astrapotheres

Astrapotheria is an extinct order of South American and Antarctic hoofed mammals that existed from the late Paleocene to the Middle Miocene, ."The uruguaytheriine Astrapotheriidae from the rich middle Miocene Honda Group of the upper Magdalena River valley in Colombia (...) are the youngest securely dated remains of that order in South America." Astrapotheres were large, rhinoceros-like animals and have been called one of the most bizarre orders of mammals with an enigmatic evolutionary history.

The taxonomy of this order is not clear, but it may belong to Meridiungulata (along with Notoungulata, Litopterna, Pyrotheria and Xenungulata). In turn, Meridungulata is believed to belong to the extant superorder Laurasiatheria. Some scientists have regarded the astrapotheres (and sometimes the Meridiungulata as a whole) as members of the clade Atlantogenata. However, collagen and mitochondrial DNA sequence data analysed in 2015 places at least the notoungulates and litopterns firmly within Laurasiatheria, as a sister group to the perissodactyls.

Description

Their lophodont molars and tusk-like canines became extremely large and ever-growing in later astrapotheres. The upper molars lack an ectocingulum and are dominated by well-developed ectoloph and protoloph. Additional lophs formed in some derived taxa. They had lower molars with two cross-lophs, including a high protocristid, and eventually became almost selenodont. As a result, their dentition is similar to notoungulates, but it seems to have evolved independently. The cheek teeth are similar to rhinocerotoids, including similar microstructure, which indicate they had the same function.

Postcranially, astrapotheres are relatively robust and more or less graviportal but have slender long bones, most notably in the hindlegs, suggesting they were amphibious. In order to support their proboscises and large heads they had relatively long and massive necks in relation to the rest of the vertebral column. Their feet are pentadactyl with short and stout podial and metapodial bones. Most characteristic for the order are the flat astragalus, equipped with a short neck and a flat head, articulating with both the navicular and cuboid bones; and their calcaneus with its enlarged peroneal tubercle.

Three families are recognized: Eoastrapostylopidae from the late Paleocene, Trigonostylopidae from the Paleocene-Eocene, and Astrapotheriidae from the Eocene-Miocene. The Brazilian, Itaboraian '' Tetragonostylops'' and the Argentinian, Riochican '' Eoastrapostylops'' are the oldest astrapotheres. The latter, with its low-crowned and lophoselenodont cheek teeth, is considered the most primitive astrapothere. Trigonostylopids are distinct from other astrapotheres in their ear anatomy but are included in the order because of otherwise similar characters. '' Antarctodon'' is one of few eutherian mammals, as well as one of the last known terrestrial vertebrates, found in Antarctica.

The most famous member of the order is undoubtedly '' Astrapotherium'', a long elephant-like animal that had lost its upper incisors and developed ever-growing canine tusks. They had lost their anterior premolars, resulting in a gap between their tusks and the hypsodont cheek teeth. The short and retracted nasal bones indicate a moderately developed tapir-like proboscis. The small Eocene '' Trigonostylops'' lacked such retracted nasals and probably also a proboscis. Other astrapotheriids, such as the Casamayoran '' Scaglia'' and '' Albertogaudrya'', were between a sheep and a tapir in size and already the largest South American mammals.

Classification

There is no scientific consensus regarding the classification within Astrapotheria. For example, originally described ''Tetragonostylops'' as a trigonostylopid but Soria 1982 and 1984 transferred the genus to Astrapotheriidae and concluded that the remaining two genera in that family, ''Trigonostylops'' and ''Shecenia'', form a basal collateral branch within Astrapotheriidae. According to , Trigonostylopidae (including Eoastrapostylopidae) is the stem group of Astrapotheriidae.

* Astrapotheriidae . Retrieved March 2013.
** '' Albertogaudrya''
** '' Antarctodon''
** '' Astraponotus''
** '' Astrapothericulus''
** '' Astrapotherium''
** '' Comahuetherium''
** '' Granastrapotherium''
** '' Hilarcotherium''
**'' Liarthrus''
** '' Maddenia''
** '' Parastrapotherium''
** '' Scaglia''
** '' Uruguaytherium''
** '' Xenastrapotherium''
* Eoastrapostylopidae
** '' Eoastrapostylops''
* Trigonostylopidae
** '' Shecenia''
** '' Tetragonostylops''
** '' Trigonostylops''

References

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{{Taxonbar, from=Q133684

Meridiungulata
Paleocene first appearances
Miocene extinctions
Taxa named by Richard Lydekker
Prehistoric tetrapod orders
Mammal orders