Biology:Palaeoryctidae
| Palaeoryctids | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Placentalia |
| Order: | †Palaeoryctida |
| Family: | †Palaeoryctidae Winge, 1917 |
| Genera | |
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Palaeoryctidae or Palaeoryctoidea ("old/stony digger", from Greek: ὀρύκτης, oryctes) is an extinct group of relatively non-specialized eutherian mammals that lived in North America during the late Cretaceous and took part in the first placental evolutionary radiation together with other early mammals such as the leptictids.[2] Some sources classified the Palaeoryctidae as a superfamily.[3][4]
Description
From a near-complete skull of the genus Palaeoryctes found in New Mexico, it is known that palaeoryctids were small, shrew-like insectivores with an elongated snout similar to that of the leptictids. However, in contrast to the latter, little is known about palaeoryctids postcranial anatomy (the skeleton without the skull).[2]
Where the leptictids were short-lived, the palaeoryctids seem to have been ancestors of Eocene species. While their dental morphology still indicate a mostly insectivorous diet, it, to some extent, also relate to Eocene carnivores such as creodonts.[2]
Taxonomy
The relationship between this archaic group and other insectivorous mammals is uncertain.[5][6] Palaeoryctidae was originally assigned to the now-abandoned grouping Insectivora by Sloan and Van Valen (1965) and more recently to Eutheria by Scott et al. (2002). Sister groups include: Kennalestidae, Nanocuridae, Pantolestidae, and Zalambdalestidae.[1]
Generally speaking Palaeoryctidae has been used as a wastebasket taxon, but it is now considered obsolete; the only group of insectivorous mammals now considered valid is the order Eulipotyphla.[7]
According to 2022 study of Bertrand, O. C, palaeoryctids are identified to be a basal placental mammal.[8]
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Palaeoryctidae". The Paleobiology Database. http://paleobackup.nceas.ucsb.edu:8090/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no=40223&is_real_user=0.[yes|permanent dead link|dead link}}]
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Agustí & Antón 2002, p. 5
- ↑ C., McKenna, Malcolm; Xiangxu., Xue; Mingzhen., Zhou (1984) (in en-US). Prosarcodon lonanensis, a new Paleocene micropternodontid palaeoryctoid insectivore from Asia. American Museum novitates; no. 2780.
- ↑ (in en) Mammals: An Outline of Theriology. 1976. https://books.google.com/books?id=4na5gY-lXwgC&q=Palaeoryctoidea.
- ↑ Gingerich 1982, p. 38
- ↑ History, Carnegie Museum of Natural (1995) (in en). Bulletin of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Carnegie Museum of Natural History.. https://books.google.com/books?id=v-VJAAAAYAAJ&q=Palaeoryctoidea.
- ↑ Prothero, Donald R. (2016-11-15) (in en). The Princeton Field Guide to Prehistoric Mammals. Princeton University Press. pp. 104. ISBN 9781400884452. https://books.google.com/books?id=eiftDAAAQBAJ&q=Palaeoryctoidea&pg=PA104.
- ↑ Bertrand, O. C.; Shelley, S. L.; Williamson, T. E.; Wible, J. R.; Chester, S. G. B.; Flynn, J. J.; Holbrook, L. T.; Lyson, T. R. et al. (2022). "Brawn before brains in placental mammals after the end-Cretaceous extinction". Science 376 (6588): 80–85. doi:10.1126/science.abl5584. Bibcode: 2022Sci...376...80B. https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/d7fb8c6e-886e-4c1d-9977-0cd6406fda20.
References
- Agustí, Jordi; Antón, Mauricio (2002). Mammoths, Sabertooths, and Hominids: 65 Million Years of Mammalian Evolution in Europe. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-11640-3.
- Gingerich, Philip D. (December 1982). "Aaptoryctes (Palaeoryctidae) and Thelysia (Palaeoryctidae?); New Insectivorous Mammals from the Late Paleocene and Early Eocene of Western North America". Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology (University of Michigan) 26 (3): 37–47. http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/48511/2/ID363.pdf.
External links
- "Family: Palaeoryctidae: Occurrence overview". GDIF. http://data.gbif.org/species/16265907.
- "†Palaeoryctidae". Mikko's Phylogeny Archive. http://www.helsinki.fi/~mhaaramo/metazoa/deuterostoma/chordata/synapsida/eutheria/cimolesta/palaeoryctidae.html.
Wikidata ☰ Q2562058 entry
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