|
Nothrotheriidae
Nothrotheriidae is a family of extinct ground sloths that lived from approximately 17.5 mya—10,000 years ago, existing for approximately . Previously placed within the tribe Nothrotheriini or subfamily Nothrotheriinae within Megatheriidae, they are now usually placed in their own family, Nothrotheriidae. Nothrotheriids appeared in the Burdigalian, some 19.8 million years ago, in South America. The group includes the comparatively slightly built ''Nothrotheriops'', which reached a length of about . While nothrotheriids were small compared to some of their megatheriid relatives, their claws provided an effective defense against predators, like those of larger anteaters today. Evolution During the late Miocene and Pliocene, the sloth genus ''Thalassocnus'' of the west coast of South America became adapted to a shallow-water marine lifestyle. However, the family placement of ''Thalassocnus'' has been disputed; while long considered a nothrotheriid, one recent analysis moves it to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lakukullus
''Lakukullus'' is an extinct genus of nothrotheriid ground sloths that lived during the Middle Miocene around 13.8 to 11.8 million years ago of what is now Bolivia. Etymology The genus name, ''Lakukullus'', is composed of "Laku’kullu", which means "wild animal of heights" in Aymara, a native Bolivian language, which refers to the locality the specimen was found. The specific name is derived from the Latin word "anatisrostratum", which means "duck beak" in reference to the aspect of the snout appearing physically similar to the bill of an aquatic bird. Classification ''Lakukullus'' is a genus from the now extinct family of Nothrotheriidae. The Nothrotheriidae are represented by rather medium-sized members of the suborder of sloths, Folivora. Their phylogenetically younger members possessed a dentition reduced by the anterior-most tooth per mandibular arch, diverging from other sloth groups.H. Gregory McDonald und Gerardo de Iuliis: ''Fossil history of sloths.'' In: Sergio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ground Sloth
Ground sloths are a diverse group of extinct sloths in the mammalian superorder Xenarthra. The term is used to refer to all extinct sloths because of the large size of the earliest forms discovered, compared to existing tree sloths. The Caribbean ground sloths, the most recent survivors, lived in the Antilles, possibly until 1550 BCE. However, radiocarbon dating suggests an age of between 2819 and 2660 BCE for the last occurrence of ''Megalocnus'' in Cuba. Ground sloths had been extinct on the mainland of North and South America for 10,000 years or more. They survived 5,000–6,000 years longer in the Caribbean than on the American mainland, which correlates with the later colonization of this area by humans. Much ground sloth evolution took place during the late Paleogene and Neogene of South America, while the continent was isolated. At their earliest appearance in the fossil record, the ground sloths were already distinct at the family level. The presence ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thalassocnus
''Thalassocnus'' is an extinct genus of semiaquatic ground sloths from the Miocene and Pliocene of the Pacific South American coast. It is monotypic within the subfamily Thalassocninae. The five species—''T. antiquus'', ''T. natans'', ''T. littoralis'', ''T. carolomartini'', and ''T. yuacensis''—represent a chronospecies, a population gradually adapting to marine life in one direct lineage. They are the only known aquatic sloths, but they may have also been adapted to a terrestrial lifestyle. They have been found in the Pisco Formation of Peru, the Tafna Formation of Argentina, and the Bahía Inglesa, Coquimbo, and Horcón formations of Chile. Thalassocninae has been placed in both the families Megatheriidae and Nothrotheriidae. ''Thalassocnus'' evolved several marine adaptations over the course of 4 million years, such as dense and heavy bones to counteract buoyancy, the internal nostrils migrating farther into the head to help with breathing while completely submerged, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Megatheriidae
