| Gondwanatherium | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
| Species | ||||||||||||
|
G. patagonicum | ||||||||||||
| Ref. |
Gondwanatherium is an extinct mammal genus from the Upper Cretaceous of Patagonia. It was a member of the extinct taxon of Gondwanatheria, and lived during 'the age of the dinosaurs'.
The position of gongwanatherians within Mammalia is not yet clear.
Genus: Gondwanatherium Bonaparte JF, 1986
'Gondwana beast'
Species: Gondwanatherium patagonicum Bonaparte JF, 1986
Place: Los Alamitos, Patagonia
Country: Argentina
Age: Upper Cretaceous
Remarks: Though earlier than Sudamerica, Gondwantherium is held to be more anatomically derived. This may sound surprising, but there's no reason why ancestral lines might not outlive descended ones.
Reference: Bonaparte (1986), Sobre Mesungulatum houssayi y nuevos mamíferos Cretácicos de Patagonia, Argentina. (Spanish, with English summary). Actas Congr. Argent. Paleontol. Bioestratigr. 4, p.48-61.
Page reference: McKenna MC & Bell SK, (1997), Classification of Mammals Above the Species Level. Columbia University Press.
(This information has been derived from [1] MESOZOIC MAMMALS; Gondwanatheria, an internet directory. As that's my webpage, there are no issues of copyright. Trevor Dykes)