The Cerro Azul Formation (La Pampa Province, Argentina) comprises a rich verte- brate fauna of small mammals dominated by notoungulates and rodents. The fauna pertains to the Late Miocene specifically to the Huayquerian Stage/Age. Taphonomic analysis of micro-mammals from Estancia Re locality evidenced that the faunal assem- blage was accumulated by the activity of a predator. This assemblage was compared with others from the Cerro Azul Formation in Telen and Caleufu localities (La Pampa Province), previously interpreted as products of predator activities. These microfossil accumulations differ from assemblages attributed to pellets and faeces produced by modern predators (nocturnal and diurnal bird raptors and carnivore mammals). However, due to their anatomical representation, degree of bone breakage and pres- ence of tooth marks, they are interpreted as accumulations of uneaten prey remains discarded by the predator. The predator involved could not be determined with cer- tainty, although the presence of tooth marks in some skeletal remains and the presence of coprolites in Telen and Caleufu suggest that it could be a carnivore mammal. Simi- larities in the accumulation mechanism, patterns of preservation and sedimentary contexts in the three assemblages support the recognition of a new taphonomic mode, termed ?leftover prey remains?.Fil: Montalvo, Claudia Inés. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Tomassini, Rodrigo Leandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto Geológico del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Geología. Instituto Geológico del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Sostillo, Renata. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; Argentin

Cenizo, M.M., Tambussi, C.P. & Montalvo, C.I., iFirst Article. Late Miocene continental birds from the Cerro Azul Formation in the Pampean region (central-southern Argentina). Alcheringa, 1–22. ISSN 0311-5518. The oldest known birds from the Cerro Azul Formation are described, including the oldest records for the genera Eudromia and Nothura (Tinamidae), Milvago (Falconidae), Pterocnemia (Rheidae) and an undetermined Tyrannidae. The first remains of Phorusrhacidae for this formation are reported and a specimen previously referred to the giant teratorn Argentavis magnificens is reassigned to this family. We outline and update the current knowledge of the groups studied herein. The palaeornithological record from the Cerro Azul Formation is congruent with palaeoenvironmental inferences previously drawn from mammalian assemblages recovered from this unit, which point to the existence of open environments, possibly xerophyllous shrubby steppes, perhaps with some trees. These records are the first indications of a typically Pampean bird fauna at the end of the late Miocene in central-southern Argentina.

REVIEW OF THE ACTUALISTIC TAPHONOMY OF SMALL MAMMALS INGESTED BY SOUTH AMERICAN PREDATORS. ITS IMPORTANCE IN THE INTERPRETATION OF THE FOSSIL RECORD