Paleontologists have identified a new genus and species of mole (family Talpidae) from a partial skeleton discovered at the Pliocene-aged site of Camp dels Ninots in Girona, Spain.
Life reconstruction of Vulcanoscaptor ninoti. Image credit: Jesús Gamarra / IPHES-CERCA.
The newly-identified species, named Vulcanoscaptor ninoti, is a burrowing mole that lived in what is now Spain around 3.25 million years ago.
The animal’s fossilized skeleton was found in 2010 at the Camp dels Ninots site in Girona, Spain.
“This specimen preserves the mandible with a complete dentition, part of the torso, and several bones from both the forelimbs and hindlimbs, many of them still in anatomical connection,” said Dr. Marc Furió, a researcher at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (IPHES-CERCA), and his colleagues.
“The exceptional state of preservation is extremely rare in small mammals such as moles and makes this specimen one of the oldest and most complete ever found in Europe.”
“The fossil represents the most complete mole fossil known to date from the Pliocene of Europe and provides valuable insights into the evolutionary history of talpids.”
The fossil was partially embedded in a very compact sediment block and was extracted in its entirety during excavation.
To examine it in detail without damaging it, the paleontologists used high-resolution micro-computed tomography (microCT) scanning, which enabled a precise three-dimensional digital reconstruction of the skeleton.
“With the microCT, we were able to analyze extremely small and delicate structures — such as phalanges and teeth — that would have been nearly impossible to study otherwise,” said Dr. Adriana Linares, a researcher at the IPHES-CERCA.
“This allowed us to identify unique anatomical features and incorporate them into a robust phylogenetic analysis.”
The structure of Vulcanoscaptor ninoti’s forearm and front limbs revealed a high degree of adaptation to a subterranean lifestyle.
“The humerus is particularly robust, with prominent crests and extensive areas for muscle attachment, while the phalanges suggest strong digging capabilities,” Dr. Linares said.
“However, the fact that this individual was preserved in lacustrine sediments and in a lateral position raises the possibility that it may also have had some aquatic locomotion abilities.”
“We can’t confirm this with certainty yet, but there are modern moles that are powerful diggers and also excellent swimmers.”
According to the team, Vulcanoscaptor ninoti belonged to the Scalopini, a tribe of moles that today are found in North America and parts of Asia.
This discovery from Europe’s Pliocene site suggests a much more complex evolutionary and paleogeographic scenario than previously assumed.
“The description of Vulcanoscaptor ninoti confirms that the evolutionary history of moles has been far more dynamic than previously thought, involving possible intercontinental dispersals and an underappreciated anatomical diversity,” the authors said.
“It also highlights the importance of exceptional fossil sites in documenting species rarely preserved in the fossil record, such as small mammals.”
“Despite its clearly fossorial morphology, this mole is closely related to extant North American species of the genera Scapanus and Scalopus, which points to a far more intricate evolutionary history for these animals than we had imagined,” Dr. Furió added.
“Its presence in Europe suggests past transcontinental migrations of moles, challenging the assumption that they are mammals with low dispersal capacity.”
The team’s paper was published this month in the journal Scientific Reports.
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A. Linares-Martín et al. 2025. An unexpected Scalopini mole (Talpidae, Mammalia) from the Pliocene of Europe sheds light on the phylogeny of talpids. Sci Rep 15, 24928; doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-10396-1