Thylophorops
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| Thylophorops | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Adult and juvenile T. lorenzinii compared to Didelphis crucialis | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Didelphimorphia |
| Family: | Didelphidae |
| Subfamily: | Didelphinae |
| Genus: | Thylophorops Reig, 1952 |
| Type species | |
| †Thylophorops chapadmalensis Ameghino, 1908 | |
| Species | |
| |
Thylophorops is an extinct genus of didelphine opossums from the Pliocene of South America. Compared to their close didelphine cousins like the living Philander and Didelphis (and like the still living Lutreolina) opossums, Thylophorops displays specialization towards carnivory, and one species, T. lorenzinii, is the largest known opossum of all time,[1] which could imply a macropredatory role.[2][3]
Thylophorops is rather consistently recovered as a didelphine opossum, most often compared to and usually falling within the Didelphis, Philander and Lutreolina group.[4] Within Thylophorops itself, there are three recognized species:
- Thylophorops chapadmalensis: The type species, known from the Pliocene (Chapadmalalan) Chapadmalal Formation and other (up to Uquian) formations in Argentina. It is known from a variety of skeletal remains, rendering it a fairly common species in the area. It is a large opossum species, comparable to the modern Virginia opossum in size.
- Thylophorops lorenzinii: Currently known only from the holotype MLP 08-III-10-1, a lower jaw and skull fragment, coming from Late Pliocene deposits in Buenos Aires. It represents a juvenile individual, estimated to weight around 7–8.6 kilograms (15–19 lb), making it the largest known didelphid of all time.[1][5]
- Thylophorops perplana/perplanus: The earliest known species, occurring in Early Pliocene Argentinian deposits.[1][6]