Proterix
Temporal range:
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Mammalia
Order:
Eulipotyphla
Family:
Erinaceidae
Genus:
†Proterix

Matthew, 1903
Species

†P. bicuspis
†P. loomisi

Proterix is an extinct genus of erinaceid mammal from the Late Oligocene to the Early Miocene of North America.

Ecology

Proterix was most likely a burrowing insectivore.[1] The original reference suggests reduced limbs may be possible, due to the unusually high number of lumbar vertebrae, but cautions that conclusions must be reserved until a complete skeleton is found.[2] This proposal was exaggerated in a popular science book by Dougal Dixon, which speculated that it may have been a limbless mammal with an armored head.[3] Though very little of the post-cranial skeleton has been found, this situation is typical for mammals and not an indicator of unusual anatomy.[4][2]

References

  1. ↑ Macdonald, James Reid (1961). "The lower dentition of Proterix loomisi Matthew?". Journal of Paleontology. 35 (3): 632–633.
  2. 1 2 Bjork, Philip R. (1975). "Observations on the morphology of the hedgehog genus Proterix (Insectivora: Erinaceidae)". In Smith, G.R.; Friedland, N.E. (eds.). Studies on Cenozoic Paleontology and Stratigraphy: Claude W. Hibbard Memorial Volume 3 (PDF). Ann Arbor: Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan. pp. 81–88.
  3. ↑ Dixon, Dougal (2008). World Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Creatures. New York: Lorenz Books. p. 447. ISBN 9780754817307.
  4. ↑ Gawne, C.E. (1968). "The genus Proterix (Insectivora, Erinaceidae) of the Upper Oligocene of North America". American Museum Novitates (2315). hdl:2246/2525. Retrieved 19 January 2013.


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