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Merychyus
Taxonomy
Merychyus was named by Leidy (1858). It is not extant. Its type is Merychyus elegans.
It was assigned to Merycoidodontinae by Hay (1902); to Oreodontidae by Cope (1884), Scott and Osborn (1890) and Scott (1913); to Merycoidodontidae by Leidy (1858), Thorpe (1937) and Lander (1998); to Ticholeptinae by Morgan et al. (2009) and Lander and Lindsay (2011); and to Merychyinae by Schultz and Falkenbach (1947), Parris and Grandstaff (2003), Stevens and Stevens (2007) and Stevens et al. (2023).
It was assigned to Merycoidodontinae by Hay (1902); to Oreodontidae by Cope (1884), Scott and Osborn (1890) and Scott (1913); to Merycoidodontidae by Leidy (1858), Thorpe (1937) and Lander (1998); to Ticholeptinae by Morgan et al. (2009) and Lander and Lindsay (2011); and to Merychyinae by Schultz and Falkenbach (1947), Parris and Grandstaff (2003), Stevens and Stevens (2007) and Stevens et al. (2023).
Synonymy list
Year | Name and author |
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1858 | Merychyus Leidy |
1884 | Merychyus Cope p. 535 |
1890 | Merychyus Scott and Osborn p. 72 |
1902 | Merychyus Hay p. 669 |
1913 | Merychyus Scott p. 361 |
1937 | Merychyus Thorpe p. 216 |
1947 | Merychyus Schultz and Falkenbach p. 171 figs. SF:igures 1-7, 13,14,15-17 |
1998 | Merychyus Lander |
2003 | Merychyus Parris and Grandstaff p. 63 |
2007 | Merychyus Stevens and Stevens p. 164 |
2009 | Merychyus Morgan et al. |
2011 | Merychyus Lander and Lindsay p. 221 |
2023 | Merychyus Stevens et al. p. 37 |
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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.
G. †Merychyus Leidy 1858
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Subg. †Merychyus (Metoreodon) Matthew and Cook 1909
†Merychyus arenarum Cope 1884
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Invalid names: Merychyus arenarum leptorhynchus Cope 1884 [invalid subgroup], Merychyus euryops Cope 1899 [synonym]
†Merychyus calaminthus Jahns 1940
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Invalid names: Merychyus crabilli Schultz and Falkenbach 1947 [synonym], Merychyus crabilli ziaensis Schultz and Falkenbach 1968 [synonym], Merychyus jahnsi Whistler 1967 [synonym]
†Merychyus relictus Matthew and Cook 1909
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Invalid names: Merychyus (Metoreodon) relictus taylori Schultz and Falkenbach 1947 [invalid subgroup]
†Merychyus verrucomalus Stevens 1970
Invalid names: Merychyus (Metoreodon) relictus fletcheri Schultz and Falkenbach 1947 [invalid subgroup], Merychyus arenarum idahoensis Schultz and Falkenbach 1947 [invalid subgroup], Metoreodon Matthew and Cook 1909 [synonym]
Diagnosis
Reference | Diagnosis | |
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C. B. Schultz and C. H. Falkenbach 1947 |
SKULL: Small, basal length ranging from 123 mm. to 178 mm.; mesocephalic; supra- occipital wings fan-shaped, widely spread, and incorporated in the occipital flare, but the flare not so pronounced as in the genus Ustatochoerus; exoccipital pits roundish in outline but not so large as in Ustatochoerus; ~ase of paroccipital process not completely mcorporated in the fan-shaped region as in Ustatochoerus or Merychyus (Metoreodon) (see fig. 14); sagittal crest prominent but not high; brain case inflated; zygomatic arch light to medium light; lacrimal fossa prom- inent in Harrison forms and shallow in later species; prelacrimal vacuity present; infra- orbital foramen either above posterior portion of pa or above P 4 ; nasals slightly retracted, extending posterior to the anterior of the orbits; premaxillae fused for a short distance; paroccipital process moderately long and heavy for size of skull; postglenoid process wide transversely, narrow anteroposteriorly, and long vertically; occipital condyles me- dium in size, but varying greatly in dimen- sions; bullae2 with various degrees of flatten- ing. MANDIBLE: Small; moderately deep for size of skull; inferior border nearly straight with a slight downward curve just posterior ,to Ma; condyle of moderate size; symphysis prominent, posterior point below region of PrP,. DENTITIONA:dvancedbrachyodonttosub- hypsodont; If and I~ approximately equal in size, with I~ larger; superior canines vary in size from small to large; P1 may be small or large. LIMBS:Light to moderately heavy. | |
M. S. Stevens et al. 2023 | Medium-large sized merychyines with progressively more molarized premolars and more hypsodont cheek teeth in successive species. Fan-shaped occipital crests develop in the later species. |
Measurements
No measurements are available
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Source: f = family, o = order, subc = subclass, c = class, subp = subphylum | |||||
References: Lander 1998, Lillegraven 1979, Nowak 1999, Carroll 1988, Hendy et al. 2009 |
Age range: base of the Early/Lower Hemingfordian to the top of the Clarendonian or 20.43000 to 9.40000 Ma
