Palaeanodonta

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Palaeanodonta
Temporal range: 62.22–30.9  Ma
O
S
D
C
P
T
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K
Pg
N
Middle Paleocene – Early Oligocene
Palaeanodonta.jpg
From top to bottom: Ernanodon antelios, Xenocranium pileorivale and Metacheiromys marshi
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Clade: Pholidotamorpha
Order: Palaeanodonta
Matthew, 1918 [1]
Families and genera
Synonyms
list of synonyms:
  • Ernodonta (Ding, 1987)
  • Ernanodonta (Ding, 1987)
  • Palaeanodontiformes (Kinman, 1994) [2]
  • Palaenodonta (Rose, 2008) [3]
  • Palaenodontina (Pearse, 1936) [4]

Palaeanodonta ("ancient toothless animals") is an extinct clade of stem-pangolins. They were insectivorous (myrmecophagous), possibly fossorial, and lived from the middle Paleocene to early Oligocene in North America, Europe and Asia. [3] [5] [6] While the taxonomic grouping of Palaeanodonta has been debated, [7] it is widely thought that they are a sister group to pangolins. [8] [9] [5] [10]

Contents

Anatomy

Skull

Palaeanodonts generally have low and caudally-broad skulls, with notable lambdoid crests and inflated bullae and squamosals. [3]

Teeth

Despite the name of the group and contrary to their pangolin relatives, palaeanodonts are known to have had teeth. [11] [3] [10] Early palaeanodonts retained minimal tribosphenic post-canines while later species had peglike or otherwise reduced molar crowns. [11] [3] [10] Many also had large, characteristic cuspids. [11] [10]

Classification and phylogeny

Traditional classification

Revised classification

Phylogenetic tree

The phylogenetic relationships of order Palaeanodonta are shown in the following cladogram: [3] [5] [6]

  Ferae  
Epoicotherium/Xenocranium clade

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Manis</i> Genus of mammals

Manis ("spirit") is a genus of South Asian and East Asian pangolins, the Asiatic pangolins, from subfamily Maninae, within family Manidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manidae</span> Family of pangolins

Manidae ("spirits") is the only extant family of pangolins from superfamily Manoidea. This family comprises three genera, as well as extinct Fayum pangolin.

<i>Eomanis</i> Extinct genus of mammals

Eomanis is the earliest known true pangolin from extinct family Eomanidae within suborder Eupholidota. It lived during the Eocene in Europe. Eomanis fossils found in the Messel Pit in Germany are very similar in size and anatomy to living pangolins of the genus Manis, indicating that pangolins have remained largely unchanged in morphology and behavior for 50 million years. However, unlike modern pangolins, its tail and legs did not bear scales. According to the stomach contents of the excellently preserved Messel specimens, Eomanis’ diet consisted of both insects and plants.

<i>Metacheiromys</i> Extinct genus of mammal

Metacheiromys is an extinct genus of placental mammals from extinct paraphyletic subfamily Metacheiromyinae within extinct paraphyletic family Metacheiromyidae in extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America from the early to middle Eocene.

<i>Eurotamandua</i> Extinct genus of pangolins

Eurotamandua is an extinct genus of mammal from extinct family Eurotamanduidae that lived during the middle Eocene.

<i>Necromanis</i> Extinct genus of mammals

Necromanis is an extinct genus of pangolin from superfamily Manoidea. It lived from the middle Oligocene to middle Miocene in Europe. It was originally placed within family Manidae, but was eventually removed from it as more fossil pholidotids from outside that family were found and studied more extensively. Currently, Necromanis is placed as incertae sedis within the pholidotid superfamily Manoidea, together with the families Manidae and Patriomanidae.

<i>Ernanodon</i> Extinct genus of mammal

Ernanodon is an extinct genus of placental mammal from extinct family Ernanodontidae within extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived from the middle to late Paleocene in China and Mongolia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epoicotheriidae</span> Extinct family of mammals

Epoicotheriidae is an extinct paraphyletic family of insectivorous placental mammals within extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America, Asia and Europe from the late Paleocene to early Oligocene. 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.

Escavadodon is an extinct genus of pangolin-like myrmecophagous placental mammals of extinct monotypic family Escavadodontidae within extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America during the middle Paleocene. It contains a single species, Escavadodon zygus, recovered from the Nacimiento Formation of New Mexico.

<i>Phataginus</i> Genus of mammals

African tree pangolin (Phataginus) is a genus of African pangolins from subfamily small African pangolins (Phatagininae), within family Manidae. Its members are the more arboreal of the African pangolins.

<i>Smutsia</i> Genus of mammals

African ground pangolin is a genus of pangolins from subfamily Smutsiinae within family Manidae. It was formerly considered a subgenus of genus Manis. Its members are the more terrestrial of the African pangolins. In past, this genus was also present in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patriomanidae</span> Extinct family of pangolins

Patriomanidae is an extinct family of pangolins from superfamily Manoidea that includes two extinct genera Patriomanis and Cryptomanis. Their fossils are found in Asia and North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernanodontidae</span> Extinct family of mammals

Ernanodontidae is an extinct family of myrmecophagous placental mammals within extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in Asia from the middle to late Paleocene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pholidotamorpha</span> Clade of mammals

Pholidotamorpha is a clade of placental mammals from mirorder Ferae that includes the order Pholidota and extinct order Palaeanodonta.

<i>Euromanis</i> Genus of mammals

Euromanis is one of the earliest known pangolin genera. It lived during the middle Eocene in Europe. Euromanis fossils found in the Messel Pit in Germany. Unlike modern pangolins, it did not bear scales on its body.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eupholidota</span> Suborder of pangolins

Eupholidota is a suborder of pangolins that includes two superfamilies: extant Manoidea and extinct Eomanoidea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manoidea</span> Superfamily of pangolins

Manoidea ("spirits") is a superfamily of pangolins from suborder Eupholidota that includes extant family Manidae, extinct family Patriomanidae and extinct genus Necromanis.

<i>Xenocranium</i> Genus of prehistoric burrowing mammals

Xenocranium is an extinct monotypic genus of placental mammal from extinct paraphyletic subfamily Epoicotheriinae within extinct paraphyletic family Epoicotheriidae in extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America during the late Eocene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metacheiromyidae</span> Extinct family of mammals

Metacheiromyidae is an extinct paraphyletic family of myrmecophagous placental mammals within extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America and Europe from the late Paleocene to middle Eocene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epoicotheriinae</span> Extinct subfamily of mammals

Epoicotheriinae is an extinct paraphyletic subfamily of insectivorous placental mammals within extinct paraphyletic family Epoicotheriidae in extinct order Palaeanodonta, that lived in North America and Europe from the early Eocene to early Oligocene. Epoicotheriins 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.

References

  1. W. D. Matthew (1918.) "A revision of the Lower Eocene Wasatch and Wind River faunas. Part V. Insectivora (Continued), Glires, Edentata." Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 38(16):429-483
  2. Kenneth E. Kinman (1994.) "The Kinman system: toward a stable cladisto-eclectic classification of organisms: living and extinct, 48 phyla, 269 classes, 1,719 orders"
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Rose, K. D. (2008). "9. Palaeanodonta and Pholidota". In Janis, C. M.; Gunnell, G. F.; Uhen, M. D. (eds.). Evolution of Tertiary Mammals of North America. Cambridge University Press. pp. 135–146. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511541438.010.
  4. Arthur Sperry Pearse (1936.) "Zoological names. A list of phyla, classes, and orders, prepared for section F, American Association for the Advancement of Science" American Association for the Advancement of Science
  5. 1 2 3 Gaudin, T. J.; Emry, R. J.; Wible, J. R. (2009). "The Phylogeny of Living and Extinct Pangolins (Mammalia, Pholidota) and Associated Taxa: A Morphology Based Analysis". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 16: 235. doi:10.1007/s10914-009-9119-9.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Kondrashov, Peter; Agadjanian, Alexandre K. (2012). "A nearly complete skeleton of Ernanodon (Mammalia, Palaeanodonta) from Mongolia: morphofunctional analysis". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 32 (5): 983–1001. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.694319. ISSN   0272-4634.
  7. Averianov, A. O. & Lopatin, A. V. (2014.) "High-level systematics of placental mammals: Current status of the problem." Biology Bulletin, 41(9), 801–816.
  8. McKenna, M. C.; Bell, S. K. (1997). Classification of Mammals: Above the Species Level. Columbia University Press. pp. 220–221. ISBN   978-0-231-52853-5.
  9. Rose, K. D.; Emry, R. J.; Gaudin, T. J.; Storch, G. (2005). "Xenarthra and Pholidota". In Rose, K. D.; Archibald, J. D. (eds.). The Rise of Placental Mammals. Origins and Relationships of the Major Extant Clades. Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 106–126. ISBN   978-0-8018-8022-3.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Ungar, P. S. (2010). "Cenozoic Mammal Evolution". Mammal Teeth: Origin, Evolution, and Diversity. pp. 110–126. ISBN   978-0-8018-9668-2.
  11. 1 2 3 Rose, K. D.; Lucas, S. G. (2000). "An early Paleocene palaeanodont (Mammalia, ?Pholidota) from New Mexico, and the origin of Palaeanodonta". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 20 (1): 139–156. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020[0139:AEPPMP]2.0.CO;2.