Late Pleistocene Glyptodontinae (Mammalia, Xenarthra, Glyptodontidae) from southern South America: a comprehensive review

Abstract

Glyptodon Owen is one of the most frequently recorded glyptodonts in the Pleistocene of South America, especially between 20°S and 38°S. A high specific diversity has traditionally been proposed for the genus, including some species of assumed biostratigraphic importance (e.g., G. perforatus and G. clavipes). However, most of these species are poorly characterized, and the morphological variability in the different regions of the dorsal carapace has not been considered. Recent reviews have indicated that its diversity was lower than previously supposed, particularly in the late Pleistocene. In this scenario, this contribution aims to (1) review the late Pleistocene Glyptodon species from southern South America and (2) discuss the primary aspects of the geographic and chronological distribution of the species that are deemed as valid. Morphological and morphometric analyses indicate that the diversity in the late Pleistocene of southern South America is reduced to a single well-characterized species, G. reticulatus Owen. This species is recorded in MIS 3 and MIS 2 and is distributed in the Pampean, Mesopotamian, and north-central regions of Argentina, southern Bolivia, and Uruguay (∼20°S–38°S). In summary, the diversity of Glyptodontinae in the Pleistocene of southern South America was limited to two well-characterized species: G. munizi in the early–middle Pleistocene and G. reticulatus in the late Pleistocene–early Holocene.