Similarities between large mammal faunas of the Italian Peninsula and France from the Pliocene to the Middle Pleistocene

Taking into account the difficulty in defining the relationship between large mammal faunas from the Italian peninsula and France on the basis of the biochronological setting proposed to date, a multivariate analysis was carried out to test the affinity between the Italian and French Pliocene-Middle Pleistocene local faunas (LFAs). The analysis points out a high similarity between the Italian early Villafranchian and French Ruscinian LFAs and a relatively good homogeneity between the Italian and French middle Villafranchian LFAs as well as among the latest Early Pleistocene LFAs that show a transitional character, whereas the Middle Pleistocene LFAs show a low degree of similarities because of their provincialism.