; see Appendix. These specimens are at a relatively advanced stage of wear and are comparatively large for the species. On the M 1 one can see three oblique lophs and a slight trace of a longitudinal link between the first and second lophs (Figure 2). On the lower molars the lophs are also very oblique and there is only a slight trace of the longitudinal link between the second and third lophs of m 1. The molar row length and width of M 1 fits well with modern specimens (Figure 3, Table 1).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFF0FFFEB1BCFA54FE01FC64.taxon	discussion	Most of the remains attributed to Brachyuromys by Major under the invalid name B. arvicoloides belong to the smaller species B. betsileoensis. Attributed material: Lower Stratum: 1 maxilla; 1 mandibular ramus. Upper Stratum: 30 crania and maxillary fragments; 44 mandibular rami; 5 molars; see Appendix for details. The two specimens from the Lower Stratum belong to a juvenile (CD 77) and an adult specimen (CD 78). They are both small but fit within the variability of the modern B. betsileoensis (Table 1). The other specimens from the Upper Stratum are relatively similar in size to modern representatives but always fit within the smallest dimensions of the bivariate graphs (Figure 3). They display lophs that are less oblique than those of B. ramirohitra and the longitudinal links between lophs are visible until an advanced stage of wear (Figure 4 a, b).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFEFFFCB16DFBB2FEC4FDE5.taxon	discussion	This relatively small rodent is known by three species in Madagascar. The two largest are Macrotarsomys ingens Petter, 1959 and M. petteri Goodman and Soarimalala, 2005 and the smallest M. bastardi Milne Edwards and G. Grandidier, 1898. By describing another endemic genus of Madagascar, Carleton and Goodman (1996) showed that Monticolomys koopmani is very close to M. bastardi in tooth morphology although size may discriminate between them. A close examination of representatives of the three Macrotarsomys species and M. koopmani allowed us to find some distinctive characters. Macrotarsomys bastardi has a long incisive foramen entering the palate between the molar rows and ending after the prelobe of M 1, while M. ingens and M. petteri have a shorter one ending before the anterior root of M 1. Monticolomys koopmani has the incisive foramen ending at the level of the anterior root of M 1. There is also a size difference between the small M. koopmani and larger M. bastardi. On the upper molars, in M. koopmani the M 1 looks small and wide while in Macrotarsomys species it looks slightly more elongated and narrower. In the holotype of M. koopmani there is a trace of a mesoloph on M 2 and M 3, a large round M 3 and an antero-labial cingulum on both M 2 and M 3. On the lower molars, the holotype of M. koopmani displays a narrow and elongated m 3 and the antero-labial cusps of the anterior row of cusps are related to the single posterior cusp by a longitudinal median crest (mure). The valley separating the two lobes of m 3 is long, transverse and stopped by the lingual wall of the molar. On M. koopmani, the valley is cut in two by a longitudinal median crest; there is no oblique crest connecting the two lobes. On M. bastardi the crests are more oblique on the lower molars, especially m 3, and the cusps look more bunodont (Figure 4). Different fossils of Macrotarsomys have been described in the literature. Sabatier and Legendre (1985) listed three potential species of the genus in Tsimanampetsotsa (now written as Tsimanampesotse) (SW Madagascar) – M. cf. bastardi, M. sp. and M. nov. sp. – but did not provide measurements or illustrations of their specimens. Goodman et al. (2006) found representatives of M. petteri in the subfossil sites of Andrahomana (SE Madagascar). Muldoon et al. (2009) described M. bastardi and M. petteri in Ankilitelo cave (SW Madagascar) but did not provide measurements. No fossils attributed to M. koopmani have yet been recovered. We describe here for the first time the presence of Macrotarsomys in the Children’s Cave.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFCFFFCB0D6FD20FBCCFA35.taxon	discussion	The Children’s Cave specimens have been attributed to M. cf. bastardi based on the following characters that allow differentiation from M. koopmani:	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFCFFFCB0D6FD20FBCCFA35.taxon	description	● Long incisive foramen ending after the prelobe of M 1 ● m 3 elongated and narrow with no median longitudinal crest between the first and the second lobe of m 3 (Figure 4) but presence of an oblique crest ending on the lingual side of the molar. Attributed material: all from the Upper Stratum: 8 maxillaries; 15 mandibular rami; see Appendix. The specimens of Children’s Cave display the bunodont molar morphology of Macrotarsomys with round alternate cusps connected medially by a longitudinal crest (Figure 4 d, e, g – i). Their m 3 allows clear differentiation from M. koopmani because there is never any trace of a longitudinal median link connecting the first and the second lobes. They display some variability in size but compared to the three modern species they correspond to the smallest species, M. bastardi. However, the Children’s Cave specimens display a slight size difference to the modern representatives of this species. The fossil specimens of Children’s Cave are clearly smaller than the larger M. cf. petteri of Andrahomana site (Table 2). There is overlap with Monticolomys koopmani which displays small molars (Figure 5). The few Children’s Cave remains attributed to M. cf. bastardi may belong to a yet undescribed subfossil species, but further revisions of the dental morphology of this species are still needed.