My writing career spans more than twenty years, and subjects range from palaeontology, geomythology and palaeo-pathology to art history, archaeology and languages. A number of publications can be downloaded directly, others can be requested (geeraae@geol.uoa.gr). Nine of my Dutch books can be lend at the Koninklijke Bibliotheek (KB) at The Hague, the Netherlands (printversion search results). Note that conference abstracts, posters and editorials are not included here.
Disclaimer: Any PDF files provided below are for personal use only and may not be reproduced. The files reflect the holdings of the various publishers and only contain the relevant pages, and may not be complete. Users are obliged to follow all copyright restrictions.
forthcoming Van der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis M. Caves and fossils: Palaeontology in Greek caves and fissures. In: Mavridis F, Jensen JT (eds.) Stable Places and Changing Perceptions: Cave Archaeology in Greece and Adjacent Areas. Monographs of the Danish Institute at Athens 8. Aarhus, Aarhus University Press.
Caves constitute one of the most important sources for fossilized remains of life of the past in Greece and adjacent karstic areas. The reason is that caves provide a uniquely favorable environment for the preservation of fossil animal and plant remains. First of all, caves have a uniform and stable temperature and humidity. They are essentially closed environments, buffered within a huge mass of isolating rock. Therefore, they can preserve remains of past life for thousands of years, as if in a natural refrigerator. Secondly, they are often sealed off for extensive periods of time, due to collapse of an entrance or because of complete filling with sediments. The preserved remains are thus undisturbed and safeguarded against damage from outside, as if in a natural safe or treasure box. The fact that caves often have a time limit – a beginning when they are first formed and an end when they are filled with sediment or collapsed – makes caves even more important for palaeontology as they provide a snapshot of geological time, undisturbed by previous or following life forms.
accepted Lomolino MV, Sax DF, Palombo MR, van der Geer AAE. Of mice and mammoths: evaluations of causal explanations for body size evolution in insular mammals. Journal of Biogeography.
We investigated the hypothesis that insular body size of mammals results from selective forces whose influence varies with characteristics of the focal islands and the focal species, and with interactions among species (ecological displacement and release) on islands world-wide. Our results, based on regression tree analyses, support the hypothesis that body size evolution of insular mammals is influenced by a combination of selective forces whose relative importance and nature of influence are contextual. While there may exist a theoretical optimal body size for mammals, in general, the optimum for a particular insular population varies in a predictable
manner with characteristics of the islands and the species, and with interactions among species. This study did, however, produce some unanticipated results that merit further study – patterns associated with Bergmanns rule are amplified on islands, and body size of small mammals appears to peak at intermediate and not maximum values of latitude and island isolation.
2011 Van der Geer AAE. Seventeen capsules and sidebars on various themes within Era 1 (Beginnings of Human Society).
In: World History Encyclopedia, 20 vols plus intro vol, general editor Alfred J.Andrea. Santa Barbara, ABC-Clio, ISBN 978-1-851-09929-0.
The human family lineage: 8 million years ago to 20,000 years ago (pp 38-41, main capsule, overview),
The Late Miocene climate and environments of central, eastern, and southern Africa (page 44, main capsule),
Ardipithecus ramidus (page NA),
The footprints at Laetoli and the significance of walking upright (page 50, main capsule),
Australopithecus afarensis (pp 51-53, main capsule),
The importance of Hadar: the discovery of “Lucy” (page 52, sidebox),
Australopithecus africanus (pp 54-55, main capsule),
Swartkrans and the Taung child (page 54, sidebox),
The robust australopithecines: aethiopocus, robustus and boisei (pp 56-57, main capsule),
Homo erectus in Asia (pp 66-68, main capsule),
The odyssey of the Zhoukoudien fossils (page 67, sidebox),
Homo antecessor at Atapuerca, Spain (page 68, sidebox),
The lifeways of Homo erectus (pp 110-111, main capsule),
The adaptive radiation of Homo erectus (pp 192-193, main capsule),
What happened to Homo erectus in Asia? (pp 201-201, main capsule),
Molecular biology and the Eve Hypothesis (page 79, sidebox),
Tool making by our closest primate relatives (page 331, main capsule).
This Encyclopedia is an unprecedented academic undertaking reflecting an extraordinary new vision of world history, this landmark multivolume encyclopedia focuses on specific themes of human development across cultures era by era, providing the most in-depth, expansive presentation available of the development of humanity from a global perspective. Well-known and widely respected historians worked together to create and guide the project in order to offer the most up-to-date visions available. In the fields of history and history education, there is a growing trend toward focusing on the big picture, a history unlimited by borders focusing less on dates and countries and more on the defining themes of modern life.
[Publisher's site]
2011 Van der Geer AAE. Ten capsules and sidebars on South Asia within Era 3 (Classical Traditions 1000 B.C.E.-300 C.E.), Era 4 (Expanding Regional Civilizations 300-1000) and Era 5 (Intensified Hemispheric Interactions 1000-1500).
In: World History Encyclopedia, 20 vols plus intro vol, general editor Alfred J.Andrea. Santa Barbara, ABC-Clio, ISBN 978-1-851-09929-0.
Early popular literature in India,
The origin of drama,
The Pala dynasty,
The Pala School of Art,
The export of Pala art,
Early medieval South Asian art,
The Rajputs, warriors by caste,
Rajput origins,
Early medieval industries,
Gujarat, a centre of commerce.
[Publisher's site]
2011 Van der Geer AAE, Lyras GA, Van der Geer SB. Letter to the Editor: Microcephaly in ancient Greece, the Minoan microcephalus of Zakros. Child's Nervous System 27 (7): 1035. doi: 10.1007/s00381-011-1465-2
[PDF at Publisher]
2011 Van der Geer AAE Wilde Beesten Boek, in Dutch.
Illustraties door Sudha Devi. Den Haag, Fairbooks.
