''Antifer'' is an extinct
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of large
herbivorous
A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpar ...
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...
of the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Cervidae
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reind ...
,
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
during the
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...
, living from 2.6
Ma to 13,000 years ago and existing for approximately .
[''Antifer'']
at Fossilworks.org Cervids first entered the formerly isolated continent of South America during the
Pliocene
The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58[Great American Biotic Interchange
The Great American Biotic Interchange (commonly abbreviated as GABI), also known as the Great American Interchange and the Great American Faunal Interchange, was an important late Cenozoic paleozoogeographic biotic interchange event in which lan ...](_blank)
.
It would have been preyed upon by the
dire wolf
The dire wolf (''Aenocyon dirus'' ) is an extinct canine. It is one of the most famous prehistoric carnivores in North America, along with its extinct competitor ''Smilodon''. The dire wolf lived in the Americas and eastern Asia during the Late ...
, the
fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
-like ''
Theriodictis
''Theriodictis'' is an extinct genus of hypercarnivorous wolf-like canid endemic to South America during the Pleistocene, living from 1.2 Ma- 500,000 years ago and existing for approximately .
Fossil distribution
The fossil remains are con ...
'',
saber-toothed cats,
short-faced bears and various other predators, including humans.
Taxonomy
''Antifer'' was named by Ameghino (1889) based on Captain Antifer in a
Jules Verne novel describing his voyage of discovery in the
Southern Hemisphere. It was assigned to
Cervidae
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reind ...
by Carroll (1988).
[R. L. Carroll. 1988. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution. W.H. Freeman and Company]
Fossil distribution
The fossil remains are confined to southern
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, the
Sopas Formation
''Sopas'' is a Filipino macaroni soup made with elbow macaroni, various vegetables, and meat (usually chicken), in a creamy broth with evaporated milk. It is regarded as a comfort food in the Philippines and is typically eaten during breakfast ...
of
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
, central
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
and
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
.
[ It is known mostly from large, non-palmated shed antlers.
]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2754276
Capreolinae
Prehistoric deer
Prehistoric even-toed ungulate genera
Pliocene even-toed ungulates
Pleistocene even-toed ungulates
Piacenzian first appearances
Pleistocene genus extinctions
Pleistocene mammals of South America
Lujanian
Ensenadan
Uquian
Pleistocene Argentina
Fossils of Argentina
Pleistocene Brazil
Fossils of Brazil
Pleistocene Chile
Fossils of Chile
Pleistocene Uruguay
Fossils of Uruguay
Fossil taxa described in 1889
Taxa named by Florentino Ameghino