Altungulata

Altungulata or Pantomesaxonia (sensu Fischer 1986 and later authors) is an invalid clade (mirorder) of ungulate mammals comprising the perissodactyls, hyracoids, and tethytheres (sirenians, proboscideans, and related extinct taxa.)

The name "Pantomesaxonia" was originally introduced by Franz 1924, a German zoologist and racial theorist. It was resurrected by Fischer 1986 by including sirenians and excluding South American ungulates, phenacodontids, and meniscotheriids from the original concept.

The name "Altungulata", introduced by Prothero & Schoch 1989 and revised by McKenna & Bell 1997, was erected as an alternative because the updated concept of "Pantomesaxonia" was regarded too deviant from the original concept.

Both names are still in use, and, to add to the confusion, various authors assign different ranks to the involved taxa. For example, according to Thewissen & Domning 1992, Phenacodonta (Phenacodontidae and Meniscotheriidae) and Pantomesaxonia (Sirenia, Desmostylia, Proboscidea, Hyracoidea, and Perissodactyla) are sister groups together making up the superorder Paenungulata.

Altungulata is not supported by molecular evidence unless perissodactyls are excluded (thus dividing Altungulata into Laurasiatheria and Afrotheria), and the validity of the following uniting synapomorphies remain disputed:

Recent studies on Abdounodus showcase that dental synapomorphies between both groups arose independently, further discrediting the Altungulata hypothesis.