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Omomyidae
Omomyidae is a group of early primates that radiated during the Eocene epoch between about (mya). Fossil omomyids are found in North America, Europe & Asia, making it one of two groups of Eocene primates with a geographic distribution spanning holarctic continents, the other being the adapids (family Adapidae). Early representatives of the Omomyidae and Adapidae appear suddenly at the beginning of the Eocene (56 mya) in North America, Europe, and Asia, and are the earliest known crown primates. Characteristics Features that characterize many omomyids include large orbits (eye sockets), shortened rostra and dental arcades, loss of anterior premolars, cheek teeth adapted for insectivorous or frugivorous diets, and relatively small body mass (i.e., less than 500 g). However, by the late middle Eocene (about 40 mya), some North American omomyids evolved body masses in excess of and frugivorous or folivorous diets. The largest omomyids were '' Macrotarsius'' and '' Ourayia'', b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Necrolemur
''Necrolemur'' is a small bodied omomyid with body mass estimations ranging from . ''Necrolemur''’s teeth feature broad basins and blunt cusps, suggesting their diet consisted of mostly Frugivore, soft fruit, though examination of microwear patterns suggests that populations from lower latitudes also consumed insects and gums. While they do not sport a true tooth comb like modern lemurs, microwear patterns on their lower incisors suggest they engaged in fur grooming behaviors. Like Tarsier, tarsiers, ''Necrolemur'' had large, front-facing, close set eyes and were likely nocturnal. Analysis of cranial and postcranial fossils by paleontologists suggest members of the family Omomyidae, including the genus ''Necrolemur'', possessed highly specialized adaptations for leaping. Etymology ''Necro-'' refers to the Greek prefix meaning death or dead while ''-lemur'' references extant lemuriforms due to ''Necrolemur''’s postcranial adaptations for prolific leaping like extant lemurs. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anaptomorphinae
Anaptomorphinae is a pre-historic group of primates known from Eocene fossils in North America and Europe and later periods of Paleocene Asia, and are a sub-family of omomyids. The anaptomorphines is a paraphyletic group consisting of the two tribes Trogolemurini and Anaptomorphini. Anaptomorphine radiation in Wyoming, one of the most detailed records of changes within populations and between species in the fossil record, has provided remarkable evidence of transitional fossils. Description '' Teilhardina'' is the most primitive of the anaptomorphines with respect to a number of dental features (e.g. four premolars and relatively unreduced canine). Most scientists recognize at least fourteen ''genera'' of anaptomorphine. The probable lineages of ''Tetonius'', ''Absarokius'' and ''Anemorhysis'' evolved from ''Teilhardinia'' or a closely related form from North America. ''Tetonius'' and ''Shoshonius'' have been classified as belonging to the Tarsiiformes, and are therefore not c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teilhardina
''Teilhardina'' (, ) is an extinct marmoset-like omomyid primate that lived in Europe, North America and Asia during the Early Eocene epoch, about 56-47 million years ago. The paleontologist George Gaylord Simpson named it after the French paleontologist, Jesuit and philosopher Teilhard de Chardin. Paleobiology Carbon isotope excursion suggests that the Asian ''Teilhardina asiatica'' is the oldest member of the genus; the youngest is the North American ''Teilhardina brandti''. However finds in Wyoming suggest ''Teilhardina'' may have originated in North America. There are four hypotheses that have been proposed to try and explain the geographic distribution: # Africa was the origination of the primates and then they dispersed to Europe- Greenland and finally North America. # Primates originated in North America then dispersed to Asia through the Bering route and later passed through Greenland to finally reach Europe. # Primates originated in Asia or Africa and dispersed thro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shoshonius
''Shoshonius'' is an extinct genus of omomyid primate that lived during the Eocene (~56-34 million years ago). Specimens identified as ''Shoshonius'' have been found exclusively in central Wyoming and the genus currently includes two species, ''Shoshonius cooperi'', described by Granger in 1910, and ''Shoshonius bowni'', described by Honey in 1990. The type specimen of ''S. cooperi'' is AMNH 14664, a right maxillary fragment preserving P3-M3. The type specimen of ''S. bowni'' is USGS 2020, a right maxillary fragment preserving M1-3. Based on elements of the postcranial skeleton, ''Shoshonius'' is inferred to be a generalized, arboreal quadruped with some affinities for vertical climbing and leaping. Additionally, dental morphology suggests the diet of ''Shoshonius'' was primarily insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant which eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human pra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Macrotarsius
