Mammalia - Sparassodonta - Borhyaenidae

Description. The trigonid is 3 taller than the talonid. The protoconid and metaconid are damaged, not allowing a comparison of their height with the paraconid. Nevertheless, based on the preserved bases of these cuspids, the metaconid is the smallest of them. The talonid has ca. 33 of the trigonid length and about 25 of the tooth length (Table3). The talonid basin is nearly absent due to the presence of an enlarged hypoconulid. The hypoconulid is the only identifiable cuspid, entoconid and hypoconid are absent). The anterolabial cingulid is broad, in occlusal view, and extends to the protoconid. This tooth is identified as a left m4 based on the presence of a cristid obliqua with a lingual contact with the trigonid, very short talonid and absence of entoconid and hypoconid.

Full reference: C. C. Rangel, L. M. Carneiro, M. F. Tejedor, L. P. Bergqvist, and E. V. Oliveira. 2023. A reassessment of Nemolestes (Mammalia, Metatheria): Systematics and evolutionary implications for Sparassodonta. Journal of Mammalian Evolution

Belongs to Nemolestes according to C. C. Rangel et al. 2023

Sister taxa: Nemolestes brasiliensis, Nemolestes spalacotherinus

Type specimen: LIEB-PV 1038, a tooth (a left m4)

Ecology: scansorial carnivore

Distribution: found only at Laguna Fría (Eocene of Argentina)

Show more details

Specimen images are retrieved through the ePANDDA API.