Cladistic approach on chronological relationship of the Pleistocene mammalian faunas from China

摘要: There are many localities yielding the Pleistocene mammalian faunas in China. It offers excellent material for the study of mammalian evolution, biochronology,paleoecology,paleoenvironment, paleozoogeography, etc. Faunal assemblage characters and taxonomic extinction rates were widely used for determining the faunal ages in biochronology. Faunal binary similarity coefficients sequenced according to Brainerd-Robinson’s rule and antiquity coefficients were further developed methods in biochronology for dating the faunal ages. The faunal binary similarity coefficients are based on the presence or absence of a taxon in a fauna. It is similar to the presence or absence of a character of a species in cladistic analyses for phylogeny, and all faunas have a special ancestor-descendant relationship. The present work is an attempt to find the relationship of the faunas with cladistic methods by selecting three groups of faunas sequenced by faunal binary similarity coefficients according to Brainerd-Robinson’s rule and antiquity coefficients, to compare the results with different methods, and then to estimate the ages of the faunas not yet dated by physical or chemical methods. The estimations are as follow: Gulongshan in Dalian, Liaoning Province: 16–20 ka; Shanchengzi at Benxi, Liaoning Province: 20–30 ka; Hualongdong at Dongzhi Man site, Anhui Province: 150–400 ka; Xinghuashan at Nanzhao Man site, Henan Province: 150–400 ka; Donghe at Luonan Man site, Shaanxi Province: 500–700 ka; Bailongdong at Yunxi Man site, Hubei Province: 500–850 ka; Meipu at Yunxian, Hubei Province: 500–850 ka; Mohui at Tiandong Man site, Guangxi Autonomous Region: 1.2–1.8 Ma; Juyuandong at Liucheng, Guangxi Autonomous Region: 1.2–1.5 Ma; Chutoulang at Chifeng, Nei Mongol Autonomous Region: 1.6–1.9 Ma; Renzidong at Fanchang, Anhui Province: 1.9–2.4 Ma.