Toegankelijk (voor)leesboekje over wilde dieren in India met prachtige illustraties van Sudha Devi en met amusante wetenswaardigheden over de afgebeelde dieren, bijvoorbeeld over de strepen van de Bengaalse tijger, het moederschap van de zeekrokodil en het modderbad van de pantserneushoorn. Fairbooks draagt bij aan eerlijke handel in traditionele kunstuitingen en helpt achtergestelde traditionele kunstenaars zich verder te ontwikkelen. Voor het drukwerk wordt FSC papier gebruikt. Fairbooks boeken zijn verkrijgbaar in de Wereldwinkel.
[Meer informatie hier]
2010 Van der Geer A. Dierportretten in steen in Zuid-Azie door de eeuwen heen, in Dutch.
Aziatische Kunst 40 (3): 2-16.
Afgaand op de overgeleverde beeldhouwwerken uit het hele subcontinent blijkt maar een handvol wilde dieren uitgebeeld te zijn door de eeuwen heen. Deze alom bekende wilde dieren zijn leeuwen, herten, beren, apen, katten, muizen en ratten, schildpadden, hagedissen, krokodillen, ganzen en pauwen. De rest is eenvoudigweg blijkbaar onbekend en/of onbemind en wordt vaak maar op een enkele sculptuur aangetroffen. Afbeeldingen van Indiase bizons, nilgai, steenbokken, wilde geiten en schapen, antilopen en gazelles, tapirs, eekhoorns, jakhalzen, rode honden, hazen, otters, luipaarden, tijgers, neushoorns en vossen zijn buitengewoon zeldzaam, vooral in relatie tot de overweldigende totale hoeveelheid sculpturen in Zuid-Azië. Rivierdolfijnen zijn met moeite te herkennen in een handvol makaras (watermonsters) en zeekoeien zijn al helemaal nergens te vinden.
Het grootste aandeel van afgebeelde dieren betreft de grote huisdieren en de olifant. Vooral de dieren met een bijzondere status, hetzij in de maatschappij, hetzij in religie, zijn prominent aanwezig in heel Zuid-Azie, met de olifant als absolute topper, gevolgd door zeboestieren. De waterbuffel komt veelvuldig voor vanwege zijn rol als demon die door de godin Durga gedood wordt en zijn connectie met Yama, de god van de dood. De enige uitzondering is de dromedaris, die ondanks zijn grote economisch belang maar mondjesmaat in beeldhouwwerk vereeuwigd is, iets wat geheel verklaard kan worden door zijn beperkte voorkomen: de halfwoestijnen van het noordwesten en sporadisch in 12e-14e-eeuwse Zuid-Indiase hoofdsteden als geimporteerde strijddieren.
De kleinere en minder in aanzien staande huisdieren zoals honden, katten, geiten, schapen, mangoesten en varkens komen bijna niet voor in steensculpturen. Als dat al het geval is, dan in associatie met een godheid, meestal een mythe duidend, zoals de hond met Shiva, de kat met de zesde moedergodin Shasthi, de ram met de vruchtbaarheidsgod Naigamesha, de god van het vuur Agni en met de schoolgaande Boeddha, de mangoest met de god
van de rijkdom Kubera en het varken met Vishnu's derde avatar; honden en katten figureren daarnaast nog in een paar volksverhalen.
2010 Van der Geer A, Lyras G, De Vos J., Dermitzakis M. Evolution of Island Mammals: Adaptation and Extinction of Placental Mammals on Islands.
Oxford, Wiley-Blackwell (ISBN-13 978-1-4051-9009-1), 479 pp., index, figs, 26 full-colour plates.
With this richly illustrated book, the first of its kind, the authors offer a much-needed synthesis of recent advances in the exciting field of the evolution and extinction of fossil insular placental mammals. Extinct insular mammals were as diverse and successful as mainland mammals, represented by a wide range of species of dwarf elephants, dwarf hippos, dwarf deer and other 'mini-macromammals' and giant rats, giant insectivores, giant pikas and other ‘mega-micromammas’, plus a variety of truly bizarre forms. In the recent years, a tremendous amount of research has been conducted on this important subject. The Evolution and Extinction of Placental Island Mammals synthesizes this research into a single, comprehensive volume. Here I, in collaboration with George Lyras, John de Vos and Michael Dermitzakis, explore a variety of topics, including the history of island rules, common patterns and trends, ways of dispersal, speciation and extinction events. A team of distinguished international experts reviewed the separate chapters and provided updated insights in their field.
A landmark reference, The Evolution and Extinction of Island Mammals belongs in the library of every paleontologist, mammalogist, and evolutionary biologist.
[See Insular Mammals] [Order with price reduction]
2010 Van der Geer AAE, Lyras GA, Rook L. Body size of insular carnivores: evidence from the fossil record.
Journal of Biogeography 37: 1007-1021.
Aim: to (1) assess the generality of one aspect of the island rule—the progressive trend towards size decrease in larger species—for fossil carnivores on islands, (2) offer causal explanations for this pattern and deviations thereof, both as far as fossil carnivores are concerned, and (2) estimate the speed of this trend.Results: Dwarfism is observed in two canid species. Moderate body mass decrease is observed in one hyena species. Gigantism is observed in one otter species. Moderate body-mass increase is observed in two otter species, one galictine mustelid and perhaps one canid. Negligible or no body-mass change at all is observed in five otter species, three galictine mustelids and one genet. Size changes in teeth do not to lag behind in comparison to skeletal elements in the dwarfed canids. The evolutionary speed of dwarfism in a canid lineage is low.
