Bothriodon
| Bothriodon Temporal range: Late Eocene
| |
|---|---|
| Bothriodon americanus skull at the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | †Anthracotheriidae |
| Genus: | †Bothriodon Aymard, 1848 |
Bothriodon (Greek: "pit" (botros), "teeth" (odontes)[1]) is an extinct genus of anthracotheriid artiodactyl from the late Eocene to early Oligocene of Asia, Europe, and North America.
Description
Bothriodon was about the size of a large pig, reaching an estimated weight of more than 199 kg (439 lbs).[2] Bothriodon possesses molars transitional between bunodont and selenodont in morphology. Alongside this, the upper molars possess 5 cusps as opposed to the derived 4. They also possessed a reduced pollex on the 5 toed manus.[3]
References
- ^ "Glossary. American Museum of Natural History". Archived from the original on 20 November 2021.
- ^ Tsubamoto, Takehisa (2010). "Additional specimens of the Anthracotheriidae (Mammalia; Artiodactyla) from the upper Eocene Ergilin Dzo Formation of Mongolia". Hayashibara Museum of Natural Sciences Research Bulletin. 3: 143–147.
- ^ Scott, William Berryman (1913). A history of land mammals in the western hemisphere. Smithsonian Libraries. New York, The MacMillan Company.
Further reading
- The Beginning of the Age of Mammals by Kenneth D. Rose
- Mammoths, Sabertooths, and Hominids by Jordi Agusti and Mauricio Anton