Kingdom Animalia Family Mustelidae Tribe Lutrini Rank Genus | Class Mammalia Subfamily Lutrinae Phylum Chordata Order Carnivores | |
Similar Carnivores, Megalenhydris, Thinobadistes, Plesiogulo, Aphelops | ||
Enhydritherium terraenovae is an extinct giant otter endemic to North America that lived during the Miocene through Pliocene epochs from ~9.1–4.9 Ma. (AEO), existing for approximately 4.2 million years.
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The ancestral lineage of Enhydritherium terraenova can be traced to Africa and Eurasia, but no clear route of migration can be determined according to Thompson et al.
Taxonomy
Enhydritherium terraenovae was named by Berta and Morgan in 1985 and is the genotype for this animal. Its type locality is the phosphate Palmetto Mine in Florida, which is in a Hemphillian marginal marine sandstone in the Upper Bone Valley Formation of Florida.
Fossil distribution
Fossil specimens were found from in California (3 sites) and Florida (8 sites).
Morphology
Body mass for Enhydritherium terraenovae was estimated at 16 kg (35 lb).