2010 Van der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis M. Fossils in pharmacy: from snake eggs to Saints bones; an overview.
Hellenic Journal of Geosciences 45: 323-331.
This article is the paper version with photographs of the article published in the electronic journal Calicut Medical Journal 2008; 6 (1): e8.
[PDF]
2009 Hoek Ostende LW, Meijer HJM, van der Geer AAE. A bridge too far, reply to "Processes of island colonization by Oligo-Miocene land mammals in the central Mediterranean: New data from Scontrone (Abruzzo, Central Italy) and Gargano (Apulia, Southern Italy)" by Mazza P.P.A and Rustioni, M. 2008, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 267, 208-215. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 279 (1-2): 128-130, doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2009.02.029.
The recent attempt of Mazza and Rustioni (2008) to revive land bridges as a means of colonization of oceanic islands is potentially highly interesting. They suggest that land bridges played an important role in the colonization of the Abruzzo-Apulian bioprovince, as shown by the fossil vertebrates from Scontrone and Gargano. Their evidence however falls short, and even though their paper provides new insights in the history of the insular faunas of the Apulia platform, there is no reason to assume that land bridges played any role in the colonization of these islands. The bizarre insular Apulian fauna is better explained by evolution in isolation by mammals that reached the island through sweepstake dispersal. The new age estimate provided by the Scontrone site places the faunas in the Late Miocene rather than in the Pliocene, and thus in the same time frame as other Italian insular fauna sites such as the Baccinello-Cinigiano fauna of Tuscany and the Fiume Santo fauna of Sardinia (Rook et al., 2006; Abbazzi et al., 2008).
[Science Direct]
2009 Van der Geer AAE, De Vos J, Dermitzakis M, Lyras G. Hoe dieren op eilanden evolueren. Majorca, Ibiza, Kreta, Sardiniie, Sicilie, Japan, Madagaskar, Malta.
Utrecht: Veen Magazines, 229pp. ISBN 978 908571 169 8 / NUR 949.
Op afgelegen eilanden ontwikkelen dieren zich anders. Soms worden ze groter, soms kleiner dan soortgelijke dieren op het vaste land. Dat heeft alles te maken met de uitzonderlijke condities op de eilanden. Dieren die zich het best weten aan te passen aan een dergelijke omgeving, overleven. De aanpassing leidt vaak tot nieuwe varianten. Zo kennen we de miniolifanten, minineushoorn, de kleine vos en de kleine mens op Flores. Dit boek laat zien hoe nieuwe varianten of zelfs nieuwe soorten op de eilanden ontstaan. Ontdek de verdwenen wereld van de reuzenratten, vijfhoornige herten en miniatuurolifanten en lees de spannende verhalen over hun ontdekkingen!
[See folio (in Dutch), pages 18 and 19][On-line bestellen bij Bruna (NL)][On-line bestellen bij Azur (BE)][Related PowerPoint Presentation (in Italian; Why Paul Sondaar went to Sardinia)]
2009 Van der Geer. Digging into the past.
In: MI Papagrigorakis, K Dermitzaki, T. Doxanaki, D. Staboliadi (eds.) Geological and Palaeontological Heritage: Retrieval, Conservation, Management and Display. Summer School Professional Development Program, Postgraduate Course of Museum Studies pp.43-48.
[PDF download: 201 KB][Related PowerPoint Presentation (How To Excavate)]
2008 Van der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis DM. Dental eruption sequence in the Pliocene Papionini Paradolichopithecus arvernensis (Mammalia: Primates) from Greece. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28 (4): 1238-1244.
The chronology of tooth emergence can be used to infer life history patterns for extinct species. Comparative studies of extinct primates are hindered by a lack of data on dental development for most species. Here we describe a mandible of the Pliocene papionin Paradolichopithecus arvernensis at an incomplete stage of dental eruption and compare it with published sequences as for living cercopithecoids. The order of tooth eruption is similar to those observed for living papionins. Occlusal ward rotation of developing molars occurs only in the m3, as in other papionins. Age at the time of death is estimated at between 5.0 and 5.3 years. The studied individual died during puberty, which is a stressful period for papionin males. The high percentage of Paradolichopithecus juveniles which died at this stage can be either explained as taphonomic bias or as due to a high rate of mortality during puberty.
[BioOne full text]
2008 Van der Geer AAE. Animals in Stone. Indian mammals sculptured through time. Handbook of Oriental Studies, Section 2 South Asia (ed. J. Bronkhorst).
Leiden: Brill. lxxii, 814 pp, c. 700 ill, index. Hardback. ISBN 978 90 04 16819 0, ISSN 0169-9377, e-ISBN: 9789047443568.
2008 Lyras GA, Dermitzakis DM, Van Der Geer AAE, Van der Geer SB, De Vos J.The origin of Homo floresiensis and its relation to evolutionary processes under isolation. Anthropological Science 117, 33-43.
Since its publication in 2004, Homo floresiensis has been attributed to a species ofn its own, a descendant of H. erectus or another early hominid, a pathological form of H. sapiens, or a dwarfed modern human related to the Neolithic inhabitants of Flores. In this contribution, we apply a geometric morphometric analysis to the skull of H. floresiensis (LB1) and compare it with skulls of normal H. sapiens, insular H. sapiens (Minatogawa Man and Neolithic skulls from Flores), pathological H. sapiens (microcephalics), Asian H. erectus (Sangiran 17), H. habilis (KNM ER 1813) and Australopithecus africanus (STS?Sts 5). Our analysis includes specimens that were brought to the fore by other authors to prove their conclusions. The geometric morphometric analysis separates H. floresiensis from all H. sapiens, including the pathological and the insular forms. It is not possible to separate H. floresiensis from H. erectus. Australopithecus falls apart from all other skulls. The Neolithic skulls from Flores fall within the range of modern humans and are not related to LB1. The microcephalic skulls fall within the range of modern humans, as well as the skulls of the Neolithic small people of Flores. The cranial shape of H. floresiensis is close to that of H. erectus and not to that of any H. sapiens. Apart from cranial shape, some features of H. floresiensis are not unique but shared with other insular taxa, such as the relatively large teeth (shared with Neolithic humans of Sardinia), and changed limb proportions (shared with Minatogawa Man).
