''Bugtilemur'' is an extinct genus of Strepsirhine

primate Primates are a diverse order (biology), order of mammals. They are divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include the Tarsiiformes, tarsiers and ...

belonging to the adapiform family Ekgmowechashalidae.It is represented by only one species, ''B. mathesoni'', which was found in the Chitarwata Formation of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. When first described, ''Bugtilemur'' was classified in the lemur family

Cheirogaleidae The Cheirogaleidae are the family of strepsirrhine primates containing the various dwarf and mouse lemurs. Like all other lemurs, cheirogaleids live exclusively on the island of Madagascar. Characteristics Cheirogaleids are smaller than the ...

, complicating the picture of the early evolution of lemurs by suggesting that lemurs originated in Asia. Described from a few teeth, the specimen possesses a lower canine that, according to Marivaux et al., confirms the presence of the strepsirrhine-specific

toothcomb A toothcomb (also tooth comb or dental comb) is a dental structure found in some mammals, comprising a group of front teeth arranged in a manner that facilitates grooming, similar to a hair comb. The toothcomb occurs in lemuriform primates ...

. Furthermore, on the basis of cheektooth morphology, the molars share strong affinities with those of the genus ''Cheirogaleus'' (

dwarf lemur The dwarf lemurs are the lemurs of the genus ''Cheirogaleus''. All of the species in this genus, like all other lemurs, are native to Madagascar. Description Measuring 19–27 cm in body length with a tail about 16–17 cm, they are ...

s). However, ''Bugtilemur'' appears to be much smaller than the

extant Extant is the opposite of the word extinct. It may refer to: * Extant hereditary titles * Extant literature, surviving literature, such as ''Beowulf'', the oldest extant manuscript written in English * Extant taxon, a taxon which is not extinct, ...

Malagasy genus and its toothcomb was shorter and broader. More recently, the structure and general presence of the toothcomb in ''Bugtilemur'' has been questioned, as well as many other dental features, suggesting that it is most likely an adapiform. The adapiform nature of ''Bugtilemur'' was confirmed in a 2016 cladistic analysis that recovered it in the family Ekgmowechashalidae, which is more consistent with the lemur fossil record.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q926781 Prehistoric strepsirrhines Eocene primates Prehistoric primate genera Fossil taxa described in 2001 Eocene mammals of Asia

See also

References