Notiomastodon

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Notiomastodon
Temporal range: late Early Pleistocene-Early Holocene
(Possible Earliest Pleistocene record)
~0.8–0.011 Ma
↓
Stegomastodon CCB.JPG
Skeleton at the Centro Cultural del Bicentenario de Santiago del Estero
Stegomastodon platensis.JPG
Skull at the Natural History Museum, London
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Proboscidea
Family: †Gomphotheriidae
Genus: †Notiomastodon
Cabrera, 1929
Species:
†N. platensis
Binomial name
†Notiomastodon platensis
(Ameghino, 1888) [originally Mastodon]
Synonyms
  • Stegomastodon platensis Ameghino 1888
  • Stegomastodon waringi Holland 1920
  • Haplomastodon waringi Holland 1920
  • Haplomastodon chimborazi Proaño 1922
  • Haplomastodon guayasensis Hoffstetter 1952
  • Amahuacatherium peruvium Romero-Pittman 1996

Notiomastodon is an extinct proboscidean genus of gomphotheres (a distant relative to modern elephants) endemic to South America from the Pleistocene to the Holocene.[1] It was among the last known gomphotheres and one of two South American gomphotheres alongside Cuvieronius, and was the predominant gomphothere on the continent ranging widely over most of South America excluding the high Andes. The species has a long and convoluted taxonomic history due to its morphological variability and confusion with related gomphothere taxa, which was only resolved during the 2010s.

Taxonomy[]

Two gomphothere teeth from Cuvier (1806) with "A" referring to “mastodonte des cordillères” and "B" referring to “mastodonte humboldien”

Proboscideans in South America were first described by Georges Cuvier in 1806,[2] but he failed to give them specific names beyond "Mastodon". Fischer in 1814 assigned the “mastodonte des cordillères” specimen the first specific name "Mastotherium hyodon".[3]: 340  In 1824, Cuvier classified the fossils of Mastodon andium as the "mastodonte des cordillères" specimen, and Mastodon humboldtii to the "mastodonte humboldien".[4] Due to the Principle of Priority, this meant that Mastodon andium was invalid, as "Mastotherium hyodon" was named first from the same specimen. Today, neither tooth is considered diagnostic to any specific taxon.[5] Notiomastodon,[nb 1] "southern mastodon" was named by Cabrera (1929). It was assigned to the Gomphotheriidae by Carroll (1988). For centuries, the taxonomy of gomphotheres, including Notiomastodon, had been subject to debate, with many generic and specific names for similar South American gomphotheres. The species is currently under dispute, whether it should belong to Notiomastodon or Stegomastodon[7][5][8][9] as regardless of genus, the species is considered synonymous with Haplomastodon by most authors, as the specimens were not considered morphologically distinct from this species.[10][11][12] This article treats Notiomastodon separately because in phylogenetic analyses, Notiomastodon/Stegomastodon platensis specimens are not sister taxa, which would make the genus polyphyletic.[5][13][14][15] However, some authors think this is inconclusive, as they think the North American Stegomastodon material is too scarce and fragmentary to make a definitive statement.[8]

Evolution[]

Notiomastodon belongs to the family Gomphotheriidae, a group of animals distantly related to modern elephants and mammoths. Notiomastodon seems to have had a 4-million-year-long ghost lineage, diverging from the clade that contains Rhynchotherium and Cuvieronius around the Late Miocene. This would imply that Notiomastodon had been evolving in southern Central America, where the fossils are poorly sampled, prior to its migration into South America during the Pliocene or Pleistocene.[5] Gomphotheres arrived in South America after the formation of the Isthmus of Panama as part of the Great American Biotic Interchange, alongside many other taxa from North America. The oldest known record of gomphotheres in South America is a fragmentary vertebra from the Earliest Pleistocene (about 2.5 Mya) of Argentina.[16] The oldest known remains definitively attributable to Notiomastodon are known from the late Early Pleistocene (1.2-0.8 Mya) from the Rio de la Plata, also in Argentina, consisting of a pair of tusks and other associated remains.[5] A 2019 study using collagen sequencing found Notiomastodon closer to Mammut than to extant elephants,[17] but a 2021 study based on Mitochondrial DNA found Notiomastodon to be more closely related to extant elephants than to Mammut.[18]

Phylogeny[]

The phylogenetic position among trilophodont gomphotheres according to Mothé et al., 2016 is:[13]

†Gomphotheriidae (Gomphotheres)
 

†Gomphotherium

 
 
 

†Gnathabelodon

 
 
 

†Eubelodon

 
Brevirostrine clade
 

†Stegomastodon

 
 
 

†Sinomastodon

 
 
 

†Notiomastodon

 
 
 

†Rhynchotherium

 
 

†Cuvieronius

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Description[]

Among many other specimens, N. platensis is known from MECN 82, a 35-year-old male that would be around 2.52 m (8 ft 3 in) tall, with an estimated weight of 4.4 tonnes (4.3 long tons; 4.9 short tons).[19] It had two tusks (one on either side of its trunk), like other members of the Gomphotheriidae, and none on the lower jaw, as with other brevirostrine gomphotheres. Unlike close relative Cuvieronius, its tusks were not twisted, but their length and shape are observed as greatly variable depending on the individual, as is morphology more generally[5]

