Dinomyidae

Dinomyidae Temporal range: Early Miocene–Recent PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N
Josephoartigasia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Superfamily:	Chinchilloidea
Family:	Dinomyidae Peters, 1873
Genera
see text

Dinomyidae was once a very speciose group of South American hystricognath rodent, but now contains only a single living species, the Pacarana. The Dinomyidae included among its ranks the largest rodents known to date, the bison-sized Josephoartigasia monesi^[1] and the smaller Josephoartigasia magna.^[2] It is thought that the dinomyids were able to occupy ecological niches associated with large grazing mammals due to the lack of true ungulates in South America until its later connection to North America. The modern pacarana is only modest sized, considerably smaller than the capybara.

The Neoepiblemidae, an entirely extinct family, may actually be part of the Dinomyidae; they are certainly closely related.

Genera

• Family Dinomyidae
  • †Pseudodiodomus incertae sedis
  • †Agnomys incertae sedis
  • Subfamily Eumegamyinae
    • †Doellomys
    • †Gyriabrus
    • †Briaromys
    • †Tetrastylus
    • †Phoberomys
    • †Colpostemma
    • †Orthomys
    • †Eumegamys
    • †Pseudosigmomys
    • †Pentastylodon
    • †Eumegamysops
    • †Telicomys
    • †Perumys
    • †Josephoartigasia^[3]
  • Subfamily Potamarchinae
    • †Scleromys
    • †Olenopsis
    • †Simplimus
    • †Eusigmomys
    • †Potamarchus
  • Subfamily Dinomyinae
    • Dinomys - the Pacarana
    • †Telodontomys

References

1. ^ Rinderknecht, Andrés; R. Ernesto Blanco (2008-01-15). "The largest fossil rodent" (pdf). Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences 275 (1637): 923–8. doi:10.1098/rspb.2007.1645. PMC 2599941. PMID 18198140. http://journals.royalsociety.org/content/34j867846u164624/fulltext.pdf. Retrieved 2008-01-16. Lay summary. "Josephoartigasia monesi sp. nov. (family: Dinomyidae; Rodentia: Hystricognathi: Caviomorpha)" 
2. ^ Francis, J.C and A. Mones (1966). "Artigasia magna n. g., n. sp. (Eumegamyinae), un roedor gigantesco de la época Pliocena Superior de las Barrancas de San Gregorio, Departamento de San José, República Oriental del Uruguay". Kraglievana 3: 89–100. 
3. ^ Mones, A. (2007). "Josephoartigasia, Nuevo nombre para Artigasia Francis & Mones, 1966 (Rodentia, Dinomyidae), non Artigasia Christie, 1934 (Nematoda, Thelastomatidae)". Comun. Paleontol. Mus. Hist. Nat. Montevideo 36: 213–214. 

• McKenna, Malcolm C., and Bell, Susan K. (1997). Classification of Mammals Above the Species Level. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 631 pp.. ISBN 0-231-11013-8.