- Desmostylus
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Desmostylus
Temporal range: Oligocene–Miocene
Desmostylus Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: †Desmostylia Family: †Desmostylidae Genus: †Desmostylus Species: †D. hesperus Binomial name Desmostylus hesperus
Marsh, 1888Desmostylus is a monotypic extinct genus of herbivorous mammal of the family Desmostylidae living from the Chattian stage of the Late Oligocene subepoch through the Late Miocene subepoch (28.4 mya—7.250 Mya) and in existence for approximately 21.2 million years.[1]
Contents
Morphology
Illustration of a tooth by Marsh
Desmostylus was a large, hippopotamus-like creature of about 1.8 metres (6 ft) long which weighed about 200 kilograms (440 lb). It had a short tail and powerful legs with four hooves. Both the creature's jaws were elongated and sported forward-facing tusks, which were elongated canines and incisors.[2]
Most likely amphibious, Desmostylus is thought to have lived in shallow water in coastal regions. Some paleontologists[who?] have argued it may have fed on seaweed during low tide. However, recent isotope work indicates that Demostylus more likely lived in freshwater or estuary ecosystems and ate aquatic freshwater plants. [3]
Species
D. hesperus (syn. D. japonicus, D. watasei, D. cymatias, D. californicus, D. mirabilis, D. minor, Desmostylella typica)
Sister genera
Behemotops, Cornwallius, Kronokotherium, Paleoparadoxia, Vanderhoofius
Fossil distribution
Fossils have been discovered from along the northern Pacific Rim from Baja, Mexico northward along the coast of California, Oregon, Washington and west to Sakhalin Island, Hokkaido, Japan, and south to the Shimane Prefecture, Japan.[4]
An artist's rendering of Desmostylus hesperus.References
- ^ http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no=36958&is_real_user=1 Paleobiology Database: Desmostylus Basic info]
- ^ Palmer, D., ed (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 228. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
- ^ Clementz, Mark T., Hoppe, Kathryn A., and Koch, Paul L. 2003. "A paleoecological paradox: the habitat and dietary preferences of the extinct tethythere Desmostylus, inferred from stable isotope analysis." Paleobiology, 29: 506-519.
- ^ http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no=36958&is_real_user=1 Paleobiology Database: Desmostylus map]
- Barry Cox, Colin Harrison, R.J.G. Savage, and Brian Gardiner. (1999): The Simon & Schuster Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Creatures: A Visual Who's Who of Prehistoric Life. Simon & Schuster.
See also
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