| Epoicotheriidae | |
|---|---|
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| Artist reconstruction of Xenocranium pileorivale compared to the size of a human hand. | |
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| skull of Pentapassalus pearcei | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | † Palaeanodonta |
| Family: | † Epoicotheriidae Simpson, 1927 [1] |
| Type genus | |
| † Epoicotherium Simpson, 1927 | |
| Genera [2] | |
[see classification] | |
Epoicotheriidae ("strange beasts") is an extinct paraphyletic family of insectivorous placental mammals within extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America, Asia and Europe from the middle Paleocene to early Oligocene. [2] Epoicotheriids were fossorial mammals. Late Eocene/early Oligocene genera were highly specialized animals that were convergent with the talpids, golden moles and marsupial mole in the structure of their skulls and forelimbs, and would have had a similar lifestyle as subterranean burrowers. [3] They are considered among the most specialized animals that have ever evolved for rapid digging with the front claws. Some genera (such as Xenocranium) were remarkably convergent with modern golden moles, using a modified snout as a shovel to "swim" through shallow soil, and digging burrows through deeper or harder soils with the claws. They had poor vision, and many may have been functionally blind. Hearing was modified for low frequency sound reception, which would have allowed them to detect moving prey and the footfalls or digging activity of potential predators. [4]
