Loading...
Anthracobunids from the Middle Eocene of India and Pakistan Are Stem Perissodactyls
Cooper, Lisa Noelle Seiffert, Erik R. Clementz, Mark T. Madar, Sandra I. Bajpai, Sunil Hussain, Sofia Taseer Thewissen, Johannes G. M.
Cooper, Lisa Noelle
Seiffert, Erik R.
Clementz, Mark T.
Madar, Sandra I.
Bajpai, Sunil
Hussain, Sofia Taseer
Thewissen, Johannes G. M.
Abstract
Description
Anthracobunidae is an Eocene family of large mammals from south Asia that is commonly considered to be part of the radiation that gave rise to elephants (proboscideans) and sea cows (sirenians). We describe a new collection of anthracobunid fossils from Middle Eocene rocks of Indo-Pakistan that more than doubles the number of known anthracobunid fossils and challenges their putative relationships, instead implying that they are stem perissodactyls. Cranial, dental, and postcranial elements allow a revision of species and the recognition of a new anthracobunid genus. Analyses of stable isotopes and long bone geometry together suggest that most anthracobunids fed on land, but spent a considerable amount of time near water. This new evidence expands our understanding of stem perissodactyl diversity and sheds new light on perissodactyl origins.
Date
2014-10-01
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Wyoming. Libraries
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Keywords
Anthracobunid,Article,biogeography,dentition,Dugong,elephant,enamel,fossil animal,geometry,incisor,India,isotope analysis,mammal,mandible,nonhuman,occipital bone,Pakistan,paleontology,Perissodactyl,phylogeny,premolar tooth,skull,sphenoid,zygoma