''Brachypotherium'' is an

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

genus of

rhinoceros A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

that lived in

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago a ...

and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

during the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

. A first upper decidual molar referrable to ''Brachypotherium brachypus'' was found during gold mining in

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

during the 19th century, being misidentified as a species of

marsupial Marsupials are any members of the mammalian infraclass Marsupialia. All extant marsupials are endemic to Australasia, Wallacea and the Americas. A distinctive characteristic common to most of these species is that the young are carried in a po ...

known as ''

Zygomaturus ''Zygomaturus'' is an extinct genus of giant marsupial belonging to the family Diprotodontidae which inhabited Australia from the Late Miocene to Late Pleistocene. Description It was a large animal, weighing 500 kg (1100 lbs) or ...

.'' However, rhinoceros were never native to New Caledonia, and the tooth was probably used as jewelry by a French convict deported there. Many species of ''Brachypotherium'' have been described. Some species have moved to other genera, such as ''B. aurelianense'' being transferred to ''

Diaceratherium ''Diaceratherium'' is an extinct genus of rhinoceros from the Oligocene and Miocene of Eurasia. Recent studies suggest that seven species are valid. References

Oligocene rhinoceroses Miocene rhinoceroses Oligocene mammals of Europe Mio ...

''. The genus was widespread during the Early and Middle Miocene, before heading into a decline. They went extinct in

by the beginning of the Late Miocene, with the African species ''B. lewisi'' surviving until the end of the epoch.

References

{{paleo-oddtoedungulate-stub Miocene rhinoceroses Miocene mammals of Europe Miocene mammals of Asia Miocene mammals of Africa Fossil taxa described in 1904