Microleo
| Microleo Temporal range: Early Miocene | |
|---|---|
 | |
| artist's reconstruction | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Family: | †Thylacoleonidae |
| Genus: | †Microleo |
| Species: | M. attenboroughi |
| Binomial name | |
| Microleo attenboroughi Gillespie, et al 2016 | |
Microleo attenboroughi is a very small marsupial lion from the Early Miocene of Australia, about 18 million years ago.[1] M. attenboroughi is currently known from a broken palate containing an incomplete row of cheekteeth diagnostic of Thylacoleonidae found in the Early Miocene-aged area of the Riversleigh World Heritage Site, in Queensland.
The anatomy of Microleo suggests it is the basalmost of all thylacoleonids, and that the marsupial lions as a whole are basal vombatomorphs that form the sister taxon of all other Vombatomorphia[1]
References
- 1 2 Gillespie, Anna K.; Archer, Michael; Hand, Suzanne J. (2016). "A tiny new marsupial lion (Marsupialia, Thylacoleonidae) from the early Miocene of Australia" (PDF). Palaeontologia Electronica. Palaeontological Association. 19 (2.26A): 1–26. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
External links
- Microleo attenboroughi: New Species of Marsupial Lion Unearthed in Australia
- "An extinct 600-gram ‘micro-lion’ has been discovered in Australia"
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