Amphilemuridae

Amphilemuridae Temporal range: Eocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Pholidocercus hassiacus fossil at Museum of Paleontology, Tübingen
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Eulipotyphla
Family:	† Amphilemuridae Hill, 1953
Synonyms [1]
Dormaaliidae Quinet 1964

The Amphilemuridae are a family of extinct mammals belonging to the order Eulipotyphla, from the Eocene of Europe and North America.

Description

Amphilemurids were generally small in size and may have resembled moonrats in life. Some species had spines like those of hedgehogs, while others were almost free of spines or had bristly coats. Most species are known only from teeth.

Classification

The family Amphilemuridae was first described in 1953 by Hill, and was included in the order Insectivora, which later proved to be polyphyletic. Currently the amphilemurids are considered basal members of the order Eulipotyphla, although Hooker and Russell (2012) considered them to belong to the order Macroscelidea. ^[2]

Taxonomy

Family †AmphilemuridaeHill, 1953

• Subfamily †Placentidentinae D. E. Russell et al., 1973
  • † Placentidens Russell & Savage 1973
    • †Placentidens lotusRussell & Savage 1973
• Subfamily †Amphilemurinae Hill, 1953
  • † Macrocranion Weitzel, 1949
    • †Macrocranion junneiSmith, Bloch, Strait & Gingerich, 2002
    • †Macrocranion nitensMatthew, 1918
    • †Macrocranion robinsoniKrishtalka & Setoguchi, 1977
    • †Macrocranion vandebroekiQuinet, 1964
    • †Macrocranion germonpreaeSmith, 1997
    • †Macrocranion tenerumTobien, 1962
    • †Macrocranion tupaiodonWeitzel, 1949
    • †Macrocranion huerzeleriMaitre, Escarguel & Sigé, 2006
    • †Macrocranion storchiMaitre, Escarguel & Sigé, 2006
    • †Macrocranion sudreiMaitre, Escarguel & Sigé, 2006
  • † Amphilemur Heller 1935
    • †Amphilemur eocaenicusHeller, 1935
    • †Amphilemur peyeriHürzeler, 1946
    • †Amphilemur oltinusMaitre, Escarguel & Sigé, 2006
  • † Pholidocercus von Koenigswald & Storch, 1983
    • †Pholidocercus hassiacusvon Koenigswald & Storch, 1983
  • † Gesneropithex Hürzeler 1946
    • †Gesneropithex figularisHürzeler, 1946
    • †Gesneropithex grisollensisNorris & Harrison, 1998
  • † Alsaticopithecus Hürzeler 1947
    • †Alsaticopithecus leemaniHürzeler 1947
  • † Echinolestes Maitre, Escarguel & Sigé, 2006
    • †Echinolestes quercyiMaitre, Escarguel e Sigé, 2006

Bibliography

• Maitre, Élodie; Escarguel, Gilles; Sigé, Bernard (2006). "Amphilemuridae (Lipotyphla, Mammalia) éocènes d'Europe occidentale : Nouvelles données taxonomiques". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 5 (6): 813–820. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2006.01.005.
• Dunn, Rachel H.; Rasmussen, D. Tab (2009). "Skeletal Morphology of a New Genus of Eocene Insectivore (Mammalia, Erinaceomorpha) from Utah". Journal of Mammalogy. 90 (2): 321–331. doi: 10.1644/08-MAMM-A-084.1 . S2CID   86159414.

References

1. "Fossilworks: Amphilemuridae".
2. Hooker, Jerry J.; Russell, Donald E. (2012). "Early Palaeogene Louisinidae (Macroscelidea, Mammalia), their relationships and north European diversity". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 164 (4): 856–936. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2011.00787.x.