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Equus lambei

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Yukon horse
Scientific classification
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E. lambei
Binomial name
Equus lambei
Hay, 1917

Equus lambei (common names include Yukon horse, and Yukon wild horse[1]) is an extinct species of the genus Equus. Equus lambei ranged across North America until approximately 10,000 years ago. It probably was much like the living wild asses of today.[citation needed] A partial carcass of Equus lambei is on display at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre in Whitehorse, Yukon.[1]

Classification

Equus lambei is close relative of the modern horses.[2][3][4]

Natural history

Along with steppe bison (Bison priscus), woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius) and caribou (Rangifer tarandus), Equus lambei was one of the most common ice-age species known from steppe-like grasslands of Eastern Beringia.[3][4] This species is known from numerous teeth and bones, and one partial carcass discovered in 1993, that yielded a radiocarbon date of 26,280 ± 210 years BP.[3] The carcass consisted of a large part of the hide, a few tailbones, one lower leg, and some intestine. The hide retained some long blondish mane and tail hairs, coarse whitish upper body hairs, and dark brown hairs on the lower leg.[3] Large numbers of teeth of this species have been found in archaeological sites in the region.

References

  1. ^ C. R. Harington with Donna Naughton, ed. (2003). Annotated Bibliography of Quaternary Vertebrates of Northern North America: With Radiocarbon Dates. University of Toronto Press. pages 73, 99
  2. ^ http://yukon.taiga.net/vuntutrda/palaeon/notes.htm
  3. ^ a b c d C.R. Harington (August, 2002). "Yukon Horse". Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre. Retrieved 2009-01-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ a b "Yukon Horse". Natural History Notebooks. Canadian Museum of Nature. 2009.01.20. Retrieved 2009-01-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  • Ann Forstén, 1992. Mitochondrial-DNA timetable and the evolution of Equus: Comparison of molecular and paleontological evidence. Ann. Zool. Fennici 28: 301-309.