[PDF][Go to publisher]
2008 Van Der Geer AAE. The effect of insularity on the Eastern Mediterranean early cervoid Hoplitomeryx: the study of the forelimb. Quaternary International 182, 1: 145-159. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2007.09.021.
On the Tertiary paleo-island Gargano a highly endemic, unbalanced vertebrate fauna evolved including the five-horned deer Hoplitomeryx. Its post-cranial material contains four size groups.The question whether the morphotypes are chronomorphs or ecomorphs is addressed. Sexual dimorphism is ruled out as the
underlying principle of size separation in this case, based upon body mass estimations and data from living deer. Chronomorphs is the
best explanation for the Megaloceros cazioti lineage (Pleistocene, Sardinia) and the Myotragus balearicus lineage (Pliocene–Holocene,
Mallorca). Ecomorphs are a better explanation for the size groups of Candiacervus (Pleistocene, Crete) and Cervus astylodon (Pleistocene,
Ryukyu Islands). An adaptive radiation into several trophic types took place, promoted by the ecological meltdown of the ancestral
niche. The drive behind this speciation is increased interspecific competition. For Hoplitomeryx, although the hypothesis of
chronomorphs cannot be discarded, that of ecomorphs seems most likely, based upon the coexistence of two or more size groups per
fissure, and upon the presence of a huge morphotype, larger than mainland species, in the younger fissures.
[PDF download][Science Direct full text and pdf]
2008 Van der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis MD. Fossil medicines from snake eggs to Saint s bones; an overview
Special article. Calicut Medical Journal 2008; 6 (1): e8.
During the centuries, fossil remains of invertebrate and vertebrate animals have been widely used as medicines to cure a disease or relieve a symptom, or as amulet to prevent a disease or symptom. The most common medicinal fossils are the invertebrate remains (sea urchins, ammonites, belemnites, trilobites), followed by shark teeth and palatal teeth of bony fishes. More rare, but surviving on a large scale till the present day, is the use of fossil mammals, known as “dragons”. Knowledge of the use of fossil medicines broadens the view of especially medical practitioners in remote or tribal regions. These people hold strong beliefs in the working principles of the fossils and this should not be dismissed too easily. The working area of fossil medicines have a wide range including poisoning, sore throats, internal pains and cramps, infertility and obstetrical problems, bladder and kidney diseases, eye infections and diftheria.
[PDF][Related PowerPoint Presentation "Fossils as Medicines in Past and Present"]
2008 Van der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis MD, De Vos J. Fossil Folklore from India: The Siwalik Hills and the Mahabharata. Folkore 119: 71-92. London: The Folklore Society.
The Siwalik Hills, below the Himalayas, are strewn with impressive Plio-Pleistocene vertebrate fossils. We suggest that the region was seen as the historical stage for the legendary battle as described in the Indian epic Mahabharata, during which hundreds of mighty and sometimes gigantic heroes, horses, and war elephants died. Their remains are seen in the fossil bones, skulls, jaws and tusks of hippopotamuses (Hexaprotodon), proboscideans (Stegodon, Archidiskodon), four-horned giraffes (Sivatherium, Giraffokeryx), giant tortoises (Geochelone), sabre-toothed tigers (Paramachairodus), camels (Camelus), and other species. Moreover, thousands of ancient bronze javelins and spears are found on the surface in the same region. These archaeological artifacts along with the paleontological remains appear to have influenced the setting and context of the great battle in the Indian epic.
[Abstract][Go to Publisher][PDF via Informaworld][PDF][Related PowerPoint Presentation]
2007 Dermitzakis M., Iliopoulos G., Van Der Geer A, Lyras G.A. The Rise and Fall of the Cretan Deer. XVII INQUA Congress, July 28 – August 3 2007, Cairns, Australia. Quaternary International.
[PDF]
doi:10.1016/j.quatint.2007.03.000
2007 Lyras GA, Van Der Geer AAE. The Late Pliocene vertebrate fauna of Vatera (Lesvos Island, Greece). Cranium 24 (2): 11-24.
[PDF]
2007 De vos J, Van Der Geer AAE. Fossiele faunas van de eilanden van de Middellandse Zee.
GEA 2007 (3): 87-90.
De Galapagos eilanden hebben bij Charles Darwin een belangrijke rol gespeeld omtrent het denken over evolutie. Hier ontdekte hij dat, hoewel de dieren op deze eilanden overeenkomsten vertonen met die van Patagonie (de zuidelijke punt van Zuid-Amerika), ze toch verschillend zijn. Ten tweede realiseerde hij zich dat de soorten van eiland tot eiland verschillen, ook al liggen de eilanden minder dan 100 km van elkaar. Op deze gedachte was hij gebracht door mr Lawson, een Engelsman die gouverneur was van de Galapagos eilanden. Deze vertelde DArwin dat hij onmiddellijk kon zien van welk eiland een bepaalde schildpad kwam. Elk eiland heeft blijkbaar zijn eigen evolutionaire geschiedenis. Van recente eilanden is bekend dat ze vreemde faunas kunnen hebben, denk aan de Darwinvinken van de Galapagos eilanden, maar dat dit ook opgaat voor fossiele faunas is minder bekend. Dit artikel laat zien wat voor vreemde faunas er in het verleden op de eilanden van de Middellandse Zee hebben geleefd.
2006 Van Der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis M, De Vos J. Crete before the Cretans: the reign of dwarfs.
Pharos 13: 121-132. Athens: Netherlands Institute.
When archaeologists speak of prehistory, they have epochs in mind as bronze age, stone age: epochs that are revealed to us by means of artefacts, left overs of a human culture from a time before the emergence of written or pictographical sources. However, there is far more prehistory than history, and major part lies well before the archaeological prehistory. This is the domain of the palaeontology, where geological epochs are revealed by means of fossils in the broad sense.
The island of Crete as we know, yielded a vast amount of cultural remains, among which those of the Minoan culture became world famous. But Crete also appeared to be a treasure box of much older remains, and 63 localities with fossils have been reported. From the 1970’s on, Dutch researchers (University of Utrecht) started excavations on Crete, in close collaboration with the University of Athens. Based upon the hitherto described fossils, the pre-prehistory of Crete and its early inhabitants can be reconstructed. In this article, we focus on that part of the Cretan history between the time of its emergence as we know it and the first arrival of humans on the island.
[PDF][Go to Pharos 13][Go to the Netherlands Institute at Athens (Palaeontology)]
2006 Van der Geer AAE, De Vos J, Lyras G, Dermitzakis M. New data on the Pleistocene Cretan deer Candiacervus sp. II (Mammalia, Cervinae).
In: Kahlke R-D, Maul LC, Mazza P (eds). Late Neogene and Quaternary biodiversity and evolution: Regional developments and interregional correlations. Proceedings of the 18th International Senckenberg Conference (VI International Palaeontological Colloquium in Weimar) vol. I. Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg 256: 131-137.
A composite skeleton of Candiacervus species II revealed new features that were not detected in the isolated elements. The species differs from all known recent and extinct mainland deer, mainly in its body proportions and considerably shortened distal limb elements. The species had a more or less normal vertebral column length relative to continental large deer, and moderately upwards curved lumbar section, both features reminding us more of the insular dwarf bovid Myotragus than of mainland small deer like Axis axis. Combined with an increased massivity of all bones and pronounced muscle scars, this change in body proportions appears to indicate that the species evolved towards the niche of goat-like bovids in rocky environments. Other additional diagnostic features are the horizontally directed transversal processus of the vertebras, fusion of the lateral metacarpal to the main metacarpal, a tail length of ten vertebras, a more pronounced difference between anterior and posterior hooves, and the presence of lateral toes upto the third phalanx, anterior as well as posterior.
[go to CFS] [request a PDF: 2.964 ]
2006 Lyras GA, Van Der Geer AAE. Adaptations of the Pleistocene island canid Cynotherium sardous (Sardinia, Italy) for hunting small prey.
Cranium 23 (1): 51-60.
[go to Cranium] [Abstract][PDF download: 681 KB]
2006 Lyras GA, Van Der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis MD, De Vos J. 2006. Cynotherium sardous, an insular canid (Mammalia: Carnivora) from the Pleistocene of Sardinia, and its origin.
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 26(3): 735-745.
The phylogenetic position of Cynotherium sardous remained unsolved for more than five decades, mainly because inherited ancestral characters and acquired adaptations to different ecological pressures could not be separated. In this study the problem is approached again, with the use of morphological features that were either overlooked or could not be explained properly, in combination with results from recent major revisions of canid phylogeny. Xenocyon is the most parsimonious ancestor of Cynotherium. This large hypercarnivorous canid, once on the island, faced a rather different menu consisting of small and swift prey only. The subsequent necessary adaptation resulted in a small-sized dog which carried its head much in the way foxes do and was able to hold its body low to the ground and move its head laterally better than any living canid. Its dentition and brain morphology remained much the same, whereas its skull lost the typical fortifications seen in the other hypercarnivorous canids.
[view to publisher] [Abstract][request a PDF: 1.631 KB] doi:10.1671/0272-463(2006)26[735:CSAICM]2.0.CO;2
2006 Dermitzakis MD, Van Der Geer AAE, Lyras GA. 2006. Paleopathological observations on a population of fossil deer from the Late Pleistocene of Crete.
In: A Kalofourtis, N Papadopoulos, C Spiliopoulou, K Maravelias, A Chatziioannou (eds) Volume in honuor of Professor Andonis Koutselinis. pp.43-51. Athens. [IN GREEK][Abstract][PDF download: 2.376 KB]
2006 Van der Geer A, Dermitzakis M, De Vos J. Fossils and myths in North India: is there a connection between the Siwalik Hills and the Mahabharata?.
The 19th European Conference of Modern South Asian Studies, 27-30 June 2006, Leiden the Netherlands. Abstracts: p 124. Leiden: IIAS.
All over the world, people have explained fossil findings as the proof for the historical value of legends, stories, myths, or used them as a basis for a new legend. North India does not differ in this respect. In Nepal and northernmost India, fossil ammonites (shalagramas) are worshipped as cakras, be it the disc of Vishnu or the Buddhist wheel, or seen as links to the divine snake Kundalini. Offered to the mountain gods, they yield protection. Fossil sea urchins were found in neolithical graves in the Salt Range of Pakistan; most likely they had some magical function, as elsewhere in the world. In Kashmir, Jurassic fossil brachiopods were copied in wood and painted. They probably were worshipped as the sacred tortoises known in Buddhism.
