Ticholeptus
Extinct genus of mammals
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ticholeptus is an extinct genus of oreodont endemic to North America during the Middle Miocene subepoch (16.0—13.6 mya), existing for approximately 2.4 million years.[1] Fossils have been uncovered throughout the United States from Florida to Oregon, as well as California, and numerous sites in Nebraska, Nevada, and Montana.
| Ticholeptus Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| |
| Ticholeptus petersoni | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | †Merycoidodontidae |
| Genus: | †Ticholeptus Cope 1878 |
| Species | |
|
Ticholeptus zygomaticus | |
Palaeoecology
The dental mesowear of Ticholeptus shows that it was a mixed feeder or grazer and that it had one of the most texturally abrasive diets of any oreodont taxon.[2]
