Lestodon
Lestodon is an extinct genus of megafaunal ground sloth from South America during the Pliocene to Pleistocene periods. Its fossil remains have been found in Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela, Bolivia, and Brazil. Measuring approximately 4.6 metres (15 ft) from snout to tail tip, it is estimated to have weighed 3,600–4,100 kilograms (4.0–4.5 short tons). It was a herbivore and primarily fed on the grasses on the South American plains and is thought to perhaps have used its semi-bipedal stance to obtain foliage from trees. Lestodon is placed as member of the Mylodontidae as indicated by the lobed form of the last tooth in the dentition.
Lestodon | |
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L. armatus skeleton at the AMNH in New York | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Pilosa |
Family: | †Mylodontidae |
Subfamily: | †Mylodontinae |
Tribe: | †Lestodontini |
Genus: | †Lestodon Gervais 1855 |
Species | |
† L. armatus Gervais 1855, type |
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