''Barbatodon'' is a
mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
genus from the Upper
Cretaceous period. It lived in
Transylvania at the same time as some of the last
dinosaurs and was a member of the extinct order of
Multituberculata. It is within the suborder of
Cimolodonta, 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 ei ...
dating to the Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) of the
Sânpetru Formation in
Romania.
"Based on comparisons with the
m1s from Vãlioara, the
holotype of ''Barbatodon'' is regarded as a kogaionid m1," Kielan-Jaworowska and Hurum (2001) had it placed tentatively in the informal
Paracimexomys
''Paracimexomys'' is a genus of extinct mammals in the also extinct Multituberculata order. ''Paracimexomys'' lived during the Cretaceous period. The few fossils remains come from North America. Some Romanian fossils were also tentatively assig ...
'' group'.
A new species, ''B. oardaensis'', has been announced in 2014. The species has been discovered in
Oarda de Jos, 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 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 nat ...
and
shrews - as well as the related
taeniolabidoid 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"
Cimolodonta,
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