Sorex (Drepanosorex) savini Hinton, 1911

Pazonyi, Piroska, Mészáros, Lukács, Hír, János & Mta-Mtm-Elte, Zoltán Szentesi, 2016, The lowermost Pleistocene rodent and soricid (Mammalia) fauna from Beremend 14 locality (South Hungary) and its biostratigraphical and palaeoecological implications, Fragmenta Palaeontologica Hungarica 33, pp. 99-134 : 107

Sorex (Drepanosorex) savini Hinton, 1911

(Fig. 5)

Material – 2 right mandible fragment with M 1 -M 2 (M 1: L = 1.50, W = 0.88; M 2: L = 1.44, W = 0.80; M 1: L = 1.52, W = 0.94; M 2: L = 1.48, W = 0.84); 1 left I 1 (L = 3.20, H = 0.82); 2 right M 1 (L = 1.60, W = 0.92; L = 1.58, W = 0.86); 1 left M 2 (L = 1.44, W = 0.88); 1 right M 2 (L = 1.32, W = 0.68); 1 left M 1 fragment; 1 right M 1 (LL = 1.44, BL = 1.48, AW = 1.64, PW = 1.72).

Description – Large-sized shrew with light-orange pigmentation on the teeth. M 1 is square, its metaloph is present. I 1 is tricuspulate. M 1 is bigger and more elongated than M 2. Buccal cingulum is not undulate on the lower molars. The entoconid crests are high on M 1 -M 2.

Remarks – Two Sorex (Drepanosorex) species are known from the European Lower Pleistocene. Sorex savini was described by HINTON (1911) from West Runton, England. In the Betfia (also known as Püspökfürdő, Romania) material KORMOS (1930) distinguished another species for a similar form as S. margaritodon . Thence several shrew remains were mentioned from different localities as S. (D.) margaritodon or S. (D.) savini . The taxonomical details are shown in another article of the current issue of the present journal ( BOTKA & MÉSZÁROS 2016). After those studies, Sorex (Drepanosorex) margaritodon Kormos, 1930 is regarded here as a synonym of Sorex (Drepanosorex) savini Hinton, 1911 , so the Beremend 14 specimens are systematized as S. (D.) savini , which is the earlier name, so the valid one.