Megalohyrax

Megalohyrax Temporal range: Lower Oligocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Hyracoidea
Family:	†Pliohyracidae
Subfamily:	† Saghatheriinae
Genus:	† Megalohyrax Andrews, 1903
Species:	M. lavocati
Binomial name
Megalohyrax eocaenus Andrews, 1903
Synonyms
MixohyraxSchlosser, 1910

Megalohyrax is an extinct hyrax-grouped genus of herbivorous mammal that lived during the Oligocene, about 33-30 million years ago. Its fossils have been found in Africa and in Asia Minor. ^[1]

Description

This animal was very different from the current hyraxes and much larger, generally reaching the size of a tapir ^{[2] [3]} and sometimes exceeding 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) in length. The legs were strong and the body very massive. The skull was long and low, unlike that of today's hyraxes, and could reach 391 mm (15.4 in) in length. ^[4] Length of upper premolars and molars is 75 mm (3.0 in) and 86 mm (3.4 in), respectively. ^[5] The dental formula of Megalohyrax was composed of three incisors, one canine, four premolars and three molars. It likely had an eustachian sac, a pouch-like structure found in some mammals that is connected to the eustachian tube. ^[4]

Classification and habitats

It was first described by Andrews in 1903. The type species is Megalohyrax eocaenus, was found in the El Fayum area in Egypt. Other fossils attributed to this kind have been found in Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia.

See also

• Titanohyrax
• Gigantohyrax
• Largest prehistoric animals

References

1. "Fossilworks: Megalohyrax". fossilworks.org. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
2. Donald R. Prothero; Robert M. Schoch (1989). The Evolution of Perissodactyls. Oxford University Press. p. 65. ISBN   978-0-19-506039-3 . Retrieved 20 September 2022.
3. Kenneth D. Rose (September 26, 2006). The Beginning of the Age of Mammals. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 260. ISBN   978-0-8018-8472-6 . Retrieved 20 September 2022.
4. J. G. M. Thewissen; E. L. Simons (2001). "Skull of Megalohyrax eocaenus (Hyracoidea, Mammalia) from the Oligocene of Egypt". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 21 (1): 98–106. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2001)021[0098:SOMEHM]2.0.CO;2. JSTOR   4524175. S2CID   86063305.
5. Proceedings of the General Meetings for Scientific Business of the Zoological Society of London. Zoological Society of London. 1921. p. 840. Retrieved 20 September 2022.

• Andrews, CW 1903. "Notes on an expedition to the Fayum, Egypt, with descriptions of some new mammals". Geological Magazine 4: 337–343.
• CW Andrews. 1906. A Descriptive Catalogue of the Tertiary Vertebrata of Fayum, Egypt 1–324
• J. Sudre. 1979. "Nouveaux MAMMIFERES eocenes du Sahara occidental". Palaeovertebrata 9 (3): 83–115
• DT Rasmussen and EL Simons. 1988. "New Oligocene hyracoids from Egypt". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 8 (1): 67–83
• JGM Thewissen, Simons EL (2001) "Skull of Megalohyrax eocaenus (Hyracoidea, Mammalia) from the Oligocene of Egypt". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 21: 98–106.
• J. Kappelman, DT Rasmussen, WJ Sanders, M. Feseha, T. Bown, P. Copeland, J. Crabaugh, J. Fleagle, M. Glantz, A. Gordon, B. Jacobs, M. Maga, K. Muldoon, A. Pan, L. Pyne, B. Richmond, T. Ryan, ER Seiffert, S. Sen, L. Todd, MC Wiemann and A. Winkler. 2003. "Oligocene mammals from Ethiopia and faunal exchange between Afro-Arabia and Eurasia". Nature 426: 549–552