Post by Infinity Blade on May 29, 2020 19:17:46 GMT 5
Chapalmalania spp.
Life reconstruction of Chapalmalania. © @ DeviantArt user Dontknowwhattodraw94
Temporal range: late Early to Late Pliocene; Chapadmalan to Vorohuean[1]
Scientific classification:
Life
Domain: Eukaryota
(unranked): Unikonta
(unranked): Opisthokonta
(unranked): Holozoa
(unranked): Filozoa
Kingdom: Animalia
Subkingdom: Eumetazoa
(unranked): Bilateria
Clade: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Olfactores
Clade: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Clade: Eugnathostomata
Clade: Teleostomi
Superclass: Tetrapoda
Clade: Reptiliomorpha
Clade: Amniota
Clade: Synapsida
Clade: Eupelycosauria
Clade: Sphenacodontia
Clade: Sphenacodontoidea
Clade: Therapsida
Clade: Eutheriodonta
Clade: Cynodontia
Clade: Epicynodontia
Clade: Eucynodontia
Clade: Probainognathia
Clade: Chiniquodontoidea
Clade: Prozostrodontia
Clade: Mammaliaformes
Class: Mammalia
(unranked): Pegasoferae
(unranked): Zooamata
Clade: Holotheria
Superlegion: Trechnotheria
Legion: Cladotheria
Sublegion: Zatheria
Infralegion: Tribosphenida
Subclass: Theria
Clade: Eutheria
Infraclass: Placentalia
Subcohort: Exafroplacentalia
Magnorder: Boreoeutheria
Superorder: Laurasiatheria
(unranked): Ferae
(unranked): Carnivoramorpha
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Caniformia
Infraorder: Arctoidea
Superfamily: Musteloidea
Family: Procyonidae
Genus: †Chapalmalania
Species: †C. altaefrontis, †C. orthognatha
Chapalmalania is an extinct genus of procyonid that inhabited South America from the Middle to Late Pliocene epoch, going extinct approximately 3 million years ago (around the same time the last thylacosmilids went extinct, which was at the end of the Chapadmalan).[1]
Description and paleobiology:
While there seems to be no disagreement that Chapalmalania was unusually large for a procyonid (all sources agree it weighed far more than its ancestor Cyonasua), available body mass estimates in the literature vary considerably. Some sources claim an animal weighing ~25-30 kg[2][3] or just ~22 kg.[4] Another states the animal to weigh anywhere from 120-180 kg.[1]
Chapalmalania is typically depicted as resembling a bear. Morphological analysis of its teeth suggest that while it was more carnivorous than extant procyonids (except for Bassariscus), it was more omnivorous than other most other carnivorans and the hyper carnivorous sparassodonts it coexisted with. This would make it a hypocarnivore.[1] Consistent with some amount of animal matter in its diet, there is evidence of Chapalmalania scavenging on glyptodonts. The authors describing its bite marks on glyptodont vertebrae suggest that Chapalmalania was more like a hyena than a bear, with a low skull, well-developed sagittal crest, a relatively short face, and multiple other features.[2]
The dentition of C. altaefrontis matches with bite marks on the vertebrate of Eosclerocalyptus cf. lineatus. Fig. 7 of [2].
Evolution and extinction:
Chapalmalania is thought to have evolved from a species of Cyonasua, which first arrived in South America as early as the Late Miocene.[1] It appears that procyonids’ success in colonizing and evolving into new forms on South America lay within their ability to disperse over-water (better than most other carnivorans) and avoid competition with hyper carnivorous sparassodonts. Hypercarnivorous carnivorans that likely had similar over-water dispersal abilities, particularly canids and mustelids, did not arrive in South America until later, after the extinction of the sparassodonts. This meant that Chapalmalania was able to fill a niche not exploited by the native South American fauna (large omnivore) and experienced no significant competition with sparassodonts.[1] Chapalmalania quickly became extinct, approximately around the same time the last sparrassodonts[3] (maybe a bit later, given that Chapalmalania is said to have its latest records in the Vorohuean[1]).
References:
[1] Engelman, R. K., & Croft, D. A. (2019). Strangers in a strange land: Ecological dissimilarity to metatherian carnivores may partly explain early colonization of South America by Cyonasua-group procyonids[/i]. Paleobiology, 45(4), 598-611.
[2] de los Reyes, M., Poiré, D., Soibelzon, L. H., Zurita, A. E., & Arrouy, M. J. (2013). First evidence of scavenging of a glyptodont (Mammalia, Glyptodontidae) from the Pliocene of the Pampean region (Argentina): taphonomic and paleoecological remarks. Palaeontol. Electron, 16, 1-13.
[3] Cione, A. L., Gasparini, G. M., Soibelzon, E., Soibelzon, L. H., & Tonni, E. P. (2015). The great American biotic interchange: a South American perspective (p. 97). Springer Netherlands.
[4] Forasiepi, A. M., Soibelzon, L. H., Gomez, C. S., Sánchez, R., Quiroz, L. I., Jaramillo, C., & Sánchez-Villagra, M. R. (2014). Carnivorans at the Great American Biotic Interchange: new discoveries from the northern neotropics. Naturwissenschaften, 101(11), 965-974.
