''Platygonus'' ("flat head" in reference to the straight shape of the forehead) is an extinct genus of

herbivorous A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat n ...

peccaries of the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Tayassuidae, endemic to

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

from the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

through

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

epochs (10.3 million to 11,000 years ago), existing for about . ''P. compressus'' stood tall.

Taxonomy

While long thought to be the sister-lineage to the

Chacoan peccary The Chacoan peccary or ''tagua'' (''Catagonus wagneri'' or ''Parachoerus wagneri'') is the last extant species of the genus ''Catagonus''; it is a peccary found in the Gran Chaco of Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina. Approximately 3,000 remain i ...

based on morphological similarities, a 2017 ancient DNA study which recovered

mitochondrial DNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA and mDNA) is the DNA located in the mitochondrion, mitochondria organelles in a eukaryotic cell that converts chemical energy from food into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is a small portion of the D ...

from ''Platygonus'' found that all living peccaries are more closely related to each other than they are to ''Platygonus''. The estimated divergence between ''Platygonus'' and all living peccaries was placed in the Miocene, around 22 million years ago.

Description

Most ''Platygonus'' species were similar in size to modern peccaries especially

giant peccary The collared peccary (''Dicotyles tajacu'') is a peccary, a species of artiodactyl (even-toed) mammal in the family Peccary, Tayassuidae found in North America, North, Central America, Central, and South America. It is the only member of the gen ...

, at around in body length, and had long legs, allowing them to run well. They also had a pig-like snout and long

tusk Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canine tooth, canine teeth, as with Narwhal, narwhals, chevrotains, musk deer, water deer, muntjac, pigs, ...

s which were probably used to fend off predators.

Ecology

Like modern peccaries, ''Platygonus'' is thought to have lived in herds. Their remains are particularly abundant in caves, suggesting that they regularly used them. A study on the population structure of a population of ''P. compressus'' from Bat Cave, Missouri found that they had a similar demographic structure to modern peccaries, dominated by young adults, with a progressive attenuation of older adults due to predation and old-age, up to a maximum age of around 10 years. ''Platygonus'' is thought to have consumed tough foliage like leaves and grass.

Distribution

During the Late Pleistocene, ''Platygonus'' was most common in Eastern North America, with records in the Great Plains and western North America being more sparse. In South America, ''Platygonus'' ranged from Colombia to Argentina.

Taxonomy

The Childrens Museum of Indianapolis - Pleistocene Flat-headed Peccary Skull

''Platygonus'' was named by

John Lawrence LeConte John Lawrence LeConte MD (May 13, 1825 – November 15, 1883) was an American entomology, entomologist, responsible for naming and describing approximately half of the insect taxon, taxa known in the United States during his lifetime,

in 1848 for fossils found in Pleistocene karst deposits in Illinois, which are now preserved in the Academy of National Sciences in Philadelphia. The following species of ''Platygonus'' have been described: * ''P. bicalcaratus'' (''nomen dubium'') * ''P. brachirostris'' * ''P. chapadmalensis'' * ''P. cinctus'' * '' P. compressus'' (

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * ...

) * ''P. kraglievichi'' * ''P. marplatensis'' * ''P. narinoensis'' * ''P. oregonensis'' * ''P. pearcei'' * ''P. pollenae'' * ''P. scagliae'' * ''P. setiger'' * ''P. striatus'' * ''P. texanus'' * ''P. vetus''

Fossil localities

Fossils of ''Platygonus'' have been found in: ;Miocene * Sheep Creek Formation,

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

;Chapadmalalan * Chapadmalal Formation,

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

;Hemphillian *

Beecher Island Beecher Island is a sandbar located along the lower course of the Arikaree River, a tributary of the North Fork of the Republican River near Wray in Yuma County, Colorado. The site is notable for having been the scene of an 1868 armed conflic ...

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* Edson Beds,

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

* Rancho Viejo Beds,

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

* Devil's Nest Airstrip, Ogallala Group,

McKay McKay, MacKay or Mackay is a Scottish and Irish surname. The last phoneme in the name is traditionally pronounced to rhyme with 'eye', but in some parts of the world this has come to rhyme with 'hey'. In Scotland, it corresponds to Clan Mackay. ...

and Rattlesnake Formations,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

* Miami Quarry,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

;Blancan * Gila Conglomerate and St. David Formation,

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

* Palm Spring and San Diego Formations,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Tamiami Formation The Tamiami Formation is a Late Miocene to Pliocene geologic formation in the southwest Florida peninsula. Age Period (geology), Period: Neogene Epoch (geology), Epoch: Late Miocene to Pliocene Faunal stage: Clarendonian through Blancan ~13.06 ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

* Glenns Ferry Formations,

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

* Ballard, Rexroad and Crooked Creek Formations,

* Rancho Viejo Beds,

* Tequixquiac,

* Panaca Formation,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

* Camp Rice Formation,

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

Blanco Blanco (''white'' or ''blank'' in Spanish) or Los Blancos may refer to: People *Blanco (surname) Fictional characters *Blanco, a hobbit in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth *Blanco Webb, character in the BBC sitcom ''Porridge'' *Graboid#El Blanco, ...

and Love Formations,

* Ringold Formation, Washington ;Plio-Pleistocene * Cocha Verde, Taminango,

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

Cocha Verde
at

Fossilworks Fossilworks was a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database, a large relational database assembled by hundreds of paleontologists from around the world. History Fossilworks was cr ...

.org ;Pleistocene * Tarija Formation,

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

* Palm Spring and Turlock Lake Formations,

* Bermont and Wicomico Formations,

* Yarbrough Cave,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

* American Falls Lake Bed E Formation,

* Galena,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

( type locality)Galena
at

.org * Harrodsburg Crevice,

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

* Turin Pit,

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

* Kingsdown and Crooked Creek Formations,

* Welch Cave,

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

* Cumberland Bone Cave and Bushey Cavern,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

* Tacubaya Formation,

* Geddes Lake barrow pit,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

* Little Beaver Cave, Jacob's Cave, and Zoo Cave,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

* Sappa Formation,

* Dry Cave,

* Sheriden Cave,

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

* Holloman Gravel Pit,

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

* Fossil Lake,

* Hanover Quarry and ''Platygonus vetus'' type locality,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

* Hot Springs Mammoth Site,

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

* Laubach Cave, Seymour, Tule and Shuler Formations,

* Early's Cave, Gardner's Cave, New Quarry Cave, Vickers Cave, Ruffners Cave,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

* Hamilton Cave, Trout Cave, Poorfarm Cave, Patton Cave,

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

* Wellsch Valley,

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Old Crow Flats Old Crow Flats (''Van Tat'' in the Gwichʼin language) is a wetland complex in northern Yukon, Canada along the Old Crow River. It is north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Beaufort Sea, and is nearly surrounded by mountains. Site The site ...

Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...

ResearchGate ResearchGate is a European commercial social networking site for scientists and researchers to share papers, ask and answer questions, and find collaborators. According to a 2014 study by ''Nature'' and a 2016 article in ''Times Higher Education' ...

.org

References

Bibliography

* *

Taxonomy

Description

Ecology

Distribution

Taxonomy

Fossil localities

References

Bibliography

Further reading