Peradectidae

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Peradectidae
Temporal range: Paleocene–Miocene
Peradectes sp 1.jpg
Fossil of Peradectes
Mimoperadectes.jpg
Life restoration of Mimoperadectes
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Clade: Metatheria
Family: Peradectidae
Crochet, 1979
Genera

Peradectidae is a family of small metatherian mammals, spanning from the Paleocene (or possibly Latest Cretaceous) to the Miocene. Fossils are known from the Northern Hemisphere, including Europe, Asia and North America. The monophyly of the group has been questioned, with some authors suggesting that Peradectes should be the only genus placed in the family. [1] The morphology of peradectids has been considered to be similar to opossums, [2] with at least some exhibiting morphology suggesting a tree dwelling arboreal/scansorial lifestyle. [3] Their diet is suggested to have included insects and fruit. [4]

Phylogenetic analysis suggest that they are less closely related to modern marsupials than herpetotheriids are. [5]

Cladogram after: [2]

Metatheria

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Herpetotherium is an extinct genus of metatherian mammal, belonging to the possibly paraphyletic family Herpetotheriidae. Native to North America from the Eocene to Early Miocene, fossils have been found in California, Oregon, Texas, Florida, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, and Saskatchewan. The oldest species, H. knighti, is dated to around 50.3 mya, and the most recent, an unnamed species, may be as recent as 15.97 mya. A morphological analysis of marsupials and basal metatherians conducted in 2007 found Herpetotherium to be the sister group to extant marsupials. It is the youngest known metatherian from North America until the migration of the Virginia opossum from South America within the last 2 million years.

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<i>Peradectes</i>

Peradectes is an extinct genus of small metatherian mammals known from the latest Cretaceous to Eocene of North and South America and Europe. The first discovered fossil of P. elegans, was one of 15 Peradectes specimens described in 1921 from the Mason pocket fossil beds in Colorado. The monophyly of the genus has been questioned.

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References

  1. Williamson, Thomas E.; Brusatte, Stephen L.; Carr, Thomas D.; Weil, Anne; Standhardt, Barbara R. (2012-12-01). "The phylogeny and evolution of Cretaceous–Palaeogene metatherians: cladistic analysis and description of new early Palaeocene specimens from the Nacimiento Formation, New Mexico". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 10 (4): 625–651. Bibcode:2012JSPal..10..625W. doi:10.1080/14772019.2011.631592. ISSN   1477-2019.
  2. 1 2 Ladevèze, Sandrine; Selva, Charlène; de Muizon, Christian (2020-09-01). "What are "opossum-like" fossils? The phylogeny of herpetotheriid and peradectid metatherians, based on new features from the petrosal anatomy". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 18 (17): 1463–1479. Bibcode:2020JSPal..18.1463L. doi:10.1080/14772019.2020.1772387. ISSN   1477-2019.
  3. Horovitz, Inés; Martin, Thomas; Bloch, Jonathan; Ladevèze, Sandrine; Kurz, Cornelia; Sánchez-Villagra, Marcelo R. (2009-12-16). DeSalle, Robert (ed.). "Cranial Anatomy of the Earliest Marsupials and the Origin of Opossums". PLOS ONE. 4 (12): e8278. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0008278 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   2789412 . PMID   20016823.
  4. Crespo, Vicente D.; Goin, Francisco J.; Pickford, Martin (2022-06-03). "The last African metatherian". Fossil Record. 25 (1): 173–186. doi: 10.3897/fr.25.80706 . ISSN   2193-0074.
  5. de Muizon, Christian; Ladevèze, Sandrine (2022-06-30). "New material of Incadelphys antiquus (Pucadelphyda, Metatheria, Mammalia) from the early Palaeocene of Bolivia reveals phylogenetic affinities with enigmatic North and South American metatherians". Geodiversitas. 44 (22). doi:10.5252/geodiversitas2022v44a22. ISSN   1280-9659.