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''Sinotherium'' (" Chinese Beast") 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 ...
of single- horned elasmotheriine rhinocerotids that lived from the
late Miocene The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million ye ...
(
Tortonian The Tortonian is in the geologic time scale an age or stage of the late Miocene that spans the time between 11.608 ± 0.005 Ma and 7.246 ± 0.005 Ma (million years ago). It follows the Serravallian and is followed by the Messinian. The Tort ...
-
Messinian The Messinian is in the geologic timescale the last age or uppermost stage of the Miocene. It spans the time between 7.246 ± 0.005 Ma and 5.333 ± 0.005 Ma (million years ago). It follows the Tortonian and is followed by the Zanclean, the fir ...
) to
Early Pliocene Early may refer to: Places in the United States * Early, Iowa, a city * Early, Texas, a city * Early Branch, a stream in Missouri * Early County, Georgia * Fort Early, Georgia, an early 19th century fort Music * Early B, stage name of Jamaican d ...
. It was ancestral to ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
,'' demonstrating a very important evolutionary transition from nasal-horned elasmotheriines to frontal- horned elasmotheriines. Its fossils have been found in the
Karabulak Formation Karabulak may refer to: ;Places *Karabulak, Azerbaijan (disambiguation), Karabulak, Azerbaijan, alternative name of several localities in Azerbaijan *Karabulak, Kazakhstan, an urban-type settlement in Kazakhstan *Karabulak (South Kazakhstan), a vil ...
of
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, lower jaw and teeth have been found in
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
, and a partial
skull The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...
is known from the upper part of the Liushu Formation of western
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. ''Sinotherium'' diverged from the ancestral
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 ...
, '' Iranotherium'', first found in
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
, during the
early Pliocene Early may refer to: Places in the United States * Early, Iowa, a city * Early, Texas, a city * Early Branch, a stream in Missouri * Early County, Georgia * Fort Early, Georgia, an early 19th century fort Music * Early B, stage name of Jamaican d ...
. Some experts prefer to lump ''Sinotherium'', and '' Iranotherium'' into ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
''.


Discovery, History and Taxonomy


Species

The type species of ''Sinotherium'' is ''S. lagrelii''. It is also known to have an additional species from the Zaisan depression of Kazakhstan called ''S. zaisanensis'', however, doubt has been raised on its validity.

Discovery

Finds of ''Sinotherium'' are rather rare and often only fragmentary. The first fossils, which also led to the description of the
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 ...
genus, came to light at the beginning of the 20th century and were discovered by JG Andersson in the Baode district in the Chinese province of
Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...
in deposits from the Upper Miocene. These mainly consisted of isolated teeth, an upper jaw fragment with the preserved row of teeth from the second premolar to the penultimate molar, and a lower jaw fragment.Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
near Chono-Khariakha, a 72 cm long, well-preserved lower jaw was discovered which dates to the Lower Pliocene.Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, including a rear part of the skull with part of the teeth and several skeletal elements of the body. The most complete skull to date was found in the upper area of the Liushu Formation near Houaigou in the Guanghe District of Gansu Province. The Liushu Formation is about 100 m thick and over wide ranges of Linxia basin digested. This section is dated to about 7 to 6.4 million years and thus belongs to the end of 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 ...
. The geological deposits of the Linxia Basin have already produced numerous well-preserved fossil rhinoceros remains, including numerous representatives of the Elasmotheriinae. Only the part of the snout is missing from the skull and it provided evidence of the location of the horns in ''Sinotherium''.


Description


Skull and Horn

The horns of older elasmotheriines are present on their nasals (nose), whereas the horn of ''Sinotherium'''s descendant ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
'' is present on its frontals (forehead), ''Sinotherium'' shows a unique condition in which its horn is present in an intermediate "naso-frontal" position. This represents the horn shifting from its ancestral nasal position to the derived frontal position, eventually resulting in the completely frontal restricted position of ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
''. In addition to the nasofrontal horn, ''Sinotherium'' also preserves a rugosity on its forehead, just behind the nasofrontal horn, which implies that the animal had two horns.


