Dorcopsoides
Extinct genus of marsupials
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dorcopsoides is a genus of extinct kangaroo from the Late Miocene of Australia and Late Pliocene of Papua New Guinea.[2][3]
| Dorcopsoides Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Family: | Macropodidae |
| Genus: | †Dorcopsoides Woodburne, 1967 |
| Type species | |
| †Dorcopsoides fossilis Woodburne, 1967 | |
| Other species | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Description
The genus Dorcopsoides was described in 1967 from a well-preserved lower jaw, skull fragments, and occipital found in the Upper Miocene Alcoota Fossil Beds north-east of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. It was part of the Alcoota local fauna, which also included zygomaturine diprotodonts, a type of mihirung (Ilbandornis), a crocodile (Baru) and the giant thylacine, Thylacinus potens.[4]
It was about the size of a gray and black four-eyed opossum. The generic name, Dorcopsoides, indicates a resemblance to forest wallabies (Dorcopsis) now living in New Guinea and neighboring islands.[5]
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