| Altitypotherium | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | †Notoungulata |
| Family: | †Mesotheriidae |
| Subfamily: | †Mesotheriinae |
| Genus: | †Altitypotherium Croft, Flynn & Wyss, 2004 |
| Type species | |
| †Altitypotherium chucalensis Croft, Flynn & Wyss, 2004 | |
| Species | |
| |
Altitypotherium is anextinctgenus ofNotoungulate, belonging to the suborderTypotheria. It lived during the EarlyMiocene, and its fossilized remains were discovered inSouth America.
This animal was vaguely similar to awombat, and its dimensions evocate those of araccoon ; its skull was approximately 16 centimeters long, while its total length, excluding the tail, was about 80 centimeters. It weighed around 10 kilograms.
Altitypotherium had a tall and narrow snout, with only six pairs of teeth in the maxilla and mandible, a low number when compared to most other notoungulates. It had gliriform upper incisors, with a band of anterior enamel, and lower incisors protruding forward and separated from premolars and molars by a long diastema. It had high-crowned (hypsodont) teeth, and the occlusal surfaces of the molars had two enamel folds halfway through the tooth in the inner surface and outlining three dentin-filled lobes, forming an E-shaped form. The largest species,Altitypotherium paucidens was distinguished from its closest relatives by the loss of the upper third molar.
The genusAltitypotherium was first described in 2004, based on fossil remains found in theChucal Formation in NorthernChile, in EarlyMiocene terrains ; two species are currently known,A. chucalensis andA. paucidens. Fossils attributed, with some uncertainty, to the genus have also been found in Argentina.
Altitypotherium belonged to the familyMesotheriidae, a group oftypotheres that diversified during theCenozoic, giving rise to forms the size of aram.Altitypotherium belonged to the subfamilyMesotheriinae, the most derived clade of the group.
Altitypotherium was a terrestrial herbivore with fossorial behaviour. It fed on low vegetation, roots and tubers, which it grinded with its powerful posterior teeths. It lived at fairly high altitudes. It shared several similarities, notably its hypsodont teeth, with modern wombats.