Skeletons of Stegomastodon (left) and Notiomastodon (right)

Paleobiogeography[]

Main article: List of gomphothere fossils in South America

Notiomastodon has been described as the 'lowland gomphothere'.[10] The genus tended to inhabit seasonally dry, open forests, with a range lining most of the South American coastline and lowland interior, bar the Guiana Shield, with particularly large concentrations along the coast of Peru and in northeastern Brazil.[20] In contrast, the other representative of South American gomphotheres, Cuvieronius, inhabited the mountainous Andes region from Ecuador to southern Peru and Bolivia, as well as lowland areas in north-east Peru.[5]

The diet composition of Notiomastodon varied widely depending on location, but probably primarily consisted of a mix of C3 shrubs and C4 grasses, whilst also serving as a primary disperser of the seeds for a variety of different plant species.[21]

Behaviour[]

Notiomastodon was probably similar in population structure and behaviour to extant elephants.[22]

Extinction[]

In 2019, a young specimen from Brazil was described with artifact embedded into its skull suggesting human hunting played a role in its extinction.[23]

Notes[]

  1. ^ From the Ancient Greek: νότιος (nótios, "southern")[6]

References[]

  1. ^ Shoshani, Jeheskel; Tassy, Pascal (2005). "Advances in proboscidean taxonomy & classification, anatomy & physiology, and ecology & behavior". Quaternary International. 126–128: 5–20. Bibcode:2005QuInt.126....5S. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2004.04.011. ISSN 1040-6182.
  2. ^ Cuvier, Georges (1806). "Sur différentes dents du genre des mastodontes, mais d'espèces moindres que celle de l'Ohio, trouvées en plusieurs lieux des deux continents". Annales du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle. 7: 401–420.
  3. ^ Fischer, Gotthelf (1813). Zoognosia tabulis synopticis illustrata in Usum Praelectionem Academiae Imperialis Medico-Chirurgicae Mosquensis Edita: Vol 3. Classium, ordinum, generum illustratione perpetua aucta [Illustrated Zoognosia in Synoptic Tables, Produced from Lectures in the Imperial Medico-Surgical Academy of Moscow by the Author, Gotthelf Fischer: Vol. 3, Classes, Orders, Genera, Enlarged Throughout with Illustration] (in Latin). Vol. 3 (1 ed.). Moscow: Nikolai Sergeyevich Vsevolozhsky.
  4. ^ Cuvier, Georges (1824). "Recherches sur les ossemens fossiles, ou l'on rétablit les caractères de plusieurs animaux dont les révolutions du globe ont détruit les espèces". Chez G. Dufour et E. d'Ocagne. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Mothé, Dimila; dos Santos Avilla, Leonardo; Asevedo, Lidiane; Borges-Silva, Leon; Rosas, Mariane; Labarca-Encina, Rafael; Souberlich, Ricardo; Soibelzon, Esteban; Roman-Carrion, José Luis; Ríos, Sergio D.; Rincon, Ascanio D.; Cardoso de Oliveira, Gina; Pereira Lopes, Renato (30 September 2016). "Sixty years after 'The mastodonts of Brazil': The state of the art of South American proboscideans (Proboscidea, Gomphotheriidae)" (PDF). Quaternary International. 443: 52–64. Bibcode:2017QuInt.443...52M. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2016.08.028.
  6. ^ νότιος. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project
  7. ^ Perea, D.; Alberdi, M. T. (2015-12-30). "Los gonfotéridos (Mammalia, Proboscidea) de Uruguay: taxonomía, estratigrafía y cronología". Estudios Geológicos. 71 (2): e036. doi:10.3989/egeol.41864.346. ISSN 1988-3250.
  8. ^ a b Labarca, R.; Alberdi, M.T.; Prado, J.L.; Mansilla, P.; Mourgues, F.A. (18 April 2016). "Nuevas evidencias acerca de la presencia de Stegomastodon platensis Ameghino, 1888, Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae, en el Pleistoceno tardío de Chile central/New evidences on the presence of Stegomastodon platensis Ameghino, 1888, Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae, in the Late Pleistocene of Central Chile". Estudios Geológicos. 72.
  9. ^ Mothé, Dimila; Avilla, Leonardo (15 February 2015). "Mythbusting evolutionary issues on South American Gomphotheriidae (Mammalia: Proboscidea)". Quaternary Science Reviews. 110: 23–25. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2014.12.013.
  10. ^ a b Lucas, Spencer G.; Yuan, Wang; Min, Liu (2013-01-01). "The palaeobiogeography of South American gomphotheres" (PDF). Journal of Palaeogeography. 2 (1): 19–40. doi:10.3724/SP.J.1261.2013.00015 (inactive 28 February 2022).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of February 2022 (link)
