Diplacodon

Diplacodon
Head reconstruction of Diplacodon
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Perissodactyla
Family:	† Brontotheriidae
Genus:	† Diplacodon Marsh, 1875
Species
D. elatus (Marsh, 1875)

Diplacodon (Greek: "double" (diplos), "point" (aki), "teeth" (odontes) ^[1] ) is a genus of prehistoric odd-toed ungulates in the family Brontotheriidae. One species, D. progressum, was later placed in the novel genus Pseudodiplacodon . ^[2]

Description

It was the size of a rhinoceros, with the last two upper premolars molar-like. ^[3] Compared to later White River brontotherids, Diplacodon had far more simple horns. Bearing developed canines and incisors, some propose that Diplacodon utilized their canines as weapons. The anterior teeth are adapted for browsing and cropping, contrasting later brontotherids who utilized their tongue and lips to grasp vegetation. The ulna is stout and the lower leg bones are not coossified. The forefoot bears 4 toes while the hind feet bear 3. ^[4]

Diplacodon, and similar early brontotherids like Protitanotherium, are among the best represented of all the Uinta Formation fauna. ^[4] A new species, D. gigan, was described by Matthew C. Mihlbachler in 2011, from the United States. ^[5]

References

1. "Glossary. American Museum of Natural History". Archived from the original on 20 November 2021.
2. Mader, Bryn J. (2000-04-17). "Pseudodiplacodon, a new generic name forDiplacodon progressumPeterson (Mammalia, Perissodactyla, Brontotheriidae)" . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 20 (1): 164–166. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020[0164:pangnf]2.0.co;2. ISSN   0272-4634.
3. Lydekker, Richard (1911). "Titanotheriidae"  . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica . Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 1018–1019.
4. Scott, William Berryman; Scott, William Berryman (1913). A history of land mammals in the Western Hemisphere; illustrated with 32 plates and more than 100 drawings. New York: Macmillan.
5. Matthew C. Mihlbachler (2011). "A new uintan horned brontothere from Wyoming and the evolution of canine size and sexual dimorphism in the Brontotheriidae (Perissodactyla: Mammalia)". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 31 (1): 202–214. doi : 10.1080/02724634.2011.539653.