First record of Bison antiquus from the Late Pleistocene of southern Mexico

In Mexico, just 54% of the reported Pleistocene Bison material has been identified to species. Current paleontological research in northwestern Oaxaca, southern Mexico, has allowed collection of several specimens of Bison antiquus that are part of the Viko Vijin Local Fauna. B. antiquus had a very wide geographic distribution, from lowlands to mountainous landscapes of North and Central America. The B. antiquus record from southern Mexico links their former records from central Mexico and middle Central America and confirms this wide geographic distribution. The univariate mesowear score of the B. antiquus specimens from Oaxaca is in the lower extreme of grazers and the upper end of mixed-feeders, suggesting that they had a less abrasive diet than the modern plains Bison, as has been observed in other samples of this species from diverse parts of North America. The presence of B. antiquus in the Viko Vijin L. F. constrains the age of this fossil assemblage within a range from 60 Ka to 11.7 Ka.

► Bison antiquus was identified in the Viko Vijin Local Fauna of Oaxaca, Mexico. ► The presence of B. antiquus indicates an age between 60 Ka and 11.7 Ka for this fauna. ► The mesowear record of B. antiquus from Oaxaca indicates a no-strict grazer habit.