Palaeoryctidae Temporal range: Cretaceous - Middle Eocene Late | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Palaeoryctes jepseni lower jaw fragment | |
![]() | |
Aceroryctes dulcis lower jaw fragment | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Clade: | Eutheria |
Infraclass: | Placentalia (?) |
Order: | † Palaeoryctida Averianov, 2003 [1] |
Family: | † Palaeoryctidae Winge, 1917 [2] |
Type genus | |
† Palaeoryctes Matthew, 1913 | |
Genera | |
[see classification] | |
Synonyms | |
synonyms of family:
|
Palaeoryctidae ("ancient diggers") is an extinct family of non-specialized eutherian mammals from extinct order Palaeoryctida, that lived in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa from the late Cretaceous to the middle Eocene. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
From a near-complete skull of the genus Palaeoryctes found in New Mexico, it is known that palaeoryctids were small, shrew-like insectivores with an elongated snout similar to that of the leptictids. However, in contrast to the latter, little is known about palaeoryctids' postcranial anatomy (the skeleton without the skull). [9] A 2024 study found shared cranial details between palaeoryctids and leptictids, suggesting a possible close relationship, plesiomorphic retentions, or convergent acquisitions. [10] Where the leptictids were short-lived, the palaeoryctids seem to have been ancestors of Eocene species. While their dental morphology still indicate a mostly insectivorous diet, it, to some extent, also relate to Eocene carnivores such as creodonts. [9]
The relationship between this archaic group and other insectivorous mammals is uncertain. [11] [12] Palaeoryctidae was originally assigned to the now-abandoned grouping Insectivora by Sloan and Van Valen (1965), then to clade Proteutheria, [7] and more recently to Eutheria by Scott et al. (2002). [13]
Generally speaking Palaeoryctidae has been used as a wastebasket taxon for many archaic insectivorous mammals. [14]
According to a 2022 study by Bertrand et al., palaeoryctids are identified to be a basal group of placental mammals. [15]
|
Placentalia |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)