Kenyapotamus
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Extinct (fossil)
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| Kenyapotamus coryndoni and Kenyapotamus ternani Pickford, 1983 |
Kenyapotamus is an extinct ancestor of the modern Hippopotamus which lived in Africa roughly 16 million to 8 million years ago during the Miocene epoch. Its name is derived because its fossils were found in modern-day Kenya.
Although little is known about the Kenyapotamus, it's dental pattern bore similarities to that of the genus Xenohyus, a European Tayassuid from the Early Miocene. This led some scientists to conclude that Hippopotami were most closely related to modern peccaries and pigs[1].
Recent molecular research has suggested that Kenyapotamus and the entire Hippopotamidae family, along with family Anthracotheriidae, may be more closely related to Cetaceans[2].
[edit] References
- ^ Petronio, C. (1995): Note on the taxonomy of Pleistocene hippopotamuses. Ibex 3: 53-55. PDF fulltext
- ^ Boisserie, Jean-Renaud and Fabrice Lihoreau, and Michel Brunet (2005): The position of Hippopotamidae within Cetartiodactyla. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2005 Feb 1; 102(5): 1537-1541. published online before print January 26, 2005 HTML Abstract
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