Peligrotherium
Extinct genus of mammals
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Peligrotherium is an extinct meridiolestidan mammal from the Paleocene of Patagonia, originally interpreted as a stem-ungulate (though it did co-exist with early meridiungulates). Its remains have been found in the Salamanca Formation.[1] Around the size of a dog, it was among the largest of all non-therian mammals, and the largest non-therian mammal known from South America.[2] It is a member of Mesungulatoidea, a clade of herbivorous meridiolestidans with molars that had rounded (bunodont) cusps.[3]
| Peligrotherium | |
|---|---|
| |
| Life restoration and 3D model of skull and mandibles | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Clade: | †Meridiolestida |
| Clade: | †Mesungulatoidea |
| Family: | †Peligrotheriidae Bonaparte et al., 1993 |
| Genus: | †Peligrotherium Bonaparte et al., 1993 |
| Species: | †P. tropicalis |
| Binomial name | |
| †Peligrotherium tropicalis Bonaparte et al., 1993 | |
Description
The dental formula of Peligrotherium tropicalis was I4?/? C1/1 P3/3 M3/3. Its last premolar was fully molarised, having morphology strongly akin to a molar, as has been suggested for mesungulatoids broadly. The presence of a high cementoenamel junction with a pronounced ridge showing signs of having undergone oral abrasion suggests that the species had a tall, thick gingiva comparable to that of a hippopotamus.[4]
Diet
A biomechanical study found Peligrotherium to be a herbivore that was functionally similar to the black rhino.[5]