Paleobiology


Evolution

Early elasmotheriine
genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...
of the line leading to ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
'', have a
dolichocephalic Dolichocephaly (derived from the Ancient Greek δολιχός 'long' and κεφαλή 'head') is a term used to describe a head that is longer than average relative to its width. In humans, scaphocephaly is a form of dolichocephaly. Dolichoceph ...
skull The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...
supporting a horn growing on their
nose A nose is a sensory organ and respiratory structure in vertebrates. It consists of a nasal cavity inside the head, and an external nose on the face. The external nose houses the nostrils, or nares, a pair of tubes providing airflow through the ...
, just like any other
Rhinocerotid 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 ...
, however, ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
'' was the sole member of
Elasmotheriinae 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 had a
brachycephalic Brachycephaly (derived from the Ancient Greek '' βραχύς'', 'short' and '' κεφαλή'', 'head') is the shape of a skull shorter than average in its species. It is perceived as a cosmetically desirable trait in some domesticated dog and ...
skull The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...
and supported a horn on its
forehead In human anatomy, the forehead is an area of the head bounded by three features, two of the skull and one of the scalp. The top of the forehead is marked by the hairline, the edge of the area where hair on the scalp grows. The bottom of the fo ...
instead. A transition between this state of
nose A nose is a sensory organ and respiratory structure in vertebrates. It consists of a nasal cavity inside the head, and an external nose on the face. The external nose houses the nostrils, or nares, a pair of tubes providing airflow through the ...
- horned to
forehead In human anatomy, the forehead is an area of the head bounded by three features, two of the skull and one of the scalp. The top of the forehead is marked by the hairline, the edge of the area where hair on the scalp grows. The bottom of the fo ...
- horned elasmotheriines remained missing until 2012, when the first cranial remains of ''Sinotherium lagrelii,'' (specimen IVPP V 18539, a partial
skull The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...
housed at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
) was described, demonstrating a very important transition from nose- horned elasmotheriines like '' Ningxiatherium'' to forehead- horned elasmotheriines like ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
''. While the horns of '' Ningxiatherium''-like elasmotheriines are present on their nasals, and the horn of ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
'' on its frontals, ''Sinotherium'' shows its horn to be present in a "nasofrontal" position, (present on both the nose and the forehead). This shows the horn shifting from its ancestral nasal position to a more derived frontal position, eventually resulting in the completely frontal restricted position of ''
Elasmotherium ''Elasmotherium'' is an extinct genus of large rhinoceros that lived in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and East Asia during Late Miocene through to the Late Pleistocene, with the youngest reliable dates of at least 39,000 years ago. It was ...
''.


