Khuduklestes

<i>Khuduklestes</i>

Khuduklestes

Extinct family of mammals

Quick Facts Scientific classification, Type species ...

Khuduklestes is a genus of extinct mammal of uncertain affinities from the Late Cretaceous of China. It is rather similar to the also carnivorous and taxonomically uncertain Oxlestes, being slightly smaller.[1]

Description

Khuduklestes is currently represented by a single specimen, a vertebral axis, known from Cenomanian deposits in the Gansu Province of China. It is rather similar to Oxlestes and is among the largest vertebral mammalian remains from the Mesozoic, indicating a cat-sized animal.

Classification

Khuduklestes was initially placed in Deltatheroida on the basis of its similarity to Oxlestes. However, much as Oxlestes, its identity as a deltatheroidean has also been questioned, and it has periodically also been considered a member of the eutherian clade of mammals.[2]

References

  1. [1]
    Zofia Kielan-Jaworowska, Richard L. Cifelli, Zhe-Xi Luo (2004). "Chapter 12: Metatherians". Mammals from the Age of Dinosaurs: origins, evolution, and structure. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 425–262. ISBN 0-231-11918-6.
  2. [2]
    Guillermo Rougier, New specimen of Deltatheroides cretacicus (Metatheria, Deltatheroida) from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia, BULLETIN OF CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 36(DEC 2004):245-266 · SEPTEMBER 2009
Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Khuduklestes, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.