''Oxydactylus'' is an extinct genus of

camelid Camelids are members of the biological family (biology), family Camelidae, the only currently living family in the suborder Tylopoda. The seven extant taxon, extant members of this group are: dromedary, dromedary camels, Bactrian camels, wild Bac ...

endemic to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. It lived from the Late

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...

to the

Middle Miocene The Middle Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), epoch made up of two Stage (stratigraphy), stages: the Langhian and Serravallian stages. The Middle Miocene is preceded by the Early Miocene. The sub-epoch lasted from 15.97 ± 0. ...

(28.4–13.7 mya), existing for approximately .''Oxydactylus'' at fosilworks
/ref> The name is from the Ancient

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

οξύς (oxys, "sharp")and δάκτυλος (daktylos, "finger"). Oxydactylus longipes

They had very long legs and necks, and were probably adapted to eating high vegetation, much like modern

giraffes The giraffe is a large African hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa.'' It is the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on Earth. It is classified under the family Giraffidae, along with its closest extant re ...

. Unlike modern camelids, they had hooves, rather than tough sole-pads, and splayed toes.

References

Prehistoric camelids Oligocene Artiodactyla Miocene Artiodactyla Serravallian genus extinctions Miocene mammals of North America Oligocene mammals of North America Prehistoric Artiodactyla genera Chattian genus first appearances Aquitanian genera Burdigalian genera Langhian genera Fossil taxa described in 1904 {{paleo-eventoedungulate-stub