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFCFFFDB1C0F9FCFE23FCC3.taxon	discussion	Today the genus is represented in Madagascar by two species: Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout, 1769), which is commensal; and R. rattus, found in all habitats of the island. In Children’s Cave the Rattus remains can be attributed whithout ambiguity to the widespread species R. rattus.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFDFFFBB1F1FC06FD75FC98.taxon	discussion	Today this species is present in all Madagascar habitats from 0 to 2500 m above sea level (a. s. l.) and is relatively abundant in anthropogenic places as well as in natural forests (Soarimalala and Goodman 2011). The date of arrival of R. rattus in Madagascar is poorly known but the earliest archaeological evidence dates from the ninth to eleventh century CE at the Islamic port of Mahilaka on the north-western part of the island (Rakotozafy 1996; Radimilahy 1997, 1998). Other eastern and south-eastern coastal sites date from even earlier centuries, with archaeological evidence of well-established human settlements from the seventh to tenth century CE in southern Madagascar, and the presence of Arabic trade providing a likely explanation for the early colonisation of the island by R. rattus. This is consistent with a recent investigation showing that the arrival of the earliest R. rattus on the Swahili coast of Africa and in Pemba and Zanzibar islands dated from the seventh to eighth century CE (Prendergast et al. 2017). The scenario of a single colonisation event was suggested by successive molecular analyses of Hingston et al. (2005) and Tollenaere et al. (2010), with the Arabian Peninsula as the possible origin of the species in Madagascar. However, molecular evidence from a later study (Brouat et al. 2014), while in agreement with a single ancestral source, instead suggested two independent introduction events for R. rattus, one in the north and the other in the south of the island. Rattus rattus was listed from Andrahomana cave, a coastal site of the south-eastern part of the island, dated between 4500 and 1500 BP (Vasey and Burney 2007; Burney et al. 2008), and is briefly listed at Ankilitelo (SW Madagascar) by Muldoon et al. (2009). The timing of colonisation of the Central Highland forests by R. rattus is uncertain. According to Goodman (1995) the earliest presence of R. rattus in the central region dates from 1916. However, this is predated by a specimen of R. rattus (NHMUK 1897.9.1.155) collected by Major from Ivohitra, a locality visited by him while working in the vicinity of Antsirabe in 1895 (Jenkins and Carleton 2005). Moroever, in the material from Lavajaza, collected around 1901 – 1905, Denys et al. (2021) indicated the abundant presence of the species in the cave. The lack of reference by Major may be due to his incomplete sorting of the very large quantity of material from the Children’s Cave. In fact, our study allowed sorting of the cranio-dental remains of many relatively large sized murids which display the typical morphology of R. rattus, notably three rows of three bunodont and relatively well-aligned cusps on M 1. Attributed material: all from the Upper Stratum: 12 partial skulls and maxillaries; 41 mandibular rami; 6 isolated incisors; see Appendix.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFDFFFBB1F1FC06FD75FC98.taxon	description	The incisive foramen is long, entering the maxillary at the level of the first root of the M 1 (Figure 4 c). The largest tooth of the upper molar row is M 1 and M 3 is the smallest, but the latter molar is not very reduced and displays two lobes of cusps with the second lobe constituted by a single round cusp. On poorly worn molars the cusps are relatively well aligned transversally and the t 1 and t 4 are round and as large as the t 2 and t 5. The lobes are well separated by shallow convex valleys. The t 3, t 6 and t 9 are small. There is no trace of longitudinal crests. On M 2 and M 3 the t 1 cusp is larger than on M 1. The lower molars display a classical Rattus pattern of cusps with a prelobe constituted by four round cusps of equal size on the m 1. The rows of cusps are relatively aligned transversally and there is a cingulum posteriorly on the distal part of m 1 and m 2. The size of the upper molar rows as well as the width of M 1 fit well with modern R. rattus specimens of Madagascar (Table 3, Figure 6).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFBFFF9B1F1FC77FC8AFD78.taxon	discussion	This small species is found today in all anthropogenic and natural ecosystems of Madagascar from 0 to 2500 m a. s. l. (Soarimalala and Goodman 2011). Genetic studies have demonstrated that these mice belong to the subspecies M. m. gentilulus Thomas, 1919 and originated from Yemen (Duplantier et al. 2002). Archaeological bone remains included material of M. musculus excavated from a late ninth to tenth century Islamic port site south of Ambanja (Radimilahy 1998), and very few subfossils were listed. Mus musculus of unknown age is attested to in the south-eastern site of Andrahomana (Burney et al. 2008), where some endemic rodents were dated between 4500 and 1500 BP, and at Ankilitelo (Muldoon et al. 2009). Many M. musculus were also described from the Lavajaza site (Denys et al. 2021). In Children’s Cave we found numerous remains of small murids that we can attribute to M. musculus based on small size, the disposition of the cusps of the prelobe of m 1 and the presence of a hook on the upper incisor (Figure 4 f).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFFBFFF9B1F1FC77FC8AFD78.taxon	description	Attributed material: Upper Stratum: 10 maxillaries; 52 mandibular rami; see Appendix. On these specimens, the incisive foramen enters deeply into the palate and stops at the level of the t 1 cusp of M 1. The molars are relatively narrow. On M 1 the cusps are arranged in three convex lobes, with t 1 and t 4 ending posteriorly to t 3 and t 6. The t 1 cusp is compressed laterally. On M 2 the t 1 is very large and bunodont. On the very small M 3 only two small anterior cusps and one small distal cingulum are visible. On m 1 the four cusps of the prelobe are well linked together but the antero-labial one is very small and situated posteriorly compared to the large anterior antero-lingual cusp. On the anterolabial side of m 1 and m 2 one can see a small oblique cingulum. The m 1 and m 2 display a small posterior cingulum of about the same size. On the very small m 3 one can see two rows of cusps. The first row is composed of two equal cusps while the second row has only a small median cusp (Figure 4 f). The size of the upper molar rows as well as the width of M 1 fit well with modern Mus musculus specimens of Madagascar (Table 3, Figure 7).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFF9FFF9B1F9FB39FCC5FA24.taxon	description	It was difficult to age these specimens in which few teeth remained in situ, but from their size, two were possibly adult. Major collected living specimens from Antsirabe from April to early May 1895 during the same period that he was working in the Children’s Cave.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFF9FFF9B1D3FCE3FC84FBEE.taxon	discussion	Two of the five species of spine-bearing tenrecs were found amongst the subfossil remains in the Children’s Cave. Both occurred in the Upper Stratum and represented a considerably smaller proportion of the remains in comparison with the smaller Oryzorictinae. They are Setifer setosus (Schreber, 1778) (NR = 7 MNI = 4) and Tenrec ecaudatus (Schreber, 1778) (NR = 10 MNI = 3). Both species are listed as of Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (Stephenson et al. 2016).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFF9FFE7B1EDFA77FE68FD46.taxon	description	Based on size, eight of the specimens are juvenile, the other two subadult or perhaps young adults. Two contemporary living specimens were collected from Antsirabe by Major, who also obtained a fossil specimen (M 7092) from the ‘ Pleistocene formation, Marshes of Sirabé’. ORYZORICTINAE Dobson, 1882 In total, 866 craniodental elements of oryzorictine tenrecs were recovered from the Upper Stratum of the Children’s Cave. Four species belonging to three genera were identified, the most numerous being Microgale cowani Thomas, 1882 (NR = 501, MNI = 182), followed by Microgale pusilla Major, 1896 (NR = 192, MNI 115) and Oryzorictes tetradactylus Milne-Edwards and A. Grandidier, 1882 (NR = 151, MNI = 49), with the lowest frequency for Nesogale dobsoni (NR = 22, MNI = 8). Within the Oryzorictinae, identification to species of craniodental elements usually depends on the presence of a portion of the tooth row. Oryzorictes and Nesogale are larger than either of the two species of Microgale found at the site and differ in craniodental morphology (Figure 8). Age determination in Microgale is based on differences between the juvenile and adult dental morphology and eruption sequence of the antemolar dentition (MacPhee 1987). In this assemblage the molars and premolars are the teeth most frequently preserved in situ, progressively less so towards the anterior region of the tooth row, with incisors and canines rarely preserved. Thus, age determination is often difficult and the proportion of age classes within the sample difficult to establish.