Pyrotherium

Pyrotherium ('fire beast') is an extinct genus of South American ungulate, of the order Pyrotheria, that lived in what is now Argentina and Bolivia, during the Late Oligocene. It was named Pyrotherium because the first specimens were excavated from an ancient volcanic ash deposit. Fossils of the genus have been found in the Deseado and Sarmiento Formations of Argentina and the Salla Formation of Bolivia.

So far, two valid species have been described, Pyrotherium romeroi, which lived in what it is today Argentina and P. macfaddeni from Bolivia, at the end of Oligocene. P. romeroi in particular is the most recent known pyrothere in the fossil record and best known for its fossil remains, which although incomplete are the best preserved in the entire order, indicating that they are also the largest, with an estimated body length from 2.9 to 3.6 meters (9.5 to 11.8 ft). It is also supposed to have developed a small trunk, but it is not related to the current elephants (proboscideans); the resemblance is so great that when studying the fossil remains, it was attributed in the past a relationship with elephants, although the true relationship of this herbivore is still controversial today.