Bugtilemur
| Bugtilemur Temporal range: Early Oligocene |
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|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
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Fossil
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Primates |
| Suborder: | Strepsirrhini |
| Family: | See text |
| Genus: | †Bugtilemur Marivaux et al, 2001 |
| Species | |
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†B. mathesoni |
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Bugtilemur is an extinct genus of Strepsirhine primate tentatively placed within family Cheirogaleidae, which includes the dwarf and mouse lemurs of Madagascar. It is represented by only one species, B. mathesoni, which was found in the Chitarwata Formation of Pakistan.[1] If this classification is correct, Bugtilemur would be the oldest lemur fossil and the only lemuriform primate, extinct or extant, that has been found outside of Madagascar, significantly complicating the evolution of diversification of lemurs.[2]
Described from a few teeth, the specimen possesses a lower canine that, according to Marivaux et al., confirm the presence of the strepsirrhine-specific toothcomb. Furthermore, on the basis of cheektooth morphology the molars share strong affinities with those of the genus Cheirogaleus (dwarf lemurs).[3] However, Bugtilemur appears to be much smaller in size than the extant Malagasy genus and its toothcomb was shorter and broader.[4] More recently, the structure and general presence of the toothcomb in Bugtilemur has been questioned, as well as many other dental features, suggesting it is most likely an adapiform.[5]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Bugtilemur". The Paleobiology Database. http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no=131786. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
- ^ "Earliest Evidence Of Lemurs Discovered In Pakistan, Far From Their Current Home, Science Reports". ScienceDaily (American Association For The Advancement Of Science) 294: 587–591. 22 October 2001. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2001/10/011019075135.htm. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
- ^ Marivaux, L.; Welcomme, J.-L.; Antoine, P.-O.; Metais, G.; Baloch, I. M.; Benammi, M.; Chaimanee, Y.; Ducrocq, S.; and Jaeger, J.-J. (19 October 2001). "A fossil lemur from the Oligocene of Pakistan". Science 294 (5542): 587–591. Bibcode 2001Sci...294..587M. doi:10.1126/science.1065257. PMID 11641497.
- ^ Gould, Lisa and Sauther, Michelle L., ed. (2006). Lemurs: Ecology and Adaptation (Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects) (1 ed.). Springer. p. 8–9. ISBN 038734585X.
- ^ Godinot, M. (2006). "Lemuriform origins as viewed from the fossil record". Folia Primatologica 77 (6): 446–464. doi:10.1159/000095391. PMID 17053330.
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