Los gonfoterios de Soatá, Boyacá

Abstract

Proboscideans were part of the megafauna that habited South American ecosystems during the Pleistocene. Recent taxonomic revisions established that two species inhabited the continent. In Colombia, gomphothere fossils have been reported in the Andean and Caribbean regions, indicating a widespread distribution. Most remains are fragmentary however, and specific taxonomic assignations are not possible. In this study new gomphothere remains from the Soatá Formation in the Eastern Cordillera are described. According to the morphometric and anatomical features, it is proposed that the gomphothere species that inhabited the Chicamocha Canyon region during the Late Pleistocene corresponds to Notiomastodon platensis, supporting the hypothesis that Andean valleys functioned as migratory corridors for Pleistocene megafauna.