Mammals of the Ardis Local Fauna 25 



standing, activities of this species may explain some of the more 

 unusual occurrences of other vertebrate species in the solution cavi- 

 ties. The three-rooted Ml compares favorably in morphology and site 

 (anterior-posterior length of Ml = 3.52 mm) to recent material. N. 

 floridana is the only species of woodrat found in the southeastern 

 United States. 



This represents the first fossil record of this species from South 

 Carolina. 



Family Hydrochaeridae 

 Material: 1 fragment of the posterior lamina of the M3 (.184). 



Remarks: Identification to family was based on direct comparison 

 to fossil and recent specimens. However, the fragmentary nature of 

 the specimen precludes identification to genus or species. 



The extremely thin enamel and the particular angle of the fragment 

 are diagnostic and cannot belong to any other taxon. 



One living genus of capybara {Hydrochaeris) occurs in tropical 

 habitats in Central and South America and is semiaquatic, commonly 

 found along the edges of streams and the borders of marshes (Kurten 

 and Anderson 1980). The presence of this tropical family in the fossil 

 record was first established for South Carolina by Roth and Laerm 

 (1980). 



Order Lagomorpha 



Family Leporidae 



Sylvilagus palustris - Marsh Rabbit 



Material: 4 right dentaries (.185-. 187), (1 UF); 3 left dentaries (.188- 



.189), (1 USNM); 1 isolated p3 (.190). 



Remarks: Identification was based on the presence of multiple anterior 

 reentrants on the third premolar. 



The marsh rabbit is a good swimmer and can be found in wet- 

 lands areas such as marshes, flood plains, and hummocks, and its 

 modern distribution ranges from southeastern Virginia along the 

 Atlantic Coastal Plain into Florida (Webster et al. 1985). S. palustris 

 probably occurs in the immediate vicinity of the Ardis site. It has 

 been recorded from many Pleistocene sites in Florida (Webb 1974, 

 Kurten and Anderson 1980), and Sylvilagus sp. was identified from 

 Edisto Island, South Carolina (Roth and Laerm 1980). 



This represents the first fossil material identified as this species 

 from South Carolina. 



