Hapalops
Hapalops | |
---|---|
Hapalops ruetimeyeri | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Pilosa |
Superfamily: | Megatherioidea |
Genus: | †Hapalops Ameghino, 1887 |
Species | |
|
Hapalops is an extinct genus of ground sloth from the Early to Late Miocene of Brazil (Solimões Formation), Bolivia (Honda Group), Colombia (Honda Group),[1] and Argentina (Santa Cruz Formation) in South America.[2] Though related to the giant Megatherium, Hapalops was much smaller, measuring about 1 metre (3.3 ft) in length. Like most extinct sloths it is categorized as a ground sloth, but it is believed that the smaller size of Hapalops allowed it to engage in some climbing behaviors.[3]
Description
It had a robust body, short skull and long limbs with large, curved claws. When it did visit the ground the animal probably walked on the knuckles of its forelimbs, like a gorilla. Hapalops had very few teeth with no incisors, the mandible included only four pairs of teeth.[4][5]
References
- ^ Croft, 2007, p.300
- ^ Hapalops at Fossilworks.org
- ^ White, J. 1993. Indicators of locomotor habits in Xenarthrans: Evidence for locomotor heterogeneity among fossil sloths. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 13(2): 230-242
- ^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 207. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
- ^ "404 - File or directory not found" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
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Bibliography
- Prehistoric sloths
- Prehistoric mammal genera
- Miocene xenarthrans
- Miocene mammals of South America
- Huayquerian
- Chasicoan
- Mayoan
- Laventan
- Colloncuran
- Friasian
- Santacrucian
- Neogene Argentina
- Fossils of Argentina
- Neogene Bolivia
- Fossils of Bolivia
- Neogene Brazil
- Fossils of Brazil
- Neogene Colombia
- Fossils of Colombia
- Honda Group, Colombia
- Fossil taxa described in 1887
- Taxa named by Florentino Ameghino
- Prehistoric mammal stubs