Kingdom Animalia Suborder Strepsirrhini Subfamily †Cercamoniinae Phylum Chordata Order Primate | Class Mammalia Family †Notharctidae Scientific name Pronycticebus neglectus Rank Genus | |
Similar Primate, Adapis, Smilodectes | ||
Pronycticebus was a genus of adapiformes primates that lived during the middle to middle late Eocene. It is represented by two species, Pronycticebus gaudryi and Pronycticebus neglectus, of which an almost complete specimen was found in Germany.
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Morphology
Pronycticebus neglectus possessed what appears to be a grooming claw on the second digit of each foot like modern strepsirhines (Fleagle, 1999) and had a dental formula of 2:1:4:3. Pronycticebus neglectus has a petrosal bulla and a postorbital bar. Pronycticebus neglectus may have been a nocturnal or a crepuscular species, which is suggested by a relatively large orbital size. Pronycticebus neglectus has a relatively large baculum for a species of its size, which had an average body mass of 825 grams.
Range
Pronycticebus neglectus lived in Europe.
Locomotion
Based upon limb morphology, Pronycticebus neglectus moved by quadrupedalism, leaping, and climbing. This species is less of a leaper than the notharctines and used slow quadrupedalism less than the adapines.