Mylodon
An extinct genus of ground sloths / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Mylodon?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Mylodon is a genus of extinct ground sloth belonging to the family Mylodontidae, known from southern South America. With a total length of 3 to 4 m and a body mass of 1-2 tonnes, it is one of the largest mylodontids.
Mylodon | |
---|---|
Lithograph of the skull of Mylodon | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Pilosa |
Family: | †Mylodontidae |
Tribe: | †Mylodontini |
Genus: | †Mylodon Owen, 1840 |
Species: | †M. darwini |
Binomial name | |
†Mylodon darwini Owen, 1840 | |
The oldest finds probably date to the Lower Pleistocene; however, most of the fossil remains date to the Late Pleistocene. During the Pleistocene, Mylodon ranged further south than any other ground sloth, extending to the far south of Patagonia, with some of the best known remains of the species being from the titular Cueva del Milodon (cave of Mylodon) in Chile.
In addition to skeletal remains, Mylodon is also known from preserved skin and hair. Preserved dung (coprolites) indicates that Mylodon was a grazer, feeding on grasses and sedges.
Mylodon has generally only a single recognised species, Mylodon darwini, which was described by Richard Owen in 1840 based on remains collected in the Pampas by Charles Darwin during the Voyage of the Beagle. Some recent authors suggest that there were two species, with M. darwini restricted to the Pampas, with the Patagonian remains belonging to the separate species Mylodon listai.[1]
Mylodon went extinct at the end of the Late Pleistocene-beginning of the Holocene, around 12-10,000 years ago, as part of the Late Pleistocene megafauna extinctions, along with other ground sloths and most large animals across the Americas. Mylodon chronologically overlapped with Paleoindians, the first humans to inhabit the Americas, which may have hunted Mylodon. The extinction of Mylodon may be the result of climatic change, hunting by Paleoindians, or a combination of both factors.