We conclude the THE CAVES, UNIQUE ENVIRONMENTS lecture series with a talk by paleontologist Salvador Moyà.
The Plio-Pleistocene mammal fauna of the Pityusic Islands (Ibiza and Formentera) remained completely unknown until the late 20th century. A prospecting campaign carried out in 1981 led to the first discovery of several fossil localities (Moyà-Solà et al., 1984). This contrasts with the rich and diverse fossil record of vertebrate fauna in the Balearic Islands (Mallorca and Menorca) (Alcover et al., 1981), where hundreds of sites have been documented.
At the Ses Fontanelles site (Sant Antoni de Portmany), two types of bovids were initially reported: one very small, possibly a member of the Antilopini tribe (which includes modern gazelles), and another that might have been a caprine. The material remained unstudied until 2020, when a revision concluded that it belonged to a single bovid species with significant size variation. Its morphology aligned clearly with that of caprines.
Its small size for a caprine and its unusual combination of features led to the description of a new genus and species: Ebusia moralesi. Described in 2022, this species is remarkable for two reasons: it is the only large mammal known from Ibiza during the Neogene and Quaternary, and it offers a rare glimpse into the early stages of island adaptation—a process that usually happens too quickly to be fossilized.
Ebusia was much smaller than its continental relatives, both modern and fossil, and even smaller than Myotragus, its Balearic cousin. While its teeth were still complete and primitive, its bones were already showing island adaptations: its legs were shortening—one of the classic evolutionary shifts seen in island species. These are the first signs of insular evolution, where animals adapt to limited space, fewer predators, and scarce food resources.
What makes Ebusia so fascinating is that it seems to capture the beginning of this process: a species not yet fully adapted to island life, but clearly on its way. It’s like catching evolution in mid-transformation—frozen in time.
From an evolutionary perspective, Ebusia from the Pityuses and Myotragus from the Balearic Islands likely shared a common mainland ancestor, though its identity remains unknown.
A fascinating conference to travel back to Ibiza’s most ancient past and explore how life reshapes itself when faced with drastic environmental change.
Activity funded by the Fundación Española para la Ciencia y Tecnología, F.S.P. (FECYT), Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades i la Conselleria d’Educació i Universitat.