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE7FFE4B1FEFC80FC9EFC98.taxon	discussion	Microgale is a diverse and highly speciose genus, currently understood to be represented in Madagascar by 21 species plus one extinct species (Everson et al. 2016; Jenkins 2018; Jenkins et al. 2022) but suspected to include cryptic species that are in the process of investigation (Olson et al. 2004; S. M. Goodman and L. E. Olson, pers. comm.). Most of the subfossil material of Microgale examined by Major was identified only to the generic level; however it is evident from some of his handwritten label names that he potentially recognised two or more different species. The current study confirmed the presence of two species of Microgale, M. cowani and M. pusilla, among the subfossils in the Children’s Cave. Both species are listed as of Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (Stephenson et al. 2016). Microgale pusilla and M. cowani are distinguished from each other by skull size but also based on dental morphology. The size difference between the two species of Microgale found as subfossils in the Children’s Cave is clearly shown in Table 4 and Figure 9, with M. pusilla being noticeably smaller than M. cowani.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE7FFE4B1FEFC80FC9EFC98.taxon	description	The dentition of M. pusilla is markedly smaller than that of M. cowani. In M. pusilla the talon of the second upper premolar (P 3) is absent or reduced to a cingulum and two roots are present, the posterior root being very broad, whereas in M. cowani P 3 has three roots and a talon is present. The first lower deciduous premolar (dp 2) and adult (p 2) in M. pusilla is caniniform with no anterior accessory cusp and a very small posterior accessory cusp and this tooth has a single root; dp 2 and p 2 of M. cowani have two roots and in p 2 the protoconid has an anterior accessory cusp (paraconid) and posterior accessory cusp (hypoconulid). If the teeth are absent, identification may be determined by the corresponding number of root sockets at the P 3 or p 2 locus.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE4FFE5B1E2FC33FE18FA2B.taxon	description	No intact maxillae were observed amongst M. cowani; a few specimens exhibit premolar eruption, while one individual shows a mixture of deciduous and erupting teeth. No deciduous teeth are evident in the mandibular rami of M. cowani, but a few specimens show p 2 or p 4 in the process of eruption (Stage 2) and several with p 3 erupting (Stage 3). Since the anterior region of the mandible is more fragile than the posterior region and the deciduous dentition more readily lost than the permanent dentition, it is difficult to judge what age classes are present in the subfossil sample. Toothwear of the molars is one criterion used as an approximate method for ageing mammals. Four wear classes were established indicating increasing maturity: unworn molars with clearly defined cusps in juveniles and young adults, slightly worn molars in older adults, and worn and very worn molars which indicate old individuals. The results for the mandibular rami of M. cowani showed that the proportions for three of the wear classes are roughly equivalent: 19 % with worn or very worn molars, 23 % with no wear and with cusp pattern clearly visible, 24 % showing wear and the fourth category with a slightly higher proportion, 34 %, with moderately well-defined cusps and slight wear. There is no variation in size of the mandibular ramus between Modern and subfossil specimens of M. cowani (see Figure 10). The few contemporary specimens of M. cowani collected by Major at Antsirabe and Andranobe, from the area near the Children’s Cave, group towards the upper part of the range of the subfossils on ARL but the mid-part of the range on MH (see Figure 10); however, the sample size is too small for this observation to have any significance.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE5FFE2B1CCFA6EFD70F9FA.taxon	description	Two specimens of M. pusilla with intact maxillae exhibit the third premolar (P 4) in process of eruption (Stage 2 of MacPhee 1987), in two others the second incisor (I 2) or P 3 is erupting (MacPhee’s Stage 3) and in two specimens the canines are erupting (Stage 4). A few specimens of M. pusilla exhibit dp 2, dp 3 or dp 4, and in one specimen p 3 is in process of erupting (Stage 3). Major described M. pusilla based on specimens he collected from two localities in southeastern Madagascar, while recognising that subfossil remains in the Children’s Cave, for which he had previously used the label name ‘ parva ’, belonged to the same taxon. Microgale pusilla is relatively rarely represented in museum collections and these museum specimens cluster within the lower to mid-part of the range of the Children’s Cave subfossils on ARL (Figure 11). No contemporary living specimens of M. pusilla were collected by Major from Antsirabe and the surrounding area, which suggests either that the species was not present or poorly represented in the area at that time or that it proved difficult to trap, perhaps because of its small size. Modern methods of standard pitfall trapping at other locations have also shown low abundance for this species where, if present, it is recorded mostly from one and rarely by three or four specimens. However, remains of this species were identified in fresh owl pellets at Antsifotrakely, a small rock shelter in Antsifotra volcano (approx. 