vole
Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of lo ...
s, subfamily
Arvicolinae
The Arvicolinae are a subfamily of rodents that includes the voles, lemmings, and muskrats. They are most closely related to the other subfamilies in the Cricetidae (comprising the hamsters and New World rats and mice). Some authorities plac ...
, tribe Pliomyini.Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 ''in'' Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. The genus is known from fossils found across Europe. The earliest fossils date to the
Early Pleistocene
The Early Pleistocene is an unofficial epoch (geology), sub-epoch in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, representing the earliest division of the Pleistocene Epoch within the ongoing Quaternary Period. It is currently esti ...
(or possibly Late
Pliocene
The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58 with one species, ''P. lenki'' (which is possibly synonymous with ''Pliomys coronensis''), surviving to the end of the
Late Pleistocene
The Late Pleistocene is an unofficial Age (geology), age in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, also known as the Upper Pleistocene from a Stratigraphy, stratigraphic perspective. It is intended to be the fourth division ...
, until around 12,000 years ago in southern France and the Iberian Peninsula. Morphological evidence and DNA sequences obtained from ''P. lenki'' suggests that its closest living relative is the genus '' Dinaromys'' with a single species native to the
Balkans
The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
, with ''P. lenki'' estimated to have diverged from ''Dinaromys'' around 4 million years ago. ''P. lenki'' was generally associated with cold and temperate conditions showing a range of climatic tolerance, though it appears to have only lived in open habitats and was intolerant of forest, with many specimens also found in hilly or mountainous environments.