| Peltephilus | |
|---|---|
) | |
| Interpretation of P. ferox | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Superorder: | |
| Order: | Cingulata |
| Family: | †Peltephilidae |
| Genus: | †Peltephilus Ameghino 1887 |
| Type species | |
| Peltephilus ferox Ameghino 1887 | |
| Species | |
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Peltephilus, the horned armadillo, is an extinct genus of dog-sized, armadillo xenarthran mammals which first inhabited Argentina during the Oligocene epoch, and became extinct in the Miocene epoch. Notably, the scutes on its head were so developed that they formed horns. Aside from the horned gophers of North America, it is the only known fossorial horned mammal.[1]
Although it had traditionally been perceived as a carnivore because of its large, triangular-shaped teeth, Vizcaino and Farina argued in 1997 that Peltephilus was a herbivore.[2]
Taxonomy
The genus was classified as belonging to the family Chlamyphoridae, and in 2007 was placed in its own family Peltephilidae by Darin A. Croft, John J. Flynn and Andre Wyss.[3]
Distribution
Fossils of Peltephilus have been found in:[4]
- Deseadan
- Miocene
- Argentina - Colloncuran Collón Curá Formation and Santacrucian Santa Cruz Formation[6]
- Bolivia - Colloncuran Nazareno Formation
- Chile - Santacrucian Chucal Formation[3]
References
- ^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. pp. 208–209. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
- ^ Vizcaino, S. F., & R. A. Farina (1997), Diet and locomotion of the armadillo Peltephilus: a new view. Lethaia, 30, 79-86.
- ^ a b Croft et al., 2007
- ^ Peltephilus at Fossilworks.org
- ^ Shockey, 2017
- ^ González Ruiz et al., 2013, p.323
Bibliography
- Croft, Darin A.; John J. Flynn, and André R. Wyss. 2007. A new basal Glyptodontid and other Xenarthra of the Early Miocene Chucal Fauna, northern Chile. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 21. 781–797. Accessed 2017-08-15.
- González Ruiz, Laureano Raúl; Flavio Góis; Martín Ricardo Ciancio, and Gustavo Juan Scillato Yané. 2013. Los Peltephilidae (Mammalia, Xenarthra) de la Formación Collón Curá (Colloncurense, Mioceno Medio), Argentina. Revista Brasileira de Paleontologia 16. 319–330. Accessed 2019-02-27.
- Shockey, Bruce J. 2017. New early diverging cingulate (Xenarthra: Peltephilidae) from the Late Oligocene of Bolivia and considerations regarding the origin of crown Xenarthra. Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History 58. 371–396. Accessed 2019-02-12.