Peltephilus

Peltephilus, the horned armadillo, is an extinct genus of dog-sized, armadillo xenarthran mammals which first inhabited Argentina during the Oligocene epoch, and became extinct in the Miocene epoch. Notably, the scutes on its head were so developed that they formed horns. Aside from the horned gophers of North America, it is the only known fossorial horned mammal.[1]

Peltephilus
Temporal range: Oligocene-Mid Miocene (Deseadan-Mayoan)
~29.0–11.6 Ma
Interpretation of P. ferox
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Mammalia
Superorder:
Xenarthra
Order:
Cingulata
Family:
†Peltephilidae
Genus:
†Peltephilus

Type species
Peltephilus ferox
Species
  • P. depressus Ameghino 1897
  • P. ferox Ameghino 1891 (type)
  • P. giganteus Ameghino 1894
  • P. granosus Ameghino 1902
  • P. protervus Ameghino 1897
  • P. pumilus Ameghino 1887
  • P. strepens Ameghino 1887
  • P. undulatus Ameghino 1897

Although it had traditionally been perceived as a carnivore because of its large, triangular-shaped teeth, Vizcaino and Farina argued in 1997 that Peltephilus was a herbivore.[2]

Taxonomy

The genus was classified as belonging to the family Chlamyphoridae, and in 2007 was placed in its own family Peltephilidae by Darin A. Croft, John J. Flynn and Andre Wyss.[3]

Distribution

Fossils of Peltephilus have been found in:[4]

Deseadan
Miocene
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References
  1. Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. pp. 208–209. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
  2. Vizcaino, S. F., & R. A. Farina (1997), Diet and locomotion of the armadillo Peltephilus: a new view. Lethaia, 30, 79-86.
  3. Croft et al., 2007
  4. Peltephilus at Fossilworks.org
  5. Shockey, 2017
  6. González Ruiz et al., 2013, p.323

Bibliography
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