19.857 ° S, 46.902 ° E), 5 km E of Betafo and approximately 10 – 18 km W of Antsirabe (MacPhee 1987). The species has also been recorded from four Central Highlands Protected Areas sites, at Ambohitantely, Tsinjoarivo-Ambalaomby, Ibity and Itremo (Goodman et al. 2000; Goodman et al. 2018; Goodman and Soarimalala 2004).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE3FFE3B1FAFB97FDE3FA2A.taxon	discussion	This genus, originally included in the genus Microgale, is distinguished from the latter by morphological and molecular differences, and is represented by two species, Nesogale dobsoni (Thomas, 1884) and N. talazaci (Major, 1896). Both species, listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (Stephenson et al. 2016), are widely distributed, with a broad latitudinal range in moist evergreen forest and, while both occur in the Central Highlands, N. dobsoni is apparently more tolerant of fringe habitat of fragmented forest and marshland. The two species are distinguished by the greater size of N. talazaci. Measurements of the subfossil mandibular rami show that they are clearly within the range of the smaller N. dobsoni (Table 5).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE3FFE0B1E9FA77FED2FBD1.taxon	description	Although the skulls of N. dobsoni are relatively robust in comparison with Microgale, the anterior parts of the skull are rarely preserved amongst the subfossil material. Deciduous premolars are present in two specimens and two others respectively exhibit an erupting p 4 (Stage 2 according to MacPhee 1987) and canine (Stage 4); however, the dentition of other specimens is apparently adult based on premolar and molar dentition. Few specimens of N. dobsoni occur in the Children’s Cave subfossil remains in comparison to the other species of Oryzorictinae (2.5 % of the identified remains). Nesogale dobsoni is relatively common in museum collections and Major collected contemporary live specimens from several humid forest localities but not, however, from Antsirabe or nearby localities (Jenkins and Carleton 2005). However, N. dobsoni was found in fresh owl pellets at Antsifotrakely (MacPhee 1987). In comparison with modern specimens from other localities, we find that the Children’s Cave specimens fit within the species’ variability (Figure 12).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE0FFE1B186FB1CFC55FBDE.taxon	discussion	Two species of Oryzorictes are generally accepted as present in Madagascar, O. hova A. Grandidier, 1870 and O. tetradactylus Milne-Edwards and A. Grandidier, 1882. Three cryptic species, however, have recently been determined within O. hova based on molecular and morphological evidence but as yet remain unnamed (Everson et al. 2018). Both named species occur in the Central Highlands; Oryzorictes hova is widely distributed and ranked as of Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (Stephenson et al. 2016), although the status of cryptic species under this name will require future re-evaluation. Oryzorictes tetradactylus is ranked as Data Deficient as it is known mostly from specimens collected in Central and East Madagascar late in the nineteenth century, including those collected by Major at Antsirabe and the relatively close localities of Fasina (19 ° 45 ’ S, 46 ° 56 ’ E) and Andranobe (19 ° 49 ’ S, 46 ° 59 ’ E) (Jenkins and Carleton 2005). This species has not been recorded at any of the Protected Area sites in the Central Highlands, unlike O. cf. hova which is listed from three such sites: Ambohitantely, Anjozorobe-Angavo and Marolambo (Goodman et al. 2018). There are a few records of this species from Andringitra in 1970, two at high altitudes of 2030 m and 2470 m, respectively; however, no specimens were discovered during the elevational survey of the eastern slopes of Andringitra in 1993 (Goodman et al. 1996 a). The skull of O. hova is more robust than that of O. tetradactylus, averages larger in size (Table 5) and has larger molars.	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
038C87C6FFE1FFE1B125FB3CFEF8FA1E.taxon	description	As in other genera, the anterior dentition is less frequently preserved than molars, with incisors rarely and canines occasionally present. Deciduous incisors were present on the anterior cranium of one specimen, but judging by the dentition, and by measurements, most of the Children’s Cave subfossils are adult and fit within the variability of the modern species (Figure 13).	en	Denys, Christiane, Gabriel, Nadine W., Lalis, Aude, Jenkins, Paulina (2024): Subfossil rodents and tenrecs of Children’s Cave, Madagascar. Journal of Natural History 58 (25 - 28): 796-839, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2024.2370663
