Zygomaturus

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Zygomaturus
Fossil range: Pleistocene

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Marsupialia
Order: Diprotodontia
Suborder: Vombatiformes
Family: Zygomaturidae
Genus: Zygomaturus
Species

Zygomaturus trilobus
Zygomaturus tasmanicus

Zygomaturus is an extinct giant marsupial from Australia during the Pleistocene. It had a heavy body and thick legs and is believed to be similar to the modern Pygmy Hippopotamus in both size and build.[1] The genus moved on all fours.[1] It lived in the wet coastal margins of Australia about 19,000 years ago.[1] Zygomaturus also is believed to have expanded its range toward the interior of the continent along the waterways.[1] It is believed to have lived in small herds. Zygomaturus probaby ate reeds and sedges by shoveling them up in clumps with its lower incisor teeth.[1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e Ellis, Richard (2004). No Turning Back: The Life and Death of Animal Species. New York: Harper Perrenial, 101. ISBN 0-06-055804-0. 
  • Wildlife of Gondwana: Dinosaurs and Other Vertebrates from the Ancient Supercontinent (Life of the Past) by Pat Vickers Rich, Thomas Hewitt Rich, Francesco Coffa, and Steven Morton
  • Marsupial Nutrition by Ian D. Hume
  • Prehistoric Mammals of Australia and New Guinea: One Hundred Million Years of Evolution by John A. Long, Michael Archer, Timothy Flannery, and Suzanne Hand
  • Life of Marsupials by Hugh Tyndale-Biscoe
  • Magnificent Mihirungs: The Colossal Flightless Birds of the Australian Dreamtime (Life of the Past) by Peter F. Murray, Patricia Vickers-Rich, and Pat Vickers Rich
  • Classification of Mammals by Malcolm C. McKenna and Susan K. Bell
  • Australia's Lost World: Prehistoric Animals of Riversleigh by Michael Archer, Suzanne J. Hand, and Henk Godthelp

[edit] External links

[edit] See also

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