Trichechidae is a family of
sirenians
The Sirenia (), commonly referred to as sea-cows or sirenians, are an order (biology), order of fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that inhabit swamps, rivers, estuaries, marine wetlands, and coastal marine waters. The Sirenia currently compris ...
that includes all living
manatees
Manatees (family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing three of the four living species ...
and several extinct genera.
Systematics
TRICHECHIDAE
*Miosireninae
[M. Voss. 2014. On the invalidity of Halitherium schinzii Kaup, 1838 (Mammalia, Sirenia), with comments on systematic consequences. Zoosystematics and Evolution 90(1):87-93]
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Anomotherium
''Anomotherium'' is an extinct genus of manatee that lived in the shallow seas of what is now northern Germany. Its closest relative is ''Miosiren''. Fossils of the genus have been found in the Bohlen and Doberg Formations of Germany.
Ecology
L ...
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***''Anomotherium langewieschei''
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Miosiren
''Miosiren'' is an extinct genus of manatee from the Early Miocene of southeastern England (Suffolk) and Antwerp, Belgium.
Two species are recognized, ''M. canhami'' and ''M. kocki''.
Phylogeny
A 2014 cladistic analysis of extinct sirenians rec ...
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***''Miosiren canhami''
***''Miosiren kocki''
*Trichechinae
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Trichechus
Manatees (family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing three of the four living species ...
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***''Trichechus inunguis'' -
Amazonian Manatee
The Amazonian manatee (''Trichechus inunguis'') is a species of manatee that lives in the Amazon Basin in Brazil, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. It has thin, wrinkled brownish or gray colored skin, with fine hairs scattered over its body and a whit ...
***''Trichechus manatus'' -
West Indian Manatee
The West Indian manatee (''Trichechus manatus''), also known as the North American manatee, is a large, aquatic mammal native to warm coastal areas of the Caribbean, from the eastern US to northern Brazil. Living alone or in herds, it feeds on un ...
***''Trichechus senegalensis'' -
African Manatee
The African manatee (''Trichechus senegalensis''), also known as the West African manatee, is a species of manatee that inhabits much of the western region of Africa – from Senegal to Angola. It is the only manatee species to be found in the ...
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Trichechus hesperamazonicus
''Trichechus hesperamazonicus'', the western Amazonian manatee, is an extinct species of manatee that lived about 40 thousand years ago in the Madeira River, in the Brazilian state of Rondonia. It is known from this single locality, with possibl ...
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Potamosiren
''Potamosiren'' is an extinct genus of manatee from the Middle Miocene (Laventan) Honda Group of Colombia.
Phylogeny
A 2014 cladistic analysis of extinct sirenians recovers ''Potamosiren'' as a close relative of modern manatees.M. Voss. 2014. ...
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***''Potamosiren magdalensis''
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Ribodon
''Ribodon'' is an extinct genus of manatee that lived around South America (Ituzaingó Formation, then described as Entrerriana Formation, Argentina, Solimões Formation, Brazil and Urumaco Formation, Urumaco, Venezuela) during the Tortonian (May ...
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***''Ribodon limbatus''
References
Mammal families
Taxa named by Theodore Gill
Sirenians
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