Distribution and Paleoecology

''Sinotherium'' first appeared during the
Late Miocene The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million ye ...
, occupying
east Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
n and Mid-Asian regions, but remains dating to the
Early Pliocene Early may refer to: Places in the United States * Early, Iowa, a city * Early, Texas, a city * Early Branch, a stream in Missouri * Early County, Georgia * Fort Early, Georgia, an early 19th century fort Music * Early B, stage name of Jamaican d ...
can be found from
eastern Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan ...
to as far as the Kumo-Manych depression of South-Western
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. This showed that at the beginning of the
Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58 ''Sinotherium'' is known from
Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch (geology), epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.33 to 2.58Late Miocene The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million ye ...
deposits of
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
,
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
, and
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. In China, the species ''S. lagrelii'' is known from an age of 7 Ma from the red clays of the Late Miocene Liushu Formation in the Linxia Basin,
Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...
Province, accompanying one bear (''
Ursavus ''Ursavus'' is an extinct genus of bear that existed in North America, Europe, and Asia during the Miocene period, about 23–5.3 million years ago (Mya), existing for roughly . The genus apparently dispersed from Asia into North America abo ...
sp.''), one badger-like
mustelid The Mustelidae (; from Latin , weasel) are a diverse family of carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, polecats, martens, grisons, and wolverines. Otherwise known as mustelids (), they form the largest family in the suborde ...
('' Parataxidea sinensis''), three hyenas ('' Hyaenictitherium wongii'', ''H. hyaenoides'', and ''
Ictitherium ''Ictitherium'' (meaning "weasel beast") is an extinct genus belonging to the family Hyaenidae and the subfamily Ictitheriinae erected by Trouessart in 1897. ''Ictitherium'' species were endemic to Africa and Eurasia during the Middle Miocene t ...
sp.''), three
felids Felidae ( ) is the family of mammals in the order Carnivora colloquially referred to as cats. A member of this family is also called a felid ( ). The 41 extant Felidae species exhibit the greatest diversity in fur patterns of all terrestria ...
('' Amphimachairodus giganteus'', ''
Metailurus ''Metailurus'' is a genus of saber-toothed cat in the family Felidae, and belonging to the tribe Metailurini, which occurred in North America, Eurasia and Africa from the Miocene to the Middle Pleistocene The Chibanian, more widely known a ...
major'', and ''
Felis ''Felis'' is a genus of small and medium-sized cat species native to most of Africa and south of 60° latitude in Europe and Asia to Indochina. The genus includes the domestic cat. The smallest of the seven ''Felis'' species is the black-footed ...
sp.''), one
chalicothere Chalicotheriidae (from Ancient Greek ''khálix'', "gravel", and ''theríon'', "beast") is an extinct family of herbivorous, odd-toed ungulate (perissodactyl) mammals that lived in North America, Eurasia, and Africa from the Middle Eocene to the ...
('' Ancylotherium sp.''), one three-toed horse ('' Hipparion coelophyes''), one deer ('' Dicrocerus sp.''), one giraffid ('' Palaeotragus microdon''), and three bovids ('' Sinotragus wimani'', '' Tsaidamotherium hedini'' and '' Protoryx sp.''). Of these, the combination of '' H. coelophyes'', '' S. wimani'', and '' Protoryx sp''. strongly support a late
Late Miocene The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million ye ...
age.
Pollen analysis Palynology is the study of microorganisms and microscopic fragments of mega-organisms that are composed of acid-resistant organic material and occur in sediments, sedimentary rocks, and even some metasedimentary rocks. Palynomorphs are the mic ...
of the Liushu Formation showed that grasses increased significantly and became dominant, especially xerophilous and sub-xerophilous grasses, along with some broad leaves of temperate and warm temperate zones, suggesting that the vegetation of the Liushu Formation belonged to a subarid or
arid Aridity is the condition of geographical regions which make up approximately 43% of total global available land area, characterized by low annual precipitation, increased temperatures, and limited water availability.Perez-Aguilar, L. Y., Plata ...
steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...
. In
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, ''Sinotherium zaisanensis'' is known from the
Karabulak formation Karabulak may refer to: ;Places *Karabulak, Azerbaijan (disambiguation), Karabulak, Azerbaijan, alternative name of several localities in Azerbaijan *Karabulak, Kazakhstan, an urban-type settlement in Kazakhstan *Karabulak (South Kazakhstan), a vil ...
which dates to 6.3–6.5 Ma (
Late Miocene The Late Miocene (also known as Upper Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch, which lasted from 11.63 Ma (million ye ...
). It coexisted with four
caniforms Caniformia is a suborder within the order Carnivora consisting of "dog-like" carnivorans. They include dogs (wolves, foxes, etc.), bears, raccoons, and mustelids. The Pinnipedia ( seals, walruses and sea lions) are also assigned to this gr ...
('' Martes sp., Promeles sp., Plesiogulo crassa Teilhard, Indarctos punjabiensis''), three
feliforms Feliformia is a suborder within the order Carnivora consisting of "cat-like" carnivorans, including Felidae, cats (large and small), hyenas, mongooses, viverrids, and related taxa. Feliformia stands in contrast to the other suborder of Carnivora, ...
('' Adcrocuta eximia, Hyaenictitherium hyaenoides orlovi,'' ''Amphimachairodus kurteni''), three perissodactyls ( ''Hipparion hippidiodus'', '' H. elegans'', '' Chilotherium sp.)'', and six
artiodactyls Artiodactyls are placental mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla ( , ). Typically, they are ungulates which bear weight equally on two (an even number) of their five toes (the third and fourth, often in the form of a hoof). The other thre ...
('' Cervavitus novorossiae, Procapreolus latifrons, Samotherium cf. irtyshense, Paleotragus (Yuorlovia) asiaticus, Tragoportax sp.,
Gazella dorcadoides A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . There are also seven species included in two further genera; ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third former subgenus, ''P ...
''). The climate that ''Sinotherium zaisanensis'' lived in was mild and arid. It was a habitat of wide, open steppes.


References


External links

*"Elasmotherians- Evolution, Distribution, and Ecology

*Mikko's Phylogeny Archive, "Rhinocerotidae: †Elasmotheriinae: †Elasmotheriini: †Elasmotheriina

*''New Remains of Paraelasmotherium (Perissodactyla. Rhinocerotidae) from the Miocene in Dongxiang Study. Gansu, China'

{{Taxonbar, from=Q938485 Miocene rhinoceroses Neogene mammals of Asia Pliocene rhinoceroses Fossil taxa described in 1924 Miocene mammals of Asia Pliocene mammals of Asia