Long-nosed peccary explained

The long-nosed peccary (Mylohyus nasutus) is an extinct mammal species of the peccary family (Tayassuidae). It went extinct at the end of the Rancholabrean North American Land Mammal Age.[1]

Description

The long-nosed peccary was about 0.75m (02.46feet) in height and 67kg (148lb) in weight.[2] It had an elongated face, long, thin legs and dewclaws.[1]

Habitat and distribution

During the last glacial, long-nosed peccaries, sensu lato, were distributed throughout southeastern North America with concentrations in Appalachia and Florida. Most fossil localities containing this species are found in the southern and south-eastern U.S., from west Texas to Florida, and north to Pennsylvania. Mylohyus nasutus, if considered to be a different species than M. fossilis, occupied the western part of this range, but their classification as separate species is disputed.[1] According to Lundelius, these species or forms co-occur in the Cumberland Cave deposits in Maryland.[3]

Ecology and behavior

Unlike the flat-headed peccary, Platygonus compressus, the long-nosed peccary was probably a solitary animal and did not frequent caves.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Nye. April Season. Pleistocene Peccaries from Guy Wilson Cave, Sullivan County, Tennessee. 2007. East Tennessee State University. MS. Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 2115. 18 July 2024.
  2. Mendoza. M.. Janis. C. M.. Palmqvist. P.. 2006. Estimating the body mass of extinct ungulates: a study on the use of multiple regression. Journal of Zoology. 270. 1. 90-101. 10.1111/j.1469-7998.2006.00094.x.
  3. Lundelius, Jr.. E.L.. 1961. Mylohyus nasutus: Long-nosed Peccary of the Texas Pleistocene. Bulletin of the Texas Memorial Museum. 1. Texas ScholarWorks, The University of Texas at Austin. 18 July 2024.
  4. Tankersley. Kenneth B.. 2011. Evaluating the Co-occurrence of Platygonus compressus and Mylohyus nasutus at Sheriden Cave, Wyandot County, Ohio. Current Research in the Pleistocene. 28. 185-187. 18 July 2024. Pleistocene Archives, Center for the Study of the First Americans, College of Liberal Arts at Texas A&M University.