Megatheriidae is a family of extinct ground sloths that lived from approximately 23 mya—11,000 years ago. Megatheriids appeared during the Late Oligocene (Deseadan in the SALMA classification), some 29 million years ago, in South America. The group includes the heavily built '' Megatherium'' (given its name 'great beast' by Georges Cuvier) and ''Eremotherium''. An early genus that was originally considered a megatheriid, the more slightly built ''Hapalops'', reached a length of about . The nothrotheres have recently been placed in their own family, Nothrotheriidae. The skeletal structure of these ground sloths indicates that the animals were massive. Their thick bones and even thicker joints (especially those on the hind legs) gave their appendages tremendous power that, combined with their size and fearsome claws, provided a formidable defense against predators. The earliest megatheriid in North America was ''Sibotherium'' which arrived 5.3 million years ago, after cros ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aymaratherium
''Aymaratherium'' is an extinct genus of nothrotheriid ground sloths that lived during the Late Miocene and Early Pliocene of Bolivia. Fossils of ''Aymaratherium'' have been found in the Pomata Ayte locality of the Umala Formation. Etymology The genus name, ''Aymaratherium'', is derived from the Aymara, a native ethnic group and language from the Andes, and ''therion'', meaning "beast". The specific name honors Jean Joinville Vacher, for his friendship and constant support for palaeontological investigations over the years. Discovery ''Aymaratherium'' was first described in 2016 on the basis of a nearly complete right dentary (specimen MNHN-Bol-V 008954), which was made of the holotype. In addition, three complete humeri (MNHN-Bol-V 003789, 012874 and 012875), a right astragalus (MNHN-Bol-V 012983), and a complete right calcaneus (MNHN-Bol-V 003307) have also been assigned to the genus. The locality of the holotype was recovered from the Pomata-Ayte locality, in the Umala Forma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chasicobradys
''Chasicobradys'' is an extinct genus of ground sloths of the family Nothrotheriidae that lived in what is now Argentina. ''Chasicobradys'' was discovered in the Arroyo Chasicó Formation, in Buenos Aires Province. It is only known from jaw fragments and teeth, which allowed the identification of this species, and was classified as a member of the nothrotheriid subfamily Nothrotheriinae, which comprises small to medium-sized species of ground sloths. Etymology The genus name, ''Chasicobradys'', is derived from the Arroyo Chasicó Formation in Argentina and ''bradys'' meaning "slow". was found. The specific name means "intermediate". Description ''Chasicobradys'' is a medium-sized species, similar in size to the Argentine species '' Neohapalops rothi'', characterized by a very high mandibular ramus and characteristics of its molariform teeth, such as the lack of a diastema between the first and second molars and the oblique location of the fourth molars. ''Chasicobradys' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mionothropus
''Mionothropus'' is an extinct genus of nothrotheriine nothrotheriid sloth which existed in Peru in the western Amazon Basin, during the late Miocene (Huayquerian age). It is known from the holotype LACM 4609/117533, which includes cranial remains, recovered from the riverbank deposits of the Iñapari Formation in the Río Acre region, were originally assigned to '' Nothropus priscus''. It was first named by Gerardo De Iuliis, Timothy J. Gaudin and Matthew J. Vicars in 2011 and the type species is ''Mionothropus cartellei''. The generic name is derived from "Mio", is a reference to the Miocene provenance of the holotype, and "nothropus" refers to the initial allocation of the holotype to this genus from the South American Pleistocene. The specific name honours Dr. Castor Cartelle. Phylogeny Cladogram A cladogram (from Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, how ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nothropus
''Nothropus'' is an extinct genus of ground sloth of the family Nothrotheriidae, endemic to South America during the Pleistocene epoch. It lived from 0.781 mya—12,000 years ago existing for approximately . It was believed to be a ground-dwelling herbivore. Taxonomy ''Nothropus priscus'' and ''Nothropus nordenskioldi'' are described as subtaxa. ''Nothropus'' was named by Hermann Burmeister (1882). It was assigned to Megalonychidae by L. G. Marshall and T. Sempere (1991) and to Nothrotheriidae by Christian de Muizon et al. (2004). Fossil distribution Fossils have been uncovered from the Tarija Formation, Tarija Department Tarija () is a department in Bolivia. It is located in south-eastern Bolivia bordering with Argentina to the south and Paraguay to the east. According to the 2012 census, it has a population of 482,196 inhabitants. It has an area of . The city ..., Bolivia, east side of the Andes Mountains. References * ''Classification of Mammals'' by Malcolm C. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nothrotheriops
