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Nothropus

Extinct genus of ground sloths

Nothropus is an extinct genus of ground sloth of the family Nothrotheriidae, endemic to South America during the Pleistocene epoch. It lived from 0.781 mya, 12,000 years ago existing for approximately 0.769 million years. It was believed to be a ground-dwelling herbivore.

01Taxonomy

Nothropus priscus and Nothropus nordenskioldi are described as subtaxa. Nothropus was named by Hermann Burmeister (1882). It was assigned to Megalonychidae by L. G. Marshall and T. Sempere (1991) and to Nothrotheriidae by Christian de Muizon et al. (2004).

02Fossil distribution

Fossils have been uncovered from the Tarija Formation, Tarija Department, Bolivia, east side of the Andes Mountains.

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Sources and credits

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