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Coryphodontidae
Coryphodontidae is an extinct family of pantodont mammals known from the Late Paleocene to the Middle Eocene of Eurasia and North America. The type genus '' Coryphodon'' is known from around the Paleocene-Eocene transition in Europe, western United States, northern Canada, and eastern Asia. The remaining genera are known exclusively from the middle Eocene of Asia. The coryphodontids are related to the pantolambdids. ''Coryphodon'' are large, derived pantodonts first described in the mid-19th century, but no intermediate stages leading to their unusual upper molars are known. The last known species of ''Coryphodon'' have bilophodont The molars or molar teeth are large, flat teeth at the back of the mouth. They are more developed in mammals. They are used primarily to grind food during chewing. The name ''molar'' derives from Latin, ''molaris dens'', meaning "millstone toot ... molars similar to later, more derived coryphodontids, and, most likely, ''Coryphodon'' is the pri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pantodonta
Pantodonta is an extinct suborder (or, according to some, an Order (biology), order) of eutherian mammals. These herbivorous mammals were one of the first groups of large mammals to evolve (around 66 million years ago) after the K-T boundary, end of the Cretaceous. The last pantodonts died out at the end of the Eocene (around 34 million years ago). Pantodonta include some of the largest mammals of their time, but were a diversified group, with some primitive members weighing less than and the largest more than . The earliest and most primitive pantodonts, ''Bemalambda'' (with a skull probably the size of a dog) and ''Hypsilolambda'', appear in the early Paleocene Shanghuan Formation in China. All more derived families are collectively classified as Eupantodonta. The pantodonts appear in North America in the middle Paleocene, where ''Coryphodon'' survived into the middle Eocene. Pantodont teeth have been found in South America (''Alcidedorbignya'') and Antarctica, and footprin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