''Macrotarsius'' is an extinct genus of omomyid that inhabited North America and East Asia during the Eocene epoch. Taxonomy ''Macrotarsius'' contains five species: the type species ''M. montanus'', ''M. jepseni'', ''M. macrorhysis'', ''M. roederi'', and ''M. siegerti''. Distribution ''Macrotarsius macrorhysis'' lived in Jiangsu, China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ... during the Middle Eocene. References {{Taxonbar, from=Q126687075 Eocene mammals of Asia Fossil taxa described in 1941 Omomyidae Prehistoric primate genera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Archicebidae
''Archicebus'' is a genus of fossil primates that lived in the early Eocene forests (~55.8–54.8 million years ago) of what is now Jingzhou in the Hubei Province in central China, discovered in 2003. The only known species, ''A. achilles'', was a small primate, estimated to weigh about , and is the only known member of the family Archicebidae. When discovered, it was the oldest fossil haplorhine primate skeleton found, appearing to be most closely related to tarsiers and the fossil omomyids, although ''A. achilles'' is suggested to have been diurnal, whereas tarsiers are nocturnal. Resembling tarsiers and simians (monkeys and apes), it was a haplorhine primate, and it also may have resembled the last common ancestor of all haplorhines. Etymology ''Archicebus achilles'' was named for being the oldest-known primate skeleton () and for its distinguishing calcaneus (heel bone). The generic name, ''Archicebus'', was constructed from ''arche'' (ἀρχή), the Anci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Largest Prehistoric Animals
The largest prehistoric animals include both vertebrate and invertebrate species. Many of them are described below, along with their typical range of size (for the general dates of extinction, see the link to each). Many species mentioned might not actually be the largest representative of their clade due to the incompleteness of the fossil record and many of the sizes given are merely estimates since no complete specimen have been found. Their body mass, especially, is largely conjecture because soft tissue was rarely fossilized. Generally, the size of extinct species was subject to energetic and biomechanical constraints. Non-mammalian synapsids (Synapsida) Caseasaurs (Caseasauria) The herbivorous ''Alierasaurus'' was the largest Caseidae, caseid and the largest amniote to have lived at the time, with an estimated length around . ''Cotylorhynchus, Cotylorhynchus hancocki'' is also large, with an estimated length and weight of at least and more than . Edaphosaurids (Ed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rooneyia
''Rooneyia viejaensis'' is a relatively small primate belonging to the extinct monotypic genus ''Rooneyia''. ''Rooneyia viejaensis'' is known from the North American Eocene of the Sierra Vieja of West Texas; the species is only known from the type specimen (TMM 40688-7). The lack of additional fossils at this time makes it difficult to hypothesize where and how ''Rooneyia'' may have evolved. The minimal wear upon the molar teeth of the specimen has led to the assumption that the type specimen is that of a young adult. ''Rooneyia'' does not consistently fall within any one group of fossil or extant primates. Taxonomy ''Rooneyia'' is often referred to as enigmatic and does not seem to be closely related to most of the Eocene primates from the Rocky Mountain Region. There is disagreement into which suborder ''Rooneyia'' should be placed. Debate exists as to whether ''Rooneyia'' is a stem tarsiiaform to be grouped with omomyoids (F.S. Szalay), is a stem haplorrhine (C. Ross), stem str ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paleocene
The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''palaiós'' meaning "old" and the Eocene Epoch (which succeeds the Paleocene), translating to "the old part of the Eocene". The epoch is bracketed by two major events in Earth's history. The K–Pg extinction event, brought on by an asteroid impact (Chicxulub impact) and possibly volcanism (Deccan Traps), marked the beginning of the Paleocene and killed off 75% of species, most famously the non-avian dinosaurs. The end of the epoch was marked by the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), which was a major climatic event wherein about 2,500–4,500 gigatons of carbon were released into the atmosphere and ocean systems, causing a spike in global temperatures and ocean acidification. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
