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Blastocerus dichotomus (marsh deer)

Mammalia - Cervidae

Taxonomy
Cervus dichotomus was named by Illiger (1815). It is extant.

It was recombined as Blastocerus dichotomus by Hershkovitz (1982) and Pinder and Grosse (1991); it was recombined as Blastoceros dichotomus by Agnarsson and May-Collado (2008).

Synonymy list
YearName and author
1815Cervus dichotomus Illiger
1982Blastocerus dichotomus Hershkovitz p. 8
1991Blastocerus dichotomus Pinder and Grosse p. 1
2008Blastoceros dichotomus Agnarsson and May-Collado p. 978 figs. Fig. 5

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RankNameAuthor
kingdomAnimalia()
Bilateria
EubilateriaAx 1987
Deuterostomia
phylumChordataHaeckel 1874
subphylumVertebrata
superclassGnathostomata
Osteichthyes()
subclassSarcopterygii()
subclassDipnotetrapodomorpha(Nelson 2006)
subclassTetrapodomorpha()
Tetrapoda
Reptiliomorpha
Anthracosauria
subclassAmphibiosauriaKuhn 1967
Cotylosauria()
Amniota
subclassSynapsida
Therapsida()
infraorderCynodontia()
Mammaliamorpha
Mammaliaformes
classMammalia
RankNameAuthor
Theriamorpha(Rowe 1993)
Theriiformes()
Trechnotheria
Cladotheria
Zatheria
subclassTribosphenida()
subclassTheria
Eutheria()
Placentalia
Boreoeutheria
Laurasiatheria
Scrotifera
Euungulata
Artiodactylamorpha
Artiodactyla()
Ruminantiamorpha
Ruminantia(Scopoli 1777)
Pecora()
familyCervidae
Telemetacarpalia
tribeOdocoileini(Pocock 1923)
genusBlastocerusWagner 1844
speciesdichotomus(Illiger 1815)

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

Blastocerus dichotomus Illiger 1815 [marsh deer]
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Diagnosis
ReferenceDiagnosis
L. Pinder and A. P. Grosse 1991Blastocerus dichotomus (Fig. 1) is the largest of the South American deer (Cabrera and Yepes, 1940). A straight basicranium and the antlers distinguish Blastocerus from the other Odocoileini. Antlers of adult marsh deer have four tines, which are never pointed inward as in Odocoileus (Fig. 2). The main beam bifurcates near the base, and each prong is again bifurcated, a condition rarely seen in Ozotoceros (Groves and Grubb, 1987; Jack- son, 1987). The legs of adult Blastocerus are black up to the radius or tibia and pelage of the young is unspotted. The two toes of the hoof are bound by a strong membrane, and can be spread up to 10 cm apart. No other South American deer attains such interdigital amplitude (Hofman et al., 1976).
Measurements
No measurements are available
Composition: phosphaticsubp
Environment: terrestrialo
Locomotion: actively mobilec
Life habit: ground dwellingf
Diet: grazerf
Diet 2: browserf
Reproduction: viviparousf
Created: 2005-06-08 10:11:09
Modified: 2005-09-22 12:03:17
Source: f = family, o = order, c = class, subp = subphylum
References: Nowak 1999, Hendy et al. 2009, Carroll 1988, Nowak 1991

Age range: base of the Pleistocene to the top of the Holocene or 2.58800 to 0.00000 Ma

Collections (2 total)


Time interval Ma Country or state Original ID and collection number
Pleistocene2.588 - 0.0117Paraguay Blastocerus dichotomus (71292)
Holocene0.0117 - 0.0Argentina (Entre Ríos) Blastocerus dichotomus (212781)