Review of the rove beetles (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) from the Pliocene of Willershausen, Germany.

The rove beetle fauna (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) (excluding the subfamily Silphinae) of the PlioceneofWillershausen (Lower Saxony, North Germany) is reviewed based on the type and other material of previously described or reported taxa, as well as two new specimens. Six subfamilies are represented in the deposit, with two subfamilial assignments considered tentative: Aleocharinae?, Micropeplinae, Oxytelinae, Paederinae, Staphylininae? and Tachyporinae. Pliosyntomium Korge, 1967 syn.

Temperature and atmospheric CO2 concentration estimates through the PETM using triple oxygen isotope analysis of mammalian bioapatite.

The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) is a remarkable climatic and environmental event that occurred 56 Ma ago and has importance for understanding possible future climate change. The Paleocene-Eocene transition is marked by a rapid temperature rise contemporaneous with a large negative carbon isotope excursion (CIE). Both the temperature and the isotopic excursion are well-documented by terrestrial and marine proxies.

Oxygen and carbon isotope variations in a modern rodent community - implications for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions.

Background: The oxygen (δ(18)O) and carbon (δ(13)C) isotope compositions of bioapatite from skeletal remains of fossil mammals are well-established proxies for the reconstruction of palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic conditions. Stable isotope studies of modern analogues are an important prerequisite for such reconstructions from fossil mammal remains. While numerous studies have investigated modern large- and medium-sized mammals, comparable studies are rare for small mammals.