Jeholodens

Name: Jeholodens ‭(‬Jehol teeth‭)‬.
Phonetic: Jay-hol-o-dens.
Named By: Q.‭ ‬Ji,‭ ‬Z.‭ ‬Luo‭ & ‬S.‭ ‬Ji‭ ‬-‭ ‬1999.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Eutriconodonta,‭ ‬Jeholodentidae.
Species: J.‭ ‬jenkinsi‭ (‬type‭)‬.
Diet: Insectivore.
Size: Unavailable.
Known locations: China,‭ ‬Liaoning Province‭ ‬-‭ ‬Yixian Formation.
Time period: Barremian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Almost complete individual and articulated skeleton preserved on a slab.




       Jeholodens was a small triconodont mammal that lived in China during the early Cretaceous.‭ ‬Triconodont mammals like Jeholodens are so named because they have three cusps on the crowns of their teeth.‭ ‬Jeholodens is noted for having bone developments that were fairly advance for mammals during its time of the early Cretaceous.‭ ‬Some of these features include hands capable of grasping and a prehensile tail,‭ ‬all features that would be of a great help when climbing and moving through trees and shrubs,‭ ‬which may also indicate at least a partially arboreal lifestyle for Jeholodens.‭ ‬Jeholodens is also noted for having eyes that were proportionately large for the skull size,‭ ‬which may be a sign that Jeholodens was a nocturnal creature with the larger eyes capable of capturing greater amounts of light.

Further reading
-‭ ‬A Chinese triconodont mammal and mosaic evolution of the mammalian skeleton.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Nature‭ ‬398:326-330.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Q.‭ ‬Ji,‭ ‬Z.‭ ‬Luo‭ & ‬S.‭ ‬Ji‭ ‬-‭ ‬1999.



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