Life reconstruction of Chapalmalania. © @ DeviantArt user Dontknowwhattodraw94
Temporal range: late Early to Late Pliocene; Chapadmalan to Vorohuean[1]
Scientific classification:
Life
Domain: Eukaryota
(unranked): Unikonta
(unranked): Opisthokonta
(unranked): Holozoa
(unranked): Filozoa
Kingdom: Animalia
Subkingdom: Eumetazoa
(unranked): Bilateria
Clade: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Olfactores
Clade: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Clade: Eugnathostomata
Clade: Teleostomi
Superclass: Tetrapoda
Clade: Reptiliomorpha
Clade: Amniota
Clade: Synapsida
Clade: Eupelycosauria
Clade: Sphenacodontia
Clade: Sphenacodontoidea
Clade: Therapsida
Clade: Eutheriodonta
Clade: Cynodontia
Clade: Epicynodontia
Clade: Eucynodontia
Clade: Probainognathia
Clade: Chiniquodontoidea
Clade: Prozostrodontia
Clade: Mammaliaformes
Class: Mammalia
(unranked): Pegasoferae
(unranked): Zooamata
Clade: Holotheria
Superlegion: Trechnotheria
Legion: Cladotheria
Sublegion: Zatheria
Infralegion: Tribosphenida
Subclass: Theria
Clade: Eutheria
Infraclass: Placentalia
Subcohort: Exafroplacentalia
Magnorder: Boreoeutheria
Superorder: Laurasiatheria
(unranked): Ferae
(unranked): Carnivoramorpha
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Caniformia
Infraorder: Arctoidea
Superfamily: Musteloidea
Family: Procyonidae
Genus: †Chapalmalania
Species: †C. altaefrontis, †C. orthognatha
Chapalmalania is an extinct genus of procyonid that inhabited South America from the Middle to Late Pliocene epoch, going extinct approximately 3 million years ago (around the same time the last thylacosmilids went extinct, which was at the end of the Chapadmalan).[1]
Description and paleobiology:
While there seems to be no disagreement that Chapalmalania was unusually large for a procyonid (all sources agree it weighed far more than its ancestor Cyonasua), available body mass estimates in the literature vary considerably. Some sources claim an animal weighing ~25-30 kg[2][3] or just ~22 kg.[4] Another states the animal to weigh anywhere from 120-180 kg.[1]
Chapalmalania is typically depicted as resembling a bear. Morphological analysis of its teeth suggest that while it was more carnivorous than extant procyonids (except for Bassariscus), it was more omnivorous than other most other carnivorans and the hyper carnivorous sparassodonts it coexisted with. This would make it a hypocarnivore.[1] Consistent with some amount of animal matter in its diet, there is evidence of Chapalmalania scavenging on glyptodonts. The authors describing its bite marks on glyptodont vertebrae suggest that Chapalmalania was more like a hyena than a bear, with a low skull, well-developed sagittal crest, a relatively short face, and multiple other features.[2]
The dentition of C. altaefrontis matches with bite marks on the vertebrate of Eosclerocalyptus cf. lineatus. Fig. 7 of [2].
Evolution and extinction:
Chapalmalania is thought to have evolved from a species of Cyonasua, which first arrived in South America as early as the Late Miocene.[1] It appears that procyonids’ success in colonizing and evolving into new forms on South America lay within their ability to disperse over-water (better than most other carnivorans) and avoid competition with hyper carnivorous sparassodonts. Hypercarnivorous carnivorans that likely had similar over-water dispersal abilities, particularly canids and mustelids, did not arrive in South America until later, after the extinction of the sparassodonts. This meant that Chapalmalania was able to fill a niche not exploited by the native South American fauna (large omnivore) and experienced no significant competition with sparassodonts.[1] Chapalmalania quickly became extinct, approximately around the same time the last sparrassodonts[3] (maybe a bit later, given that Chapalmalania is said to have its latest records in the Vorohuean[1]).
References:
[1] Engelman, R. K., & Croft, D. A. (2019). Strangers in a strange land: Ecological dissimilarity to metatherian carnivores may partly explain early colonization of South America by Cyonasua-group procyonids[/i]. Paleobiology, 45(4), 598-611.
[2] de los Reyes, M., Poiré, D., Soibelzon, L. H., Zurita, A. E., & Arrouy, M. J. (2013). First evidence of scavenging of a glyptodont (Mammalia, Glyptodontidae) from the Pliocene of the Pampean region (Argentina): taphonomic and paleoecological remarks. Palaeontol. Electron, 16, 1-13.
[3] Cione, A. L., Gasparini, G. M., Soibelzon, E., Soibelzon, L. H., & Tonni, E. P. (2015). The great American biotic interchange: a South American perspective (p. 97). Springer Netherlands.
[4] Forasiepi, A. M., Soibelzon, L. H., Gomez, C. S., Sánchez, R., Quiroz, L. I., Jaramillo, C., & Sánchez-Villagra, M. R. (2014). Carnivorans at the Great American Biotic Interchange: new discoveries from the northern neotropics. Naturwissenschaften, 101(11), 965-974.
