''Eporeodon'' is an extinct

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

oreodont Merycoidodontoidea, previously known as "oreodonts" or " ruminating hogs," are an extinct superfamily of prehistoric cud-chewing artiodactyls with short faces and fang-like canine teeth. As their name implies, some of the better known forms we ...

belonging to the family Merycoidontidae. It lived from the

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...

epoch 30.8—24.8 mya) existing for approximately .

Description

The species of the

are among the largest members of the family Merycoidontidae. About the size of a sheep, its fossils are also some of the largest found in the

Badlands Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in '' Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, ...

. It was much larger than '' Merycoidodon'' and '' Miniochoerus'', its contemporaries in the Late Oligocene. On the other hand, ''Eporeodon'' was a rare oreodont, as its fossils only make up about one percent of all oreodont fossils found in the Badlands. Their skulls were much shorter and squatter than those of '' Merycoidodon'', but were longer than those of '' Miniochoerus''. ''Promesoreodon'' Schultz and Falkenbach, 1949 is a junior synonym of this genus.B. Lander. 1998. Oreodontoidea. In C. M. Janis, K. M. Scott, and L. L. Jacobs (eds.), ''Evolution of Tertiary mammals of North America'' 402-425.

Images

Eporeodon_major.JPG, Restoration of ''Eporeodon major'' Eporeodon occidentalis.jpg, ''Eporeodon occidentalis'' skull

References

Oreodonts Oligocene Artiodactyla White River Fauna Miocene Artiodactyla Aquitanian genus extinctions Chattian genus first appearances Prehistoric Artiodactyla genera Oligocene mammals of North America {{paleo-eventoedungulate-stub