Vertebrate records

This chapter introduces the beginning of Pleistocene vertebrate records, starting from an overview of the Plio-Pleistocene transition. Understanding the Early Pleistocene vertebrate record is impossible without the knowledge of the events characterizing the setting of Early Pleistocene land vertebrate communities. A number of taxa are selected to describe evolutionary and dispersal patterns within the Early Pleistocene. These are the dispersals and evolutionary history of Canidae, elephants, horses, Rhinocerotidae, Hippopotamidae and Cervidae. The last section offers an overview of the Early Pleistocene herpetofauna.