Megalonyx a.k.a. Jefferson’s ground sloth

Meg-ah-lon-ix.
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John Stewart

Paleoecologist

John Stewart is a distinguished paleoecologist whose work has significantly advanced our understanding of prehistoric ecosystems. With over two decades dedicated to unearthing fossils across Asia and Africa

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Name

Megalonyx ‭(‬Giant claw‭)‬.

Phonetic

Meg-ah-lon-ix.

Named By

Richard Harlan‭ ‬-‭ ‬1825.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Xenarthra,‭ ‬Pilosa,‭ ‬Megalonychidae.

Diet

Herbivore,‭ ‬possibly omnivorous.

Species

Size

Up to‭ ‬3‭ ‬meters long.

Known locations

Across North and Central America.

Time Period

Tortonian of the Miocene through to the Tarantian of the Pleistocene.

Fossil representation

Many specimens.

In Depth

Further Reading

– Third contribution to the Snake Creek Fauna. – Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 50:59-210. – W. D. Matthew – 1924. – The Ground Sloth Megalonyx from Pleistocene Deposits of the Old Crow Basin, Yukon, Canada. – Arctic (Calgary, Alberta: The Arctic Institute of North America) 53 (3): 213–220. – H. G. McDonald, C. R. Harington & G. De Iuliis – 2000.- Ancient Mitogenomes Reveal the Evolutionary History and Biogeography of Sloths. – Current Biology. 29 (12): 2031–2042.e6. – F. Delsuc, M. Kuch, G. C. Gibb, E. Karpinski, D. Hackenberger, P. Szpak, J. G. Mart�nez, J. I. Mead, H. G. McDonald, R. D. E. MacPhee, G. Billet, L. Hautier & H. N. Poinar – 2019.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT