Stegotherium
Extinct genus of mammals in the armadillo order of xenarthrans / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Stegotherium is an extinct genus of long-nosed armadillo, belonging to the Dasypodidae family alongside the nine-banded armadillo. It is currently the only genus recognized as a member of the tribe Stegotheriini. It lived during the Early Miocene of Patagonia and was found in Colhuehuapian rocks from the Sarmiento Formation, Santacrucian rocks from the Santa Cruz Formation,[2] and potentially also in Colloncuran rocks from the Middle Miocene Collón Curá Formation.[3] Its strange, almost toothless and elongated skull indicates a specialization for myrmecophagy, the eating of ants, unique among the order Cingulata, which includes pampatheres, glyptodonts and all the extant species of armadillos.[4]
Stegotherium | |
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Skeleton of Stegotherium tauberi (without carapace) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Cingulata |
Family: | Dasypodidae |
Subfamily: | Dasypodinae |
Genus: | †Stegotherium Ameghino, 1887 |
Type species | |
†Stegotherium tessellatum Ameghino, 1887 | |
Species | |
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Synonyms | |
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