Catagonus metropolitanus
Catagonus metropolitanus is an extinct species of peccary known from the Pleistocene of Argentina.[2]
| Catagonus metropolitanus Temporal range: Pleistocene | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Tayassuidae |
| Genus: | Catagonus |
| Species: | †C. metropolitanus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Catagonus metropolitanus | |
Taxonomy
Catagonus metropolitanus is notable in that it is the type species of a genus that contains a living species; the Chacoan peccary. The living Chacoan peccary was first described in 1930 from subfossil remains, and only found alive by scientists in 1972 (an example of a Lazarus taxon).[3]
A 2017 study on the phylogenetic systematics of Tayassuidae species suggests that Catagonus should only contain C. metropolitanus. The extinct narrow-headed peccary (C. stenocephalus) should be moved into Brasiliochoerus, while the Chacoan peccary, C. bonaerensis and C. carlesi should be placed in Parachoerus.[4] If this is accepted, then Catagonus becomes an extinct genus once more.
References
- "Catagonus metropolitanus". Fossilworks.
- Ameghino, F, F. (1904). "Nuevas especies de mamíferos Cretáceos y Terciarios de la República Argentina". Anales de la Sociedad Científica Argentina. 16: 56–58.
- Wetzel, Ralph M. (1975). "Catagonus, an "Extinct" Peccary, Alive in Paraguay". Science. 189 (4200): 379–381. doi:10.1126/science.189.4200.379.
- Parisi-Dutra, R. (2017). "Phylogenetic Systematics of Peccaries (Tayassuidae: Artiodactyla) and a Classification of South American Tayassuids". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 24: 345–358.