Nothrotherium
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| Skull of Nothrotherium | |
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| Genus: | †Nothrotherium Lydekker, 1889
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Nothrotherium is an extinct genus of medium-sized ground sloth from South America (Bolivia and Brazil) and North America (Mexico and southwestern United States).[1][2] It differs from Nothrotheriops in smaller size and differences in skull and hind leg bones, but both genera can be traced back to Hapolops, the genus which both evolved from in different ecological conditions.[3] This genus formerly included the species Nothrotheriops shastensis, which was later moved to Nothrotheriops. These browsing ground sloths consumed roots, stems, seeds, and leaves of various desert plants, such as the yucca and agave.[4]
The species N. maquinense is named after the Maquiné Grotto in Brazil, where it was found.
Synonyms such as Coelodon occasionally cause confusion where they occur in early texts such as that of Alfred Russel Wallace's major work, "The Geographical Distribution of Animals".[5]
References
- ^ PaleoBiology Database: Nothrotherium, basic info
- ^ "Nothrotherium". Fossil Works.
- ^ Stock: Skull and Dentition of Nothrotherium. Princeton University. 1918. pp. 163–170.
- ^ Kurtén, Björn (1980). Pleistocene Mammals of North America. Columbia University Press. p. 141.
- ^ Wallace, Alfred Russel (1876). The Geographical Distribution of Animals (Google Books). Harper and brothers.
- Classification of Mammals by Malcolm C. McKenna and Susan K. Bell
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