In Depth When you translate the full name of Acrophyseter deinodon into English you end up with ‘acute sperm whale terrible teeth’. The genus part of ‘acute sperm whale’ is a reference to the upturned bend in the jaws, suggesting that Acrophyseter may have approached prey from below. The species name deinodon, or ‘terrible teeth’ … Read more
In Depth Salishicetus is a genus of toothed baleen whale that lived during the Oligocene period. Further Reading – Salishicetus meadi, a new aetiocetid from the late Oligocene of Washington State and implications for feeding transitions in early mysticete evolution. - Royal Society Open Science 5(4):172336. - C. M. Peredo & N. D. Pyenson - … Read more
In Depth Ambulocetus is a very important transitional fossil as it displays the link between terrestrial mammals and the early whales. Ambulocetus acquired its name from the idea that it could both swim by undulating its back as well as leave the water and walk on land. However a 2016 study by Ando & Fujiwara … Read more
In Depth Harpagophagus is but one of many ‘bear dog’ genera that lived in Europe during the Oligocene. Further Reading Further reading- Deux nouveaux carnassiers de Phosphorites du Quercy. – Annales de Paleontologie 57:117-127. – L. De Bonis – 1971.
In Depth When described in 2003, Sinodelphys was the oldest confirmed and definitive marsupial mammal. Sinodelphys was very small, only about fifteen centimetres long, and is thought to have lived most of its life either hidden up trees or amongst dense undergrowth well out of reach of predatory dinosaurs that would have been running around … Read more
In Depth Invictokoala is a genus of koala that lived in Australia, for most of the latter half of the Pleistocene. Further Reading - Invictokoala monticola gen. et sp. nov. (Phascolarctidae, Marsupialia), a Pleistocene plesiomorphic koala holdover from Oligocene ancestors. - Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 9(2):327-335. - G. J. Price & S. A. Hocknull - … Read more
In Depth One of the lesser known machairodonts, the placement of Adelphailurus within the machairodontinae has been questioned with speculation that it may be a false sabre-tooth. Adelphailurus also had a pair of second premolar teeth, a primitive feature that harks back to the early days of felid evolution. Although fossil remains of Adelphailurus are … Read more
In Depth Originally named as an extinct species of the extant genus Holochilus, Reigomys was a Pleistocene aged relative of modern day marsh rats that live in South America. Further Reading - A new species of Holochilus (Rodentia: Sigmodontinae) from the Middle Pleistocene of Bolivia and its phylogenetic significance (subscription required). - Journal of Vertebrate … Read more
In Depth Siamoadapis is a genus of small primate that lived in Thailand during the mid Miocene. Further Reading - First middle Miocene sivaladapid primate from Thailand. - Journal of Human Evolution 54 (3): 434–443. - Y. Chaimanee, C. Yamee, P. Tian, O. Chavasseau & J. -J. Jaeger - 2008.
In Depth Aetiocetus is an important transitional form as it displays the early origins of the baleen whales, while still retaining teeth that can be identified as incisors, canines and molars like many other mammals. Later descendants would go on to become exclusive filter feeders like many of the modern great whales that swim our … Read more