''Nothrotheriops'' is a genus of Pleistocene ground sloth found in North America, from what is now central Mexico to the southern United States. This genus of bear-sized xenarthran was related to the much larger, and far more famous ''Megatherium'', although it has recently been placed in a different family, Nothrotheriidae. The best known species, ''N. shastensis'', is also called the Shasta ground sloth. Taxonomy, history, and etymology ''Nothrotheriops'' fossils were first collected by the University of California's Anthropology Department during an exploration of caves at Potter Creek Cave in Shasta County, California, the fossils dating to the late Quaternary period.Sinclair, W. J. (1905). ''New mammalia from the Quaternary caves of California''. University of California Press.McDonald, H. G. (1995). Gravigrade xenarthrans from the early Pleistocene Leisey Shell Pit lA, Hillsborough County, Florida. ''Bulletin of the Florida Museum of Natural History'', ''37''(11), 245-373 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Huilabradys
''Huilabradys'' is an extinct genus of ground sloths of the family Nothrotheriidae that lived in what is now Colombia. ''Huilabradys'' was discovered in the strata of the La Tatacoa desert in the Huila department, in the Villavieja Formation, and is part of the so-called La Venta fauna, a fossiliferous location from the mid-Miocene period that has provided a notable paleontological contribution on the Miocene faunas of northern South America. The remains discovered are basically fragments of the jaws and teeth, allowed the identification of this species, whose only species is ''Huilabradys magdaleniensis'', and was classified as a member of the nothrotheriid subfamily Nothrotheriinae, which comprises small to medium-sized species of ground sloths. Etymology The genus name, ''Huilabradys'', is derived from the Huila Department in Colombia and ''bradys'' meaning "slow". The specific name refers to the Magdalena River where the holotype was found. Description ''Huilabradys'' i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shasta Ground Sloth
''Nothrotheriops'' is a genus of Pleistocene ground sloth found in North America, from what is now central Mexico to the southern United States. This genus of bear-sized xenarthran was related to the much larger, and far more famous ''Megatherium'', although it has recently been placed in a different family, Nothrotheriidae. The best known species, ''N. shastensis'', is also called the Shasta ground sloth. Taxonomy, history, and etymology ''Nothrotheriops'' fossils were first collected by the University of California's Anthropology Department during an exploration of caves at Potter Creek Cave in Shasta County, California, the fossils dating to the late Quaternary period.Sinclair, W. J. (1905). ''New mammalia from the Quaternary caves of California''. University of California Press.McDonald, H. G. (1995). Gravigrade xenarthrans from the early Pleistocene Leisey Shell Pit lA, Hillsborough County, Florida. ''Bulletin of the Florida Museum of Natural History'', ''37''(11), 245-373 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South American Land Mammal Age
The South American land mammal ages (SALMA) establish a geologic timescale for prehistoric South American fauna beginning 64.5 Mya (unit), Ma during the Paleocene and continuing through to the Late Pleistocene (0.011 Ma). These periods are referred to as ages, stages, or intervals and were established using geographic place names where fossil materials where obtained.Flynn & Swisher, 1995 The basic unit of measure is the first/last boundary statement. This shows that the first appearance event of one taxon is known to predate the last appearance event of another. If two taxa are found in the same fossil quarry or at the same stratigraphic horizon, then their age-range zones overlap. Background South America was an island continent for much of the Cenozoic, or the "Age of Mammals". As a result, its mammals evolved in their own unique directions, as Australia and Madagascar still have today. Paleogeographic timeline A simplified paleogeography, paleogeographic timeline of South ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Megatheriidae")
