First record of Eremotherium laurillardi (Lund, 1842) (Mammalia, Xenarthra, Megatheriidae) in the Quaternary of Uberaba, Triângulo Mineiro (Minas Gerais State), Brazil

Although the occurrence of Pleistocene mammals is abundant in many localities of Minas Gerais State (e.g., Lagoa Santa, Janaúba, Bambuí, Cordisburgo, Patos de Minas, Araxá), there are no references at present of Quaternary megafauna in Uberaba, Triângulo Mineiro, southeastern Brazil. This region is traditionally recognized for its taxonomically diverse fauna of the Late Cretaceous Bauru Group. In 2006, fossil material attributed to giant ground sloth Eremotherium laurillardi (Xenarthra, Megatheriidae), a typical taxon of the Brazilian Pleistocene, was discovered in the Uberaba City (Minas Gerais State). The specimen (CPP 1122) which is here described consists of several cranial and postcranial bones of a single individual. The material was confined to a small alluvial deposit, yielding in the Córrego da Saudade stream, which due its restricted area distribution it is not represented in geological maps.

► Record of unmapped fossiliferous Pleistocene levels over Late Cretaceous outcrops in Triângulo Mineiro region.
► First Pleistocene fossils from Triângulo Mineiro region, Minas Gerais State, Brazil.
► First records of the extinct ground sloth Eremotherium laurillardi in Triângulo Mineiro region.