Further observations on the primate community at Rudabánya II (late Miocene, early Vallesian age), Hungary

It has been proposed that the pliopithecid Anapithecus hernyaki was hunted by the ape Dryopithecus brancoi based on analyses of the age and sex distribution of 25 individuals from the late Miocene site of Rudabánya, Hungary (ca. 10 Ma). In this study, the minimum number of individuals (MNI) and age distribution of the assemblage are recalculated and considered in relation to their sedimentary context. We suggest that Dryopithecus juveniles may be underrepresented in the assemblage as a consequence of taphonomic loss of deciduous teeth. Furthermore, we find that while Dryopithecus and Anapithecus were contemporaneous, there was little spatial overlap between them, as each taxon is primarily associated with a separate lithofacies. We conclude that when the revised estimates of MNI and age distribution of these primates are reconsidered in conjunction with their context of burial, the case for the Dryopithecus hunting hypothesis cannot be sustained.