  11. ^ Mothé, Dimila; Avilla, Leonardo S.; Cozzuol, Mario A. (2012). "The South American Gomphotheres (Mammalia, Proboscidea, Gomphotheriidae): Taxonomy, Phylogeny, and Biogeography". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 20: 23–32. doi:10.1007/s10914-012-9192-3. ISSN 1064-7554. S2CID 17476047.
  12. ^ Mothé, Dimila; Avilla, Leonardo S.; Cozzuol, Mário; Winck, Gisele R. (25 October 2012). "Taxonomic revision of the Quaternary gomphotheres (Mammalia: Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae) from the South American lowlands". Quaternary International. 276–277: 2–7. Bibcode:2012QuInt.276....2M. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.05.018.
  13. ^ a b Mothé, Dimila; Ferretti, Marco P.; Avilla, Leonardo S. (12 January 2016). "The Dance of Tusks: Rediscovery of Lower Incisors in the Pan-American Proboscidean Cuvieronius hyodon Revises Incisor Evolution in Elephantimorpha". PLOS ONE. 11 (1): e0147009. Bibcode:2016PLoSO..1147009M. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0147009. PMC 4710528. PMID 26756209.
  14. ^ Ferretti, Marco P. (2010). "Anatomy of Haplomastodon chimborazi (Mammalia, Proboscidea) from the late Pleistocene of Ecuador and its bearing on the phylogeny and systematics of south American gomphotheres". Geodiversitas. 32 (4): 663–721. doi:10.5252/g2010n4a3. S2CID 86792928.
  15. ^ Mothé, Dimila; Ferretti, Marco P.; Avilla, Leonardo S. (2017-06-03). "Running Over the Same Old Ground: Stegomastodon Never Roamed South America". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 26 (2): 165–177. doi:10.1007/s10914-017-9392-y. ISSN 1064-7554. S2CID 23041930.
  16. ^ Cione, A.L., Gasparini, G.M., Soibelzon, E., Soibelzon, L.H., Tonni, E.P., 2015. The Great American Biotic Interchange in Southern South America: Land Mammal Biostratigraphy, Climatic Evolution and Faunal Integration. Springer Briefs in Earth System Sciences. Springer, New York-London
  17. ^ Buckley, Michael; Recabarren, Omar P.; Lawless, Craig; García, Nuria; Pino, Mario (November 2019). "A molecular phylogeny of the extinct South American gomphothere through collagen sequence analysis". Quaternary Science Reviews. 224: 105882. Bibcode:2019QSRv..22405882B. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.105882.
  18. ^ Baleka, Sina; Varela, Luciano; Tambusso, P. Sebastián; Paijmans, Johanna L.A.; Mothé, Dimila; Stafford, Thomas W.; Fariña, Richard A.; Hofreiter, Michael (December 2021). "Revisiting proboscidean phylogeny and evolution through total evidence and palaeogenetic analyses including Notiomastodon ancient DNA". iScience. 25 (1): 103559. doi:10.1016/j.isci.2021.103559. PMC 8693454. PMID 34988402.
  19. ^ Larramendi, A. (2016). "Shoulder height, body mass and shape of proboscideans" (PDF). Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 61. doi:10.4202/app.00136.2014. S2CID 2092950.
  20. ^ Dantas, Mário André Trindade; Xavier, Márcia Cristina Teles; França, Lucas de Melo; Cozzuol, Mario Alberto; Ribeiro, Adauto de Souza; Figueiredo, Ana Maria Graciano; Kinoshita, Angela; Baffa, Oswaldo (2013-12-13). "A review of the time scale and potential geographic distribution of Notiomastodon platensis (Ameghino, 1888) in the late Pleistocene of South America" (PDF). Quaternary International. Quaternary in South America: recent research initiatives. 317: 73–79. Bibcode:2013QuInt.317...73D. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2013.06.031.
  21. ^ Asevedo, Lidiane; Winck, Gisele R.; Mothé, Dimila; Avilla, Leonardo S. (2012). "Ancient diet of the Pleistocene gomphothere Notiomastodon platensis (Mammalia, Proboscidea, Gomphotheriidae) from lowland mid-latitudes of South America: Stereomicrowear and tooth calculus analyses combined". Quaternary International. 255: 42–52. Bibcode:2012QuInt.255...42A. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.08.037. ISSN 1040-6182.
  22. ^ Mothé, Dimila; Avilla, Leonardo S.; Winck, Gisele R. (26 November 2010). "Population structure of the gomphothere Stegomastodon waringi (Mammalia: Proboscidea: Gomphotheriidae) from the Pleistocene of Brazil" (PDF). Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências. 82 (4): 983–996. doi:10.1590/S0001-37652010005000001. ISSN 0001-3765. PMID 21152772. S2CID 31936632. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 February 2020.
  23. ^ Mothé, D.; Avilla, L.S.; Araújo-Júnior, H.I.; Rotti, A.; Prous, A.; Azevedo, S.A.K. (February 2020). "An artifact embedded in an extinct proboscidean sheds new light on human-megafaunal interactions in the Quaternary of South America". Quaternary Science Reviews. 229: 106125. Bibcode:2020QSRv..22906125M. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.106125. S2CID 214274776.
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