Hypercoryphodon

Hie-per-co-re-foe-don.
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Maeve Foster

Paleoclimatologist

Maeve Foster explores the Earth's climatic past to understand the forces that shaped life on our planet. Her research into ancient climate events provides valuable context for current environmental challenges.

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Name

Hypercoryphodon ‭(‬Above Coryohodon/peaked tooth‭)‬.

Phonetic

Hie-per-co-re-foe-don.

Named By

Henry Fairfield Osborn‭ & ‬Walter W.‭ ‬Granger‭ ‬-‭ ‬1932.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Pantodonta.

Diet

Herbivore.

Species

H.‭ ‬thomsoni‭

Size

Uncertain.

Known locations

Mongolia.

Time Period

Priabonian of the Eocene.

Fossil representation

Skull.

In Depth

       Described from a skull,‭ ‬Hypercoryphodon was a pantodont mammal that is considered to be a potential descendent of the better represented Coryphodon.‭ ‬As such Hypercoryphodon is also envisioned to be a quadrupedal hippopotamus-like herbivore that may have been able to adapt its feeding to suit different situations.‭ ‬Other than this Hypercoryphodon is thought to have possibly lived in wetland to forest ecosystems that it might have shared with other herbivores such as dinoceratans like Gobiatherium.

       Hypercoryphodon was named in‭ ‬1932‭ ‬by Walter Granger and Henry Osborn,‭ ‬the latter of which named some of the most famous prehistoric animals of all time including Tyrannosaurus,‭ ‬Velociraptor and Oviraptor amongst many others.

Further Reading

Further reading- Coryphodonts and uintatheres from the Mongolian expedition of 1930. – American Museum Novitates 552:1-16. – H. F. Osborn & W. Granger – 1932.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT