SMALL MAMMALS DIVERSITY (DIDELPHIMORPHIA AND RODENTIA) FROM THE HOLOCENE OF NORTHEASTERN RIO GRANDE DO SUL STATE, SOUTHERN BRAZIL: TAXONOMIC AND PALEOENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS

Despite the increase in knowledge about small mammals from the Holocene of Rio Grande do Sul State and their importance as paleoenvironmental indicators, most assemblages from archaeological sites remains without a detailed analysis. This paper studies the rich small mammals content recovered from the archaeological site RS-C-61: Adelar Pilger, Harmonia, which shows evidence of continuous human occupation throughout the Holocene, from about 8,000 years BP to 3,000 years BP. The assemblage of this site is composed of 25 taxa, including five didelphid marsupials, 15 cricetid and five caviomorph rodents. Most marsupials are also registered in two other sites, Afonso Garivaldino Rodrigues and Sangao. Among Cricetidae, Gyldenstolpia, Kunsia and Oxymycterus are first recorded for Quaternary of Rio Grande do Sul State. On the other hand, the caviomorph assemblage of Pilger site is less diverse than those of the Afonso Garivaldino Rodrigues and Sang sites. Pilger site includes both small mammals of open (e.g. Thylamys, Calomys, Cavia) and forest (Delomys, Sooretamys and Phyllomys) environments, also supported by palynological data. Three caviomorph (Euryzygomatomys mordax, Dicolpomys fossor and Clyomys riograndensis) are extinct and, compared to the recent fauna of seasonal forest of Rio Grande do Sul, three other taxa (Gyldenstolpia sp., Kunsia tomentosus and Pseudoryzomys simplex) suffered regional extinctions.