Family †Merycoidodontidae | Phylum Chordata Order Artiodactyla Rank Genus | |
Subfamily †AclistomycterinaeLander 1998 Similar Miniochoerus, Agriochoerus, Merycochoerus, Mesoreodon, Brachycrus | ||
Aclistomycter is an extinct genus of oreodont during the early Chadronian subepoch (42—39.9 mya, Late Eocene) existing for approximately 2.1 million years from the Chambers Tuff Formation near Adobe Springs in Presidio County, Texas.
Contents
Aclistomycter was a very small herbivorous artiodactyl with a short face, small, but tusk-like canine teeth. The type specimen (TMM 41213-1) consists of a skull and jaws and two other specimens are referred to it: TMM 41216-11, skull with C-M^3; TMM 41211-9, skull fragment with M^1-M^3.
Diagnosis
Generic characters assigned by Wilson (1970):
Taxonomy
Aclistomycter was named and assigned to Merycoidodontidae and the Merycoidodontinae by Wilson (1971). But Lander (1998) erected a new subfamily for it, the Aclistomycterinae. Wilson recognized it was more primitive than Leptauchenia and Lander placed it as more derived than the bathygenines but basal to leptaucheniines and other more derived merycoidodontids.
Morphology
A single specimen was examined by M. Mendoza for body mass and estimated to have a weight of 87.9 kg (193.7 lbs).