''Hapalomys gracilis'' is a
fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...
from the
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 ...
''
Hapalomys
''Hapalomys'' is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae endemic to Southeast Asia. It is the only member of the tribe
The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldw ...
'' found in Longgupo in South China.
The species designation ''gracilis'' is
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
for 'thin'. Only a first subchase of this species is known. This molar is smaller than that of all other types of ''Hapalomys''. The molar also has smaller labial nodules than all species except ''H. angustidens'' and differs from all species except ''H. angustidens'' in the absence of the posterolabial cingulum.
References
Fossil taxa described in 1993
Prehistoric rodents
gracilis
{{Rodent-stub