''Barbatodon'' is a mammal

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

from the Upper

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

period. It lived in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the ...

at the same time as some of the last

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

s and was a member of the extinct order of Multituberculata. It is within the suborder of

Cimolodonta Cimolodonta is a taxon of extinct mammals that lived from the Cretaceous to the Eocene. They were some of the more derived members of the extinct order Multituberculata. They probably lived something of a rodent-like existence until their eco ...

, and the family Kogaionidae. The genus ''Barbatodon'' was named by Rãdulescu R. and Samson P. in 1986. The primary species, ''Barbatodon transylvanicum'', was also named by Rãdulescu and Samson. It was found in

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as e ...

dating to the Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) of the Sânpetru Formation in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

. "Based on comparisons with the m1s from Vãlioara, the

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of seve ...

of ''Barbatodon'' is regarded as a kogaionid m1," Kielan-Jaworowska and Hurum (2001) had it placed tentatively in the informal Paracimexomys'' group'. A new species, ''B. oardaensis'', has been announced in 2014. The species has been discovered in

Oarda de Jos Alba Iulia (; german: Karlsburg or ''Carlsburg'', formerly ''Weißenburg''; hu, Gyulafehérvár; la, Apulum) is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the Mureș River in the historic ...

, Haţeg Basin, Transylvania. It is characterized by M1 cusp formula 3:4:2 and is much smaller than the two other known species. Most of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

was covered by shallow seas during the Upper Cretaceous, which makes remains of terrestrial animals extremely rare. This location is one of the exceptions and the diversity of material is impressive.

Biology

Like modern

rodents Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

and shrews - as well as the related

taeniolabidoid Taeniolabidoidea is a group of extinct mammals known from North America and Asia. They were the largest members of the extinct order Multituberculata, as well as the largest non- therian mammals. ''Lambdopsalis'' even provides direct fossil e ...

multituberculates -, ''Barbatodon'' displays red iron-pigmentation in its teeth. This distribution is more similar to that seen in shrews than in rodents or taeniolabidoids, suggesting insectivorous habits. In the absence of competing mammals, ''Barbatodon'' and similar kogaionids display a clear example of island speciation.Thierry Smith, Codrea Vlad, Red Iron-Pigmented Tooth Enamel in a Multituberculate Mammal from the Late Cretaceous Transylvanian " Haţeg Island ", Article in PLoS ONE 10(7):e0132550-1-16 · July 2015

References

Bibliography

* Rãdulescu & Samson (1986), ''Précisions sur les affinités des Multituberculés du Crétacé supérieur de Roumaine''. C R Acad Sci II: Mec-Phys, Chim, Sci Terre, Sci Univ 303p, p. 1825-1830. * * Much of this information has been derived fro

MESOZOIC MAMMALS: "basal"

, Cimolomyidae,

Boffiidae ''Boffius'' is a genus of mammal from the Paleocene of Europe, which was named by Vianey-Liaud M. in 1979. It is a member of the extinct order of Multituberculata. Boffius lies within the suborder Cimolodonta and is the only known member of ...

and Kogaionidae, an Internet directory. {{Taxonbar, from=Q4859509 Cimolodonts Cretaceous mammals of Europe Cretaceous Romania Maastrichtian life Fossils of Romania Hațeg fauna Fossil taxa described in 2014 Prehistoric mammal genera