| Pachyarmatherium Temporal range: Pliocene–Pleistocene |
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|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Superorder: | Xenarthra |
| Order: | Cingulata |
| Family: | incertae sedis |
| Genus: | †Pachyarmatherium Downing & White (1995) |
| Species | |
|
†P. leiseyi Downing & White (1995) |
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Pachyarmatherium is an extinct large armadillo-like cingulate genus of North and South America from the Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs, related to the extant armadillos and the extinct pampatheres and glyptodonts.[1] It was present from 4.9 Mya—300,000 years ago, existing for approximately 4.6 million years.
Pachyarmatherium was named by Downing and White (1995). Its type is P. leiseyi. It was assigned to Dasypodoidea by Downing and White (1995), and tentatively to Glyptodontidae by McKenna and Bell (1997).[2][3] However, a cladistic analysis performed by de O. Porpino et al. led to the conclusion that Pachyarmatherium is a sister group to a clade consisting of Glyptodontidae and Pampatheriidae.[1]