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Tetraconodon

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Tetraconodon
Temporal range: 15.97–5.332 Ma
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Suidae
Subfamily: Tetraconodontinae
Genus: Tetraconodon
Falconer, 1868
Type species
Tetraconodon magnum
Falconer, 1868
Species
  • T. intermedius (van der Made, 1999)[1]
  • T. magnum
  • T. malensis (Htike et al., 2005)
  • T. minor (Pilgrim, 1926)[1]

Tetraconodon was an extinct genus of even-toed ungulates that existed during the middle and late Miocene in Asia (India, Pakistan, Thailand, Myanmar).[2][3][4]

Description

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The last two pairs of premolars of Tetraconodon were extremely large, while the first two premolars were small, a unique characteristic of tetraconodontinae not found in other suids.[1]

Tetraconodon magnum was largest species, while T. malensis is the smallest.[5] Originally known from only the oversized premolars, T. magnum was once believed to have reached sizes comparable to that of a hippopotamus or rhinoceros.[6] Once more material was recovered, such size estimates were invalidated, but it was nonetheless a large suid.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Prothero, Donald R.; Foss, Scott E. (2007). The Evolution of Artiodactyls. JHU Press. p. 145. ISBN 9780801887352. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
  2. ^ "Fossilworks: Tetraconodon". fossilworks.org. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  3. ^ "PBDB". Paleobiology Database. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
  4. ^ "Tetraconodontinae". tolweb.org. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
  5. ^ Muhammad, A.K. (2013). "Tetraconodon (Mammalia: Artiodactyla: Suidae) From the Late Miocene Dhok Pathan Formation of Pakistan". Pakistan J. Zool. 45 (4): 975–980.
  6. ^ Falconer, Hugh; Murchison, Charles (1868). Palaeontological Memoirs and Notes of the Late Hugh Falconer With a Biographical Sketch of the Author · Volume 1. R. Hardwicke.