''Propalaeotherium'' was an early

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 perissodactyl

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 ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

during the early Eocene. There are currently six recognised species within the genus, with ''P. isselanum'' as the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specime ...

(named by Georges Cuvier in 1824).

Taxonomy

''Propalaeotherium'' was named by

Paul Gervais Paul Gervais full name François Louis Paul Gervais (26 September 1816 – 10 February 1879) was a French palaeontologist and entomologist. Biography Gervais was born in Paris, where he obtained the diplomas of doctor of science and of medicine ...

; its name means "before ''

Palaeotherium ''Palaeotherium'' (Ancient Greek for 'old beast') is an extinct genus of perissodactyl ungulate known from the Mid Eocene to earliest Oligocene of Europe. First described by French naturalist Georges Cuvier in 1804, ''Palaeotherium'' was among ...

''". It was considered a member of

Palaeotheriidae Palaeotheriidae is an extinct family of herbivorous perissodactyl mammals related to equids. They ranged across Europe and Asia from the Eocene through to the early Oligocene 55–33 Ma, existing for approximately . Living in dense forests ...

by Hooker (1986). A 2004 study found it to be an equid instead. A 2016 study lumped the genus back within the

. The species ''P. parvulum'' and ''P. messelensis'' have been alternately assigned to the equid genus '' Eurohippus''.

Description

''Propalaeotherium'' was a small animal, ranging from 30–60 cm at the shoulder (2.9 to 5.9 hands), and weighing just . It looked similar to small

tapirs Tapirs ( ) are large, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Tapiridae. They are similar in shape to a pig, with a short, prehensile nose trunk. Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South and Central America, with one species inhabit ...

. It had no

hooves The hoof (plural: hooves) is the tip of a toe of an ungulate mammal, which is covered and strengthened with a thick and horny keratin covering. Artiodactyls are even-toed ungulates, species whose feet have an even number of digits, yet the rumi ...

, but instead several small nail-like hooflets. The well-preserved Messel fossils showed their

herbivory 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 mouthpart ...

, specifically their preference to eat

berries A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, rasp ...

and leaf matter picked up from the forest floor.

References

External links

BBC Online Science and Nature

{{Taxonbar, from=Q133295 Eocene horses Eocene genus extinctions Eocene mammals of Europe Prehistoric placental genera Eocene mammals of Asia Fossil taxa described in 1849

Taxonomy

Description

See also

References

External links