Collections (166 total)
Time interval | Ma | Country or state | Original ID and collection number |
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Arikareean | USA (California) | M. calaminthus (17851) M. calaminthus, M. jahnsi (17852) | |
Arikareean | USA (Wyoming) | M. arenarum (18883) | |
Arikareean | USA (North Dakota) | M. sp. (17795) | |
Arikareean | USA (Texas) | M. calaminthus (178063) | |
Arikareean | USA (Oregon) | M. arenarum (188966 188967 188968) M. arenarum, M. calaminthus (188965) | |
early Early Arikareean - late Early Arikareean | USA (Wyoming) | M. harrisonensis (17491) | |
early Late Arikareean | USA (Arizona) | M. calaminthus (157243 157244) | |
late Late Arikareean | USA (Wyoming) | M. arenarum (18010) | |
late Late Arikareean | USA (California) | M. elegans (167849) M. sp. (167826 167827) | |
late Late Arikareean | USA (Oregon) | M. calaminthus, M. arenarum (18013) | |
Harrisonian | USA (California) | M. calaminthus (17760) | |
Harrisonian | USA (South Dakota) | M. delicatus (17748) M. minimus (17745 17753 17754 17755 17830 17831) M. sp. (17747) | |
Harrisonian | USA (Texas) | M. sp. (17770 17772) | |
Harrisonian | USA (Wyoming) | M. arenarum, M. minimus (17780 17788 17793 17824 17835 17839 17847 17850) M. crabilli (17794 17801 17811 17853) M. minimus (17777 17817 17833 17838) M. sp. (17796) | |
Harrisonian | USA (Nebraska) | M. crabilli (17806 17856) M. elegans (17799) M. minimus (17809) M. sp. (17819 17863) M. verrucomalus (17738) | |
Harrisonian - Hemingfordian | USA (Montana) | M. sp. (18811) | |
Early/Lower Miocene | USA (California) | M. calaminthus (17765) | |
Miocene | USA (Idaho) | M. arenarum (18980) | |
Miocene | USA (Montana) | M. arenarum (18945) M. sp. (19062) | |
Miocene | USA (Louisiana) | M. sp. (163859) | |
Miocene | USA (Texas) | M. sp. (18693) | |
Miocene | USA (Nevada) | M. elegans (18981) | |
Miocene | Mexico (Aguascalientes) | M. elegans (18756) | |
Miocene | USA (South Dakota) | Metoreodon sp. (18064) Ustatochoerus sp. (18080 18379) | |
Miocene | USA (New Mexico) | M. crabilli (19130) | |
Miocene | USA (Colorado) | M. arenarum (18813) | |
Miocene | USA (California) | M. calaminthus (19433) | |
Miocene | USA (Nebraska) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18276) | |
Early/Lower Hemingfordian | USA (Nebraska) | M. arenarum (17881) M. elegans (17898 17926 17927 17930 17931 17934 17937 17939 17941 17942 17943 17944 17945 17989 18005 18021) M. minimus (17924) M. sp. (17892) M. verrucomalus (17879 17962) | |
Early/Lower Hemingfordian | USA (New Mexico) | M. crabilli (19275) | |
Early/Lower Hemingfordian | USA (Oregon) | M. arenarum (17925 17966) | |
Early/Lower Hemingfordian | Mexico (Oaxaca) | M. minimus (18744) | |
Early/Lower Hemingfordian | USA (Wyoming) | M. elegans (19046) M. sp. (167862) | |
Early/Lower Hemingfordian | USA (California) | M. elegans (167840 167841) M. sp., M. minimus (19194) | |
Hemingfordian | USA (Nevada) | M. sp. (18962) | |
Hemingfordian | USA (Nebraska) | M. elegans (17867 17982) M. minimus (17866) M. relictus (17902 17917 17920 17952 17961 17979 17987 18000 18001) M. sp. (17991) | |
Hemingfordian | USA (Colorado) | M. elegans (17965) | |
Hemingfordian | USA (Wyoming) | M. arenarum (18948) | |
Hemingfordian | USA (South Dakota) | M. arenarum (17912 72052) | |
Hemingfordian | Canada (Saskatchewan) | M. sp. (18003) | |
Late/Upper Hemingfordian | USA (New Mexico) | M. sp. (19410) | |
Hemingfordian - Barstovian | USA (California) | M. relictus (19478) | |
Barstovian | USA (Nebraska) | Metoreodon sp. (18123) Ustatochoerus sp. (18206 18412) | |
Barstovian | USA (South Dakota) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18117) | |
Barstovian | USA (Idaho) | M. sp. (19013) | |
Barstovian | USA (Oregon) | M. sp. (19092) | |
Barstovian | USA (Louisiana) | M. sp. (18621) | |
Barstovian | USA (California) | M. relictus (19153) M. sp. (19137) | |
Early/Lower Barstovian | USA (Nebraska) | M. relictus (17903 17905 17911 17919 17955 17972 17976 17992 18004 18011 18019 18020) | |
Early/Lower Barstovian | USA (New Mexico) | M. sp. (19547) | |
Barstovian - Clarendonian | USA (Nebraska) | M. elegans (190543) Metoreodon profectus (230906) Ustatochoerus sp. (18235) | |
Clarendonian | USA (Nevada) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18835) | |
Clarendonian | USA (Nebraska) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18106 18108 18157 18176 18194 18217 18233 18294 18456) | |
Clarendonian | USA (Texas) | Metoreodon sp. (207452) Ustatochoerus sp. (18149 18645) | |
Clarendonian | USA (Kansas) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18186 18219) | |
Clarendonian | USA (South Dakota) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18344) | |
Clarendonian | USA (Oregon) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18820 18822 18823) | |
Clarendonian | USA (Oklahoma) | Ustatochoerus sp. (18130 18463) | |
Late/Upper Miocene | USA (Wyoming) | Ustatochoerus sp. (19044) |