Zhangheotherium

Zang-ee-oh-fee-ree-um.
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John Stewart

Paleoecologist

John Stewart is a distinguished paleoecologist whose work has significantly advanced our understanding of prehistoric ecosystems. With over two decades dedicated to unearthing fossils across Asia and Africa

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Name

Zhangheotherium (Zhanghe mammal).

Phonetic

Zang-ee-oh-fee-ree-um.

Named By

Hu,‭ ‬Y.Q.‭ ‬Wang,‭ ‬Luo‭ & ‬Li,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬-‭ ‬1997.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Trechnotheria,‭ ‬Symmetrodonta,‭ ‬Spalacotherioidea,‭ ‬Zhangheotheriidae.

Diet

‬Insectivore.

Species

Z.‭ ‬quinquecuspidens‭

Size

‭B‬ody approximately‭ ‬16‭ ‬centimetres long,‭ ‬longer including the tail.

Known locations

China,‭ ‬Liaoning Province‭ ‬-‭ ‬Yixian Formation.

Time Period

Barremian to Aptian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Several specimens,‭ ‬usually of teeth and jaw material but a least one complete specimen is known.

In Depth

       Zhangheotherium was the first symmetrodont known by a complete specimen.‭ ‬Zhangheotherium had pointed multicusped‭ (‬up to five‭) ‬teeth towards the rear of the mouth,‭ ‬something which is reflected in the species name Z.‭ ‬quinquecuspidens.‭ ‬Despite the fact that Zhangheotherium was a mammal,‭ ‬the limbs sprawled out to the sides like a lizard rather than supporting the body from underneath.‭ ‬An analogy between Zhangheotherium and the modern day platypus‭ (‬Ornithorhynchus anatinus‭)‬ can be made in that both possess venomous spurs on their lower legs.

       Small mammals like Zhangheotherium and Sinobaatar were prey to carnivorous dinosaurs,‭ ‬something that has been proved by the presence of mammal bones inside the dinosaur Sinosauropteryx.

Further Reading

– A new symmetrodont mammal from China and its implications for mammalian evolution. – Nature 390:137-142. – Y. Hu, Y. Wang, Z. Luo & C. Li – 1997.

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