The locality at Tighenif (Ternifine, Palikao) Algeria, rose to prominence in the 1950’s due to the discovery of early hominid remains (Atlanthropus mauritanicus) associated with Acheulean artefacts. There has been debate about the age of the deposits, but recent views are that, on biostratigraphic evidence, they lie somewhere in the interval between 0.8 and 0.7 Ma, an estimate somewhat younger than that envisaged by the excavators of the site during the 1950’s. Some of the mammalian groups from Ternifine have been published in detail, but the Suidae have not, even though they appear to have played a rôle in the initial determination of the age of the deposits. Early identification of the suids from the site classified them in Notochoerus or Afrochoerus, but this was changed to Metridiochoerus compactus during the 1970’s, a listing that has been repeated until recently. This paper describes the suid fossils from Tighenif in detail, based on an extensive and informative collection of fossils housed in the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, and concludes that all of it belongs to Metridiochoerus andrewsi and that it corresponds best with material from the upper parts of Olduvai Bed II, ca 1.4±0.3 Ma. It’s feeding ecology is investigated.

Introduction 7
Social Note 7
Abbreviations 8
Material 8
Systematic and Demographic implications of the Tighenif Suidae 8
Dental nomenclature 8
The evolution of hypsodonty in the Metridiochoerus lineage
Systematic Description
Suidae Gray, 1821 13
Genus Metridiochoerus Hopwood, 1926 13
Species Metridiochoerus andrewsi Hopwood, 1926 13
Recapitulation of the holotype specimen of Metridiochoerus andrewsi and other material from the vicinity of Homa Mountain (Kanjera, Rawi, Kagua) 14
Recapitulation of Orthostonyx brachyops from Olduvai Gorge, Bed II, Tanzania 17
The Gondolin specimens of Metridiochoerus andrewsi 17
Recapitulation of Stylochoerus compactus 18
The Tighenif Suidae 19
Descriptions 21
Upper dentition 21
Deciduous upper cheek teeth 21
Permanent upper cheek teeth 25
Permanent upper molars 25
Lower dentition 31
Lower deciduous cheek teeth 31
Mandible and lower cheek dentition 33
Permanent lower cheek dentition 35
Upper canines 52
Lower canines 52
Discussion 56
Metric variation in, and biochronological implications of, the Tighenif Suidae 56
Dental development 58
Enlarged canines and feeding ecology 60
Conclusions 63
Acknowledgements 64
References 65