In this contribution, we investigate the possibility of a link between the famous fossil bone beds of the Siwaliks and the plain of Kurukshetra, the historical stage for the legendary battle as described in the epic Mahabharata, during which hundreds of mighty and sometimes gigantic heroes, horses and elephants died. Their remains, added with those of their huge, wrecked chariots, and thousands of javelins and spears, may very well be seen in the fossil bones, skulls, jaws and tusks of long extinct hippopotamuses (Hexaprotodon), proboscideans (Stegodon, Archidiskodon), giant giraffs (Sivatherium, Giraffokeryx), giant tortoises (Geochelone), sabre-toothed tigers (Paramachairodus), camels (Camelus), and so on.
[Abstract]
2006 Dermitzakis M, Roussiakis S., Van der Geer AAE. Sto Mouseio - Mosasaurus. In Greek and English.
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Museum of Palaeontology and Geology, Athens; 55 pp. Educational material (not for sale) for students. Partly based on information and plates from The Oceans of Kansas by Michael Everhart.
2006 Sondaar PY, Van Der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis M The unique postcranial of the Old World monkey Paradolichopithecus: more similar to Australopithecus than to baboons.
Hellenic Journal of Geosciences 41, 1: 19-28. Special volume in the memory of Paul Yves Sondaar.
This article deals with the unique postcranial of Paradolichopithecus arvernensis and its possible way of locomotion insofar this can be inferred from the present material. The postcranial material is described and compared with that of its living close relatives Papio, Macaca, and Theropithecus. As some unique features were found in Paradolichopithecus, the comparison was extended to Australopithecus anamensis, A. afarensis (AL 288-1) and Pan troglodytes. The features that discriminates Australopithecus from the African apes, also set Paradolichopithecus apart from baboons. This parallel was unexpected in the light of the general morphological differences between monkeys and apes. The study of Paradolichopithecus might help us understanding the locomotion of Australopithecus, which differed from that of chimpanzees by an increased frequency of an energetically expensive bipedal mode with bent knees, certainly different from that of Homo as can be inferred from the totally different talar bone architecture. Paradolichopithecus was more terrestrial than baboons and likewise Australopithecus was more terrestrial than chimpanzees (of today), but not in the same way as us.
[PDF download: 868 KB]
2006 Van Der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis M. Relative growth of the metapodals in a juvenile island deer: Candiacervus (Mammalia, Cervidae) from the Pleistocene of Crete. Hellenic Journal of Geosciences 41, 1: 119-125. Special volume in the memory of Paul Yves Sondaar.
One of the diagnostic features of Candiacervus are its apparently shortened and more massive metapodals in comparison to its ancestor. The question is whether this shortening and increased massivity are already present at birth or arises during postnatal ontogeny due to differences in relative growth speed. From this study it appears that the shortening is already present at birth but increases further during postnatal ontogeny due to a relative slower growth speed. The same holds for the increased massivity.
[PDF download: 746 KB]
2005 Van Der Geer AAE, De Vos J, Lyras GA, Dermitzakis MD. 2005. The mounting of a skeleton of the fossil species Candiacervus sp.II from Liko Cave, Crete, Greece.
Proceedings of the International Symposium Insular Vertebrate Evolution: The Palaeontological Approach. Monogafies de la Societat d Historia Natural de les Balears 12:337-346.
[Abstract][PDF download: 423 KB]
2005 Van Der Geer AAE. Island ruminants and the evolution of parallel functional structures. In: Cregut E (ed.): Les ongules holarctiques du Pliocene et du Pleistocene. Actes Colloque International, Avignon, 19-22 septembre. Quaternair 2005 hors-serie 2: 231-240.
[PDF download: 886 KB]
2005 Sondaar PY, Van der Geer AAE. Evolution and Extinction of Plio-Pleistocene Island Ungulates.
In: Cregut E (ed.): Les ongules holarctiques du Pliocene et du Pleistocene. Actes Colloque International, Avignon, 19-22 septembre. Quaternair 2005 hors-serie 2: 241-256.
The pattern of faunal evolution on islands differs fundamentally from that on the mainland. Major faunal turnovers on the mainland are mainly triggered by global climatological changes but mainly by changes in paleogeography and the new arrival of predators on islands.
Three types of Pleistocene islands are studied here: continental islands (Sardinia, Corsica), oceanic-like islands (Crete, Cyprus, Central Ryukyu Islands, Japan) and filter-bridge islands (Late Pleistocene Sicily and Japan). The origin of the founder population of the first type is a mainland fauna, while the second type is colonized by overseas sweepstake dispersal. The third type is characterized by filter dispersal from the continent.
The lack of transitional faunas between the founder population and the endemic population shows that the evolutionary scenario in the ungulate fauna on islands of the first and second type is characterised by rapid major evolutionary changes in the founder poulation, explained as adaptation to the island environment, followed by a relatively static period, which in some cases ends abruptly with a dramatic faunal turnover. The duration of this equilibrium differs from island to island, but as a rule comes to an end after new arrivals. Again there is no transitional fauna between the original endemic fauna and the newer endemic fauna. Neolithization of islands causes extinction of the endemic impoverished island fauna, which is replaced by domestic live stock they brought in.
The third type of island is less predictable in its faunal content, as the effect of a filter bridge is highly dependent on the nature of the filter. In the case of Sicily, the ungulate fauna is characterized by a gradually replacement, where the smaller endemics of the previous period coexist with the newly arrived mainland taxa.
[PDF download: 225 KB]
2005 Van Der Geer AAE. The postcranial of the deer Hoplitomeryx (Mio-Pliocene; Italy): another example of adaptive radiation on Eastern Mediterranean Islands.
Monografies de la Societat d'Historia Natural de les Balears 12: 325-336.
[PDF download: 384 KB]
2004 Dermitzakis MD, Van Der Geer AAE, Lyras GA. 2004. The phylogenetic position of raccoon dogs: implications of their neuroanatomy.
