| Ilariidae | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Suborder: | Vombatiformes |
| Family: | †Ilariidae Tedford & Woodburne, 1987 |
| Genus | |
The family Ilariidae consists of 3 species of extinct marsupial in two genera. They are all found in the middle tertiary assemblage of South Australia. Closely related to Koobor of family Phascolarctidae, which was found in Hamilton Victoria. I. illumidens is the best preserved representative of this extinct clade of vombatiforms. The species is found in the Namba Formation of late Oligocene age, Lake Pinpa, South Australia. The material consists of a partial cranium and mandibular fragments with most of the dentition, together with parts of the postcranial skeleton[1]. The other species in this family are known from a few jaw fragments and intact molars attached, they are categorised in a separate family because their teeth structure is unique among Diprotodontia, in having a complicated folding pattern. Ilariids are hypothesised to be the largest marsupials of their time in the Lake Eyre and Tarkarooloo basin and lived along with Wynyardiidae, Obdurodon, and thylacoleonids (marsupial lions) like Priscileo and Wakaleo.