Paenungulatomorpha
Clade of mammals / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Paenungulatomorpha is a clade of afrotherian mammals that can be characterized according to Gheerbrant et al. (2016)[1]:
by a mandibular retromolar fossa, the absence of hypocone, an ectoloph selenodont and linked to strong styles such as mesostyle in basal taxa, and a more or less developed pseudohypocone.
Paenungulatomorpha | |
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Crowned paenungulates and Ocepeia | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Superorder: | Afrotheria |
Clade: | Paenungulatomorpha Gheerbrant, 2016 |
Subgroups | |
Originally it was thought paenungulates were closely related to the perissodactyls in the clade Altungulata due to shared attributes in the dental, osteological and soft-tissues.[2][3][4] However this view was contested as molecular studies have widely supported that paenungulates are not related to the perissodactyls, instead more related to a widely different clade Afroinsectiphilia, with them forming the clade Afrotheria.[5][6][7][8][9] There has been also some morphological data to support Afrotheria,[10][11][12] though the paleontological record to support was lacking until reexamination of the genera Ocepeia[13] and Abdounodus,[1] as well as the description of the basal Hadrogeneios in 2023[14] has shown not only fossil evidence for the inclusion of paenungulates as afrotherians but also any morphological similarities between paenungulates and perissodactyls is due to convergence.[1]
Below is a cladogram from Gheerbrant (2023):[14]
Paenungulatomorpha | |