In paleontology, a Lazarus taxon is a taxon that disappears for one or more periods from the fossil record, only to appear again later. Likewise in conservation biology and ecology, it can refer to species or populations that were thought to be extinct, and are rediscovered. The term Lazarus taxon was coined by Karl W. Flessa & David Jablonski in 1983 and was then expanded by Jablonski in 1986. Paul Wignall and Michael Benton defined Lazarus taxa as, "At times of biotic crisis many taxa go extinct, but others only temporarily disappeared from the fossil record, often for intervals measured in millions of years, before reappearing unchanged". Earlier work also supports the concept though without using the name Lazarus taxon, like work by Christopher R. C. Paul.
The Giant Rat of Sumatra is a fictional giant rat, first mentioned by Arthur Conan Doyle in "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire". As part of the tale, the protagonist, Sherlock Holmes, declares that there is a "story" connected with this rat, presumably a detective case he has handled. The name of the rat and its implied unpublished history were later used in works by many other writers.
Sauroposeidon is a genus of sauropod dinosaur known from several incomplete specimens including a bone bed and fossilized trackways that have been found in the U.S. states of Oklahoma, Wyoming, and Texas.
The Muridae, or murids, are the largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 1,383 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia.
Heteromyidae is a family of rodents consisting of kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice and spiny pocket mice. Most heteromyids live in complex burrows within the deserts and grasslands of western North America, though species within the genus Heteromys are also found in forests and their range extends down as far as northern South America. They feed mostly on seeds and other plant parts, which they carry in their fur-lined cheek pouches to their burrows.
Papagomys is a genus of very large rats in the tribe Rattini of the subfamily Murinae. It contains two species, which are known only from the Indonesian island of Flores:
The Old World rats and mice, part of the subfamily Murinae in the family Muridae, comprise at least 519 species. Members of this subfamily are called murines. In terms of species richness, this subfamily is larger than all mammal families except the Cricetidae and Muridae, and is larger than all mammal orders except the bats and the remainder of the rodents.
The Laotian rock rat or kha-nyou, sometimes called the "rat-squirrel", is a species of rodent found in the Khammouan region of Laos. The species was first described in a 2005 article by Paulina Jenkins and coauthors, who considered the animal to be so distinct from all living rodents, they placed it in a new family, Laonastidae. It is in the monotypic genus Laonastes.
The Gambian pouched rat, also commonly known as the African giant pouched rat, is a species of nocturnal pouched rat of the giant pouched rat genus Cricetomys, in the family Nesomyidae. It is among the largest muroids in the world, growing to about 0.9 m (3 ft) long, including the tail, which makes up half of its total length. It is widespread in Sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Senegal to Kenya and from Angola to Mozambique from sea level to 2,000 m (6,600 ft).
Mallomys is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae. The name of the genus is formed from the Greek μαλλός, mallos, wool, and μῦς, mus, mouse/rat. These very large rats weigh between 0.95 and 2 kilograms and are native to highlands in New Guinea. Little is known about their behavior, but they are believed to feed on leaves, grasses and other plant material.
Leptoptilos robustus is an extinct species of large-bodied stork belonging to the genus Leptoptilos that lived on the island of Flores in Indonesia during the Pleistocene epoch. It stood at about 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) tall and weighed up to an estimated 16 kilograms (35 lb). The majority of the discoveries are concentrated in Liang Bua cave located slightly north of Ruteng in the East Nusa Tenggara province.
The largest animal ever to have lived is thought to be the blue whale. The maximum recorded weight was 190 tonnes for a specimen measuring 27.6 metres (91 ft), whereas longer ones, up to 33.6 metres (110 ft), have been recorded but not weighed. It is estimated however that this individual could have a mass of 250 tonnes. The title of the longest non-colonial animal is probably owned by Lion's mane jellyfish.
Paralititan was a giant titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur genus discovered in coastal deposits in the Upper Cretaceous Bahariya Formation of Egypt. It lived between 99.6 and 93.5 million years ago.
Kairuku grebneffi is an extinct species of giant penguin. It is among the tallest and heaviest penguins attested to, weighing 50% more than modern emperor penguins. The species is marked by a slender body and long, slender bill. K. grebneffi lived in what is now New Zealand during the late Oligocene, going extinct around 25 million years ago. Bones of the species were first discovered in 1977, but it was not classified as a distinct species until 2012.
Changyuraptor is a genus of "four-winged", predatory dinosaurs. It is known from a single fossil specimen representing the species Changyuraptor yangi, which was discovered from Early Cretaceous deposits in Liaoning Province, China. C. yangi belongs to the group of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs called the Microraptoria.
Heracles inexpectatus is a giant fossil parrot species from New Zealand, assigned to a monotypic genus Heracles, that lived during the early Miocene approximately 16 to 19 million years ago. The species was described from fossils discovered in 2008 at Saint Bathans, Otago, New Zealand. It is believed that the species stood up to 1 m tall and weighed approximately 7 kg (15 lb). Initial analysis suggests it is from the superfamily Strigopoidea, which consists of three confirmed genera of parrots: Nestor, Strigops (kakapo) and the fossil Nelepsittacus. It may have been the ancestor of the kakapo.
The Timor giant rat is an extinct species of giant rat described in 2010. It is known only from sub-fossils that were found on Timor Island, Indonesia. It is related to the murines of New Guinea. Archaeological research on East Timor has revealed the bones of rats weighing up to 6 kilograms when adult.
Arvicanthini is a tribe of muroid rodents in the subfamily Murinae. Almost all recent species in this tribe are or were found in Africa aside from one species, the Indian bush rat, which is found in South Asia and Iran. However, some fossil Golunda species from India and the genus Parapelomys are thought to have also occurred outside Africa, and one species in the fossil genus Saidomys may have also occurred in Afghanistan.
