Propalaeotherium: Difference between revisions
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==Taxonomy== |
==Taxonomy== |
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[[File:Propalaeotherium hassiacum Oslo.jpg|thumb|left|''P. hassiacum'']] |
[[File:Propalaeotherium hassiacum Oslo.jpg|thumb|left|''P. hassiacum'']] |
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''Propalaeotherium'' was named by [[Paul Gervais]]. Its name means "before ''[[Palaeotherium]]''", a member of [[Palaeotheriidae]]. It was considered a palaeothere by Hooker (1986).<ref>J. J. Hooker. 1986. Mammals from the Bartonian (middle/late Eocene) of the Hampshire Basin, southern England. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 39(4):191-478</ref> A 2006 study found it to be an equid instead.<ref>{{Cite doi|1007/s00015-004-1115-8}}</ref> |
''Propalaeotherium'' was named by [[Paul Gervais]]. Its name means "before ''[[Palaeotherium]]''", a member of [[Palaeotheriidae]]. It was considered a palaeothere by Hooker (1986).<ref>J. J. Hooker. 1986. Mammals from the Bartonian (middle/late Eocene) of the Hampshire Basin, southern England. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 39(4):191-478</ref> A 2006 study found it to be an equid instead.<ref>{{Cite doi|10.1007/s00015-004-1115-8}}</ref> |
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The species ''P. parvulum'' and ''P. messelensis'' have been assigned to the [[equid]] genus ''[[Eurohippus]]''.<ref>{{Cite doi|10.1007/BF03043638}}</ref> |
The species ''P. parvulum'' and ''P. messelensis'' have been assigned to the [[equid]] genus ''[[Eurohippus]]''.<ref>{{Cite doi|10.1007/BF03043638}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 19:17, 10 October 2012
| Propalaeotherium Temporal range: Middle Eocene
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| Fossil P. hassiacum specimen | |
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| Genus: | Propalaeotherium Gervais, 1849
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Propalaeotherium was an early genus of equid endemic to Europe and Asia during the Middle Eocene.
Taxonomy
Propalaeotherium was named by Paul Gervais. Its name means "before Palaeotherium", a member of Palaeotheriidae. It was considered a palaeothere by Hooker (1986).[1] A 2006 study found it to be an equid instead.[2]
The species P. parvulum and P. messelensis have been assigned to the equid genus Eurohippus.[3]
Description
Propalaeotheres were small animals, ranging from 30–60 cm at the shoulder weighing just 10 kg (22 lb)[4] They looked rather like very small tapirs. They had no hooves, having instead several small nail-like hooflets. They were herbivorous, and the amazingly well-preserved Messel fossils show that they ate berries, and leaf matter picked up from the forest floor.[5]
In popular culture
Propalaeotherium was featured in Walking With Beasts, where it is shown as a skittish foraging creature that is a prey item of Gastornis and Ambulocetus
See also
References
- ^ J. J. Hooker. 1986. Mammals from the Bartonian (middle/late Eocene) of the Hampshire Basin, southern England. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 39(4):191-478
- ^ Attention: This template ({{cite doi}}) is deprecated. To cite the publication identified by doi:10.1007/s00015-004-1115-8, please use {{cite journal}} (if it was published in a bona fide academic journal, otherwise {{cite report}} with
|doi=10.1007/s00015-004-1115-8instead. - ^ Attention: This template ({{cite doi}}) is deprecated. To cite the publication identified by doi:10.1007/BF03043638, please use {{cite journal}} (if it was published in a bona fide academic journal, otherwise {{cite report}} with
|doi=10.1007/BF03043638instead. - ^ S. Legendre. 1988. Les communautes de mammiferes du Paleogene (Eocene superieur et Oligocene) d'Europe occidentale: structure, milieux et evolution. Ph.D. thesis, Universite des Sciences et Techniques du Languedoc, Montpellier, France. 2 volumes. 1-265.
- ^ Attention: This template ({{cite doi}}) is deprecated. To cite the publication identified by doi:10.1007/s12549-010-0028-y, please use {{cite journal}} (if it was published in a bona fide academic journal, otherwise {{cite report}} with
|doi=10.1007/s12549-010-0028-yinstead.