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A New Rhinoceros From The Lower Miocene Of The Bugti Hills, Baluchistan, Pakistan: The Earliest Elasmotheriine

The stratigraphical position of the Dera Bugti area (Baluchistan, Pakistan), which yielded the remains described herein, is discussed. Dental and postcranial material attributed to Bugtirhinus praecursor gen. et sp. nov., from the lower Miocene (MN 3) of the same area, is described. This species is the oldest and most primitive member of the elasmotheriine group within Rhinocerotidae (Mammalia). A new diagnosis is established for the Elasmotheriini. Comparison with the other lower and middle Miocene elasmotheriine taxa leads to the tree [Bugtirhinus praecursor [Caementodon oettingenae [other elasmotheriine taxa]]]. An upper Oligocene–lowermost Miocene Asiatic differentiation is suggested for the group, strengthened by a first appearance datum in the Dera Bugti area (lower part of the MN 3). The origin and dispersal of the elasmotheriines throughout Eurasia are discussed and correlated with major faunal exchanges. Keywords: Bugti Hills, Pakistan, Rhinocerotidae, Elasmotheriini, Miocene, biostratigraphy, palaeobiogeography.