Palaeotragus Explained

Palaeotragus ("ancient goat") is a genus of very large, primitive, okapi-like giraffids from the Miocene to Early Pleistocene of Africa and Eurasia.

Palaeotragus primaevus is the older species, being found in early to mid-Miocene strata, while P. germaini is found in Late Miocene strata. P. primaevus is distinguished from P. germaini by the lack of ossicones. It was also the smaller species, being a little under 2m (07feet) at the shoulders. P. germaini had a pair of ossicones, and in life, it would have resembled either a short-necked, 3m (10feet) tall giraffe, or a gargantuan okapi.

Palaeotragus inexspectatus from the Early Pleistocene of Greece represents the youngest giraffid in Europe.^[1]

Species

The genus consists of the following species:

• Palaeotragus decipiens
• Palaeotragus germaini
• Palaeotragus microdon
• Palaeotragus primaevus
• Palaeotragus quadricornis
• Palaeotragus. rouenii

Further reading

• Book: Gaudry, Albert . Jean Albert Gaudry

. Jean Albert Gaudry . Paléontologie. — Résultats des fouilles entreprises en Grèce sous les auspices de l'Académie . Comptes-rendus de l'Académie des Sciences . 1861 . 53 . Paris . 239 . https://archive.org/stream/ComptesRendusAcademieDesSciences0052/ComptesRendusAcadmieDesSciences-Tome052-Janvier-juin1861#page/n237/mode/2up . 469002103 .

Notes and References

1. Laskos . Kostantis . Kostopoulos . Dimitris S . 2024-05-17 . On the last European giraffe, Palaeotragus inexspectatus (Mammalia: Giraffidae); new remains from the Early Pleistocene of Greece and a review of the species . Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society . en . 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae056 . 0024-4082. free .