Smilodectes
Extinct genus of primates
Smilodectes is a genus of adapiform primate that lived in North America during the middle Eocene. It possesses a post-orbital bar and grasping thumbs and toes. Smilodectes has a small cranium size and the foramen magnum was located at the back of the skull, on the occipital bone.
01Named species
There are three named species: Smilodectes gracilis, Smilodectes gingerichi and Smilodectes mcgrewi.
Smilodectes gracilis
Smilodectes gracilis was an adapiformes primate from the early Eocene, some 55 million years ago. S. gracilis was found on the land mass of North America and based on its dental morphology, S. gracilis was a folivore.
S. gracilis had a dental formula of 2.1.4.32.1.4.3 and had a relatively short snout, with rounded frontal bone as compared to other nothactines. This species lacked symphyseal fusion and this species of primate had comparatively reduced olfactory bulbs and a more expanded visual cortex. This suggests that S. gracilis was a diurnal species. S. gracilis had a cranial capacity of 9.5 cc. It is thought that S. gracilis had an average body mass of around 2.1 kilograms. Based upon its postcranial skeleton, S. gracilis was a vertical clinger and leaper.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Smilodectes”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Smilodectes NMNH.jpg by Jonathan Chen, CC BY-SA 4.0
Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.