Proccedings of the 5th International Symposium on Eastern Mediterranean Geology, 14 to 20 April, 2004, Thessaloniki, Greece, p. 307-310.
[PDF download: 312 KB]
2003 Lyras GA, Van Der Geer AAE. 2003. External brain anatomy in relation to phylogeny of Caninae (Carnivora: Canidae).
Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 138:505-522.doi:10.1046/j.1096-3642.2003.00067.x
Caninae is one of the most studied mammalian groups, nevertheless there are relatively few comparative studies on their neuroanatomy. This work contributes to a better knowledge of this subfamily since it describes the external cerebrum anatomy of 29 out of the 35 living Caninae species, 11 of which are described for the first time. Information about their frontal region appears to be a welcome supplement in the study of the phylogeny. Two distinctive features are recognized, that can be traced back in the fossil record: the sulcal pattern medial to the coronal sulci, and the shape and relative size of the proreal gyrus. Four types are described for the first feature, (1) orthogonal: Canis, Lycaon, Cuon, Atelocynus, Speothos, (2) pentagonal: Vulpes, Alopex, Otocyon, Eucyon (extinct), (3) parenthesis-like: Dusicyon (extinct), Pseudalopex, Chrysocyon, (4) heart-shaped: Urocyon, Cerdocyon, Pseudalopex culpaeus, Nyctereutes. Three types are described for the second feature, (1) elongated and bilaterally compressed: Canis, Cuon, Lycaon, Atelocynus, Speothos, Cerdocyon, Dusicyon (extinct), Chrysocyon, Pseudalopex, Nyctereutes sinensis (extinct), N. tingi (extinct), (2) small: Vulpes, Otocyon, Urocyon, Alopex, (3) wide and low: Nyctereutes procyonoides. On the basis of these features some phylogenetic interpretations are presented: the fossil Asian Nyctereutes is close to Cerdocyon, Speothos is close to Atelocynus, Chrysocyon is not related to Canis, Urocyon differs from Vulpes and Pseudalopex culpaeus differs from the rest of the Pseudalopex species.
[view to publisher] [Abstract][request a PDF: 756 KB]
2002 De Vos J, Van Der Geer AAE. Major patterns and processes in biodiversity: taxonomic diversity on islands explained in terms of sympatric speciation.
In: Waldren & Ensenyat (eds). World Islands in Prehistory, International Insular Investigations, V Deia International Conference of Prehistory. Bar International Series 1095: 395-405.
Pandemic biodiversity is due to evolutionary processes in which every species evolves from another species through natural selection in a broad sense. Selection is mainly initiated and directed by availability and character of ecological niches. Radiation within a taxon takes place as soon as a new, free ecological niche is entered successfully, in other words, after an innovation of this taxon or after a mass extinction of other, competitive taxa. For example, the development of jaws (innovation), and later fins, in the agnatha was followed by a large-scale, long-term radiation into numerous groups of fishes during the Devonian. A similar pattern is seen in amphibians in the Carbonian (innovation: land dwelling), the amniota in the Trias (innovation: egg with membranes), sauriers in the Mesozoic (survivors of mass extinction), and mammals in the Kenozoic (survivors of mass extinction; innovation: versatile dentition). The same is seen in lower phylogenetic levels, resulting in medium-scale, medium-term radiations, e.g. ungulates (innovation: stilt-like limbs to run the plains), mainly in the Miocene.
Each newly evolved taxon displays a minor change from the innovative ancestor, and as a specialist occupies a part of the total newly entered niche. Thus, after each innovation, sympatric speciation events take place, later followed by dispersals and allopatric speciation events. The speciation leads to homochronuous specialists, each adapted to a subniche of the main niche that was originally occupied by the innovative pioneer or colonizer.
This explains the small-scale, short term radiation seen in endemic insular taxa. On islands, biodiversity within one taxon is the rule, and the most parsimonious explanation is to consider this diversity, too, as determined by availability and character of ecological niches, as on the mainland. The colonizers have no competitors, so have the unique possibility to radiate beyond the degree seen on the mainland, where close niches are always already occupied. Island species, depending on plasticity of functional structures, will enter all possible niches, and adapt to all available niches. Clear examples are the large continental islands: the carnivorous marsupials and herbivorous mammals of South America during the Tertiair, and the marsupials of Australia during the Kaenozoic were able to radiate into a huge variety of taxa after colonization. The biodiversity as seen in endemic insular monophyletic genera in the form of adaptive radiation is in complete accordance with the major patterns and processes that gave rise to the long-term, large-scale and the medium-term, medium-scale biodiversity on the mainland.
[PDF download: 110 KB]
2002 Sondaar PY, Van Der Geer AAE. Plio-Pleistocene terrestrial vertebrate faunal evolution on Mediterranean islands, compared to that of the Palearctic mainland.
Proc. of the 1st Int. Workshop "On Late Plio/Pleistocene extinction and evolution in the Palearctic. The Vatera site." Annales Geologiques des Pays Helleniques 1e Serie 39, A: 165-180.
[PDF download: 134 KB]
2002 Sondaar PY, Van der Geer AAE. Arboreal and terrestrial traits as revealed by the primate ankle joint..
Proc. of the 1st International Workshop "On Late Plio/Pleistocene extinction and evolution in the Palearctic. The Vatera site." Annales Geologiques des Pays Helleniques 1e Serie 39, A: 87-98.
