Dorcatherium
Extinct genus of mammals
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dorcatherium is an extinct genus of tragulid ruminant which existed in Europe, East Africa, and the Siwaliks during the Miocene and possibly Pliocene.[1]
Dorcatherium sp. by Mauricio Anton
Dorcatherium minus jaw fragments, Natural History Museum, London
Dorcatherium crassum Left Hemi Mandible MHNT
Dorcatherium guntianum Left Hemi Mandible MHNT
_Dorcatherium_crassum_-_Hémimandibule_gauche.jpg)
_Dorcatherium_guntianum_-_Hémimandibule_gauche.jpg)
| Dorcatherium | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Dorcatherium naui skeleton, Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Tragulidae |
| Genus: | †Dorcatherium Johann Jakob Kaup, 1833 |
| Type species | |
| †Dorcatherium naui Kaup & Scholl, 1834 | |
| Other species | |
| |
Palaeoecology
D. naui was partially frugivorous, the evidence for this being its dental enamel's 87Sr/86Sr, δ18OCO3, and δ13C values.[2] The dental microwear and mesowear of D. naui provides further evidence that it was a frugivorous browser.[3] At the Middle Miocene site of Maboko in Kenya, D. pigotti displays relatively high δ13C values, probably indicative of feeding in less wooded environments than modern tragulids, while the δ13C values of D. chappuisi at the same site were even higher, suggesting a preference for even more open and arid habitats than D. pigotti.[4]
