''Palaeotragus'' ("ancient goat") is a genus of very large, primitive,

okapi The okapi (; ''Okapia johnstoni''), also known as the forest giraffe, Congolese giraffe, or zebra giraffe, is an artiodactyl mammal that is endemic to the northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo in central Africa. It is the only species ...

-like

giraffid The Giraffidae are a family of ruminant artiodactyl mammals that share a common ancestor with deer and bovids. This family, once a diverse group spread throughout Eurasia and Africa, presently comprises only two extant genera, the giraffe (one or ...

s from the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), 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 mea ...

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 ...

and

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 ...

. ''Palaeotragus primaevus'' is the older species, being found in early to mid-Miocene strata, while ''P. germaini'' is found in Late Miocene strata. ''P. primaevus'' is distinguished from ''P. germaini'' by the lack of

ossicone Ossicones are columnar or conical skin-covered bone structures on the heads of giraffes, male okapi, and some of their extinct relatives. Ossicones are distinguished from the superficially similar structures of horns and antlers by their uniqu ...

s. It was also the smaller species, being a little under at the shoulders. ''P. germaini'' had a pair of ossicones, and in life, it would have resembled either a short-necked, tall giraffe, or a gargantuan okapi.

Species

The genus consists of the following species: * '' Palaeotragus decipiens'' * '' Palaeotragus germaini'' * '' Palaeotragus microdon'' * '' Palaeotragus primaevus'' * '' Palaeotragus quadricornis'' * '' Palaeotragus. rouenii''

References

External links

* Miocene mammals of Europe Prehistoric giraffes Miocene even-toed ungulates Miocene genus extinctions Prehistoric even-toed ungulate genera Miocene mammals of Asia Miocene mammals of Africa Fossil taxa described in 1861 {{Paleo-eventoedungulate-stub

Species

References

Further reading

External links