The tarsal bones are important in the study of primate locomotion and posture, as it is here that the body weight is transferred to the ground in standing, walking and running, each with its particular demands. Though there are systematic differences in general morphology between cercopithecoids and African hominoids, for example the shape of the talar trochlea and the groove for the large toe flexor, there are clear parallels in function. In the proximal talar joint, movement is restricted to dorsal and plantar flexion, whereas in the distal talar joint also rotation and medio-lateral movement are possible. Especially the distal talar joint is useful to discriminate between arboreal and terrestrial ways of life, for example, rotation is typical for arboreal primates. The proximal talar joint is useful to specify the type of terrestrial locomotion. The degree of possible flexion differs between species, furthermore, in a number of species there is no medial rotation during maximal plantar flexion at all, whereas in most species at least a minimal degree occurs. In the species without medial rotation, such as Paradolichopithecus, the ridges of the trochlea tali tend to run more parallel than in other terrestrial species, like Papio, resulting in minimal trochlear wedging.
A functional analysis of the newly discovered ankle joint of Paradolichopithecus arvernensis leads to the conclusion that this monkey had not only a terrestrial way of life, but has also a gait similar to that of Australopithecus afarensis, revealing thus a parallel evolution between cercopithecoids and hominoids in this respect. This puts question marks to the degree and type of bipedalism in Australopithecus[PDF download: 311 KB]
2002 Van der Geer AAE, Sondaar PY. The postcranial elements of Paradolichopithecus arvernensis (Primates, Cercopithecidae, Papionini) from Lesvos, Greece..
Proc. of the 1st International Workshop "On Late Plio/Pleistocene extinction and evolution in the Palearctic. The Vatera site." Annales Geologiques des Pays Helleniques 1e Serie 39, A: 71-86.
The morphological features that are unique for Paradolichopithecus amongst the monkeys are described for the talus, distal tibia and the humerus, and are as follows. The talus is discriminated by its almost parallel trochlea, the large flap-like, protruding fibular suspensory facet, and a slightly deeper facet for the spring ligament on the talar head. These features are suggestive for a baboon-like ankle joint with the body weight more evenly distributed over the talar trochlea, a greater proportion of the weight transfer through the lateral (fibular) side, and with approximate the same stability in maximal dorsiflexion as in maximal plantar flexion. The distal tibia is discriminated by a more massive, square and blunt malleolus that lacks the typically pronounced ball-shaped area, a wider groove (sulcus malleolaris) for the tendon of the M. tibialis posterior, a more square cross-section, clear scars for the fibula, and a double tendon groove on the dorsal surface (either for a bifurcated tendon for the M. flexorum tibialis posterior or a pronounced groove for the long toe flexor), which follows the parasagittal plane. The combination indicates a maintainance of the close-packed situation from dorsiflexion to plantar flexion, an increased importance of the fibula in weight transfer, a stronger plantar flexion, and possibly a slightly abducted foot. The humerus is discriminated by an increased articulation area on the head compared to Papio, a wide and deep groove for the biceps tendon, a gradually descending capitulum, and an oblique axis for flexion-extension through the elbow joint. During flexion, the ulna deviates from the parasagittal plane, and ends in a position medially to the humerus instead of parallel above it, due to the trochlear shape and axis. This unique feature yields a significant increased mobility.
[PDF download: 670 KB]
2001 Lyras GA, Van Der Geer AAE, Dermitzakis MD. 2001. Evolution of the brain of Plio-Pleistocene wolves.
Cranium 18(2):30-40.
[go to Cranium] [Abstract]
2001 Van der Geer B, Van der Geer AAE. Dagboek van een opgraving: Corbeddu, zaal IV. Cranium 18, 2: 3-14. In Dutch with English summary.
2000 Sondaar PY, Van der Geer S Mesolithic environment and animal exploitation on Cyprus and Sardinia/Corsica. In: Mashkour, M., A. Choyke & M. Buitenhuis (eds). Proceedings of the IVth ASWA Symposium, IVA: 67-73. Paris.
[PDF download: 116 KB]
1999 Van der Geer AAE On the astragalus of the Miocene endemic deer Hoplitomeryx from the Gargano (Italy).Deinsea 7: 325-336. Rotterdam: Natuurmuseum.
This report compares the astragalus of the insular deer Hoplitomeryx with that of a number of recent and fossil ruminants. It appears that the profile of the dorsal border deviates from the expected situation. In addition, in many astragali the axis through the cranial and the caudal half meet each other at an angle, yielding an oblique appearance. This situation resembles that of Myotragus balearicus, another endemic ruminant from the Mediterranean. A probable explanation is the decrease of muscular power needed, and the increase of stability, in relation to the convergence of the upper legs, due to a larger abdomen. Hoplitomeryx certainly was neither a runner nor a jumper.
[PDF download: 696 KB]
1998 Van Der Geer AAE. The Bhasa Problem. A statistical research into its solution. PhD Thesis. Rijksuniversiteit Leiden; 243 pp.
[go to my PhD]
1998 Van der Geer AAE. De reuzen, dwergen en rariteiten van de Gargano and Over hoorns gesproken. Cranium 15, 2: 75-83 and 111-123. Both in Dutch with English summary.
1996 Van Der Geer AAE. Samskrtabhasa B1, cursus Sanskrit voor beginners and Samskrtabhasa B2, cursus Sanskrit voor gevorderden. Leiden: Talen Instituut Console; 366 and 233 pp resp. Both in Dutch.
[go to my Sanskrit course (in Dutch)]
1995 Van Der Geer AAE. Isco sa limba mea. Sardijns in 10 lessen and Woordenboek Nederlands-Sardijns. Ditzionariu Sardu-Olandesu and Ittesisiat, Sardijns voor op vakantie. Leiden: Talen Instituut Console; 229 pp, 240 pp and 15 pp. All three in Dutch and Sardinian.
[go to my Sardinian language course (in Dutch)]