''Diceros praecox'' is an extinct species of

rhinoceros A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

that lived in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

during the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58black rhinoceros The black rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis''), also called the black rhino or the hooked-lip rhinoceros, is a species of rhinoceros native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa, including Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Moza ...

''(Diceros bicornis)''.

Taxonomy

''Diceros praecox'' has for many years been classified as ''Ceratotherium praecox'', however the original material describing the species has been shown to be closer to the black rhinoceros in its skull morphology. Other material showing greater similarities with the

white rhinoceros The white rhinoceros, also known as the white rhino or square-lipped rhinoceros (''Ceratotherium simum''), is the largest extant species of rhinoceros and the most Sociality, social of all rhino species, characterized by its wide mouth adapted f ...

are considered to belong to a different species, '' Ceratotherium mauritanicum''. ''D. praecox'' has been suggested to have arose from '' Ceratotherium neumayri,'' however the close relationship between ''C. neumayri'' and ''Diceros'' has been disputed by other authors.

Description

The teeth of ''D. praecox'' are similar to those of ''Ceratotherium neumayri''. However, the longer skull suggests increased browsing specialization. The break-off of ''Diceros'' from ''Ceratotherium'' probably indicates ecological divergence and character displacement between browsing versus grazing specializations.

References

Dicerotini Fossil taxa described in 1972 Pliocene mammals of Africa Pliocene rhinoceroses {{Paleo-oddtoedungulate-stub