| Taeniolabis Temporal range: Danian, | |
|---|---|
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| Taeniolabis taoensis | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | † Multituberculata |
| Family: | † Taeniolabididae |
| Genus: | † Taeniolabis Cope, 1882 |
| Type species | |
| Taeniolabis taoensis Cope, 1882 | |
| Other species | |
Taeniolabis ("banded incisor") [2] is a genus of extinct multituberculate mammal from the Paleocene of North America.
Taeniolabis is a member of the Taeniolabidoidea, a superfamily of multituberculates that are known for their highly derived teeth, and a short wide snout with a blocky head. [3] The teeth modifications were likely an adaptation for herbivory that may have resulted from rapid diversification of angiosperms at the very end of the Cretaceous, which would thus have created opportunities for novel specialization in herbivores. [4] T. taoensis possessed an elongate, gently curved cochlear canal and an enlarged vestibule. [5] It is the largest known multituberculate, as well as the largest allotherian mammal, [6] [7] with T. taoensis weighing up to 34 kilograms (75 lb). [8] Species under this genus have been known under other names. [9] Taeniolabis taoensis is found frequently enough and in a very limited time range that it can be used as an index fossil for the Puercan faunal stage within Danian aged fossil deposits. [10] [11]
It is within the suborder of Cimolodonta and is a member of the superfamily Taeniolabidoidea. The genus was named by Edward Drinker Cope in 1882. [12] Species have also been placed with the genera Catopsalis and Polymastodon.
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