The site has also yielded the remains of several small creatures such as molluscs, fish, and cold blooded vertebrates. Small mammals are the dominant fauna, such as rodents, rabbits, martens, hamsters, and shrews. However, large mammals are also known, such as the extinct mouse-deer Dorcatherium, the antelope Miotragocerus, and the rhinoceros Aceratherium. The site is located in the Upper Freshwater Molasse of the Molasse basin; by the late Miocene, the Paratethys Sea had dried up and the Alps had lifted, allowing the expansion of wetland habitats in the basin. The late Miocene may have been the beginning of a drying trend characterized by increased seasonality, causing deciduous forest to turn into a less dense woodland, and fruit and leaf production to occur cyclically rather than year-round. The late Miocene cooling trend may have led to the replacement of more tropical flora by mid-latitude and alpine varieties, and ultimately the extinction of European great apes.