Metamynodon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Extinct (fossil)
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Metamynodon is an extinct genus of mammal whose fossils have been discovered in the United States and Asia.
The 4 m (13 ft) long creature was related to the modern rhinoceros, but looked more like a hippopotamus. Metamynodon's front legs had four toes instead of the three usually found in rhinos. Although it was a herbivore (as indicated by its teeth), its skull had a bony ridge typically associated with carnivorous mammals. Most likely it fed on tough plant material, and the jaw muscles were attached to this ridge. Metamynodon used its enlarged canines and fleshy lips to search for food in river banks. Thanks to its high-placed eyes it could still see while almost fully submerged, much like a hippopotamus or crocodile.
 